can't do front squats?

[cryotank]

I would really like to do front squats but I cannot get the bar in to a 'comfortable' position. Either it's choking me or its lying on my collarbones (which stand out a bit).

Do I just need to get my wrists more flexible to get my arms higher or what could the solution be?

Cheers!

[tarun]

Your upper arm should be parallel to the floor...as in your upper arms should form a 90 degree angle with your arm pits when viewed from the side. Elbows high. Your wrist flexibility will develop once you front squat more. The bar shouldn't really be choking you... it should sit right on top of your clavicle (collar bone)...it does take some getting used to (harder to breathe on front squats than back squats)

[NotNowChief]

Ideally the weight rests on your front delts which naturally come up and forward when you get your elbows up high as suggested.

[cryotank]

Ideally the weight rests on your front delts which naturally come up and forward when you get your elbows up high as suggested.

That's how I understand it but my collarbones stick out a lot and the bar kinda rests on them and not on a muscle...

[ricepower]

Unless you are looking to do clean & push press combos in the future, for many people learning the clean grip can be a waste of time. By all means work on tricep/forearm flexibility and concentrate on having bar right next to throat with arms horizontal. But you may find you still struggle.

If you want to still get the benefits of front squats just accept it and switch to cross-armed grip.

[NotNowChief]

I actually use a cross grip due to those very same flex problems. Feels alot better than you'd think and since the elbows are still high you still get that shoulder to rest it on.

[NorthstarUK]

I had this problem when I first started doing front squats with the clean grip - I even left the gym with blue clavicles!

As stated above learning to push the elbows up higher to get the bar to rest on the delts was the answer, though this was not without some wrist pain. I've stuck with it and they feel ok now.

Just keep trying and eventually the penny drops and you'll get the bar comfy! By all means try the cross grip too, but i dropped the bar when I tried it!

[JasonLB]

Ideally the weight rests on your front delts which naturally come up and forward when you get your elbows up high as suggested.

That's how I understand it but my collarbones stick out a lot and the bar kinda rests on them and not on a muscle...

I'm the same way. It'll be painful for a while but you will get used to it. While keeping your chest high, spread your scapulas and lift your shoulders as you dip under the bar (kind of like doing a lat spread like a body builder), then once the bar is set, push your elbows forward and up (pushing them in, towards the center line of your body, helps if you have extra long forearms preventing you from getting your elbows high) -- that creates a better shelf for the bar, in my experience. Go to 4:10 of the below video to see what I mean:

[lint]

don't just think elbows higher, think higher and in. When in the rack position, push your elbows together and fill your lungs. This should help bring your delts up and forward and hopefully give you a shelf for the bar.

[cryotank]

Thanks guys! Will try and keep u posted!