The leg-day move that humbles everyone, now with a barbell.
Keep your weight in the front heel and torso tall. Don't push off the back toes.
Elevating your rear foot piles nearly everything onto the front leg, and the barbell on your back turns that single leg workload into a genuinely heavy lift. The front quad grinds through the full range while the glute controls and drives the hip, one leg at a time, so weak sides have nowhere to hide. Brutal is the honest word, effective is the other one.
The bar frees your hands and lets you load past the point where holding dumbbells becomes a grip and balance problem. The trade is less room to bail, so own the dumbbell version and your balance before putting a bar on your back.
Usually your stance is too short, driving the front knee excessively forward and jamming the back leg. Lengthen your stride, drop straight down between your legs, and keep the rear foot relaxed on the bench, it is a balance point, not a pusher.
Widen your stance laterally a touch, think train tracks rather than tightrope, and screw the front foot into the floor. If it is still shaky, park the barbell and rebuild with bodyweight until the position is boring.
