Squat with the cambered bar that spares your shoulders and elbows.
The bar's curve makes it sway, so keep a tight grip and stay braced through the whole rep.
The buffalo bar's camber drops your hands lower and rotates your shoulders into a far more comfortable position than a straight bar, which is why it's the squat bar of choice for lifters with beaten-up shoulders and elbows. Underneath, it's still a full squat, your quads drive out of the hole and your glutes finish the hips, but the curved bar sways slightly, so your brace and upper back get taxed keeping it settled. It earns its place as a way to keep squatting heavy when the straight bar position hurts.
Comfort at the shoulders and elbows. The camber means you don't need the same mobility to hold the bar, so lifters with shoulder or bicep tendon issues can keep squatting hard instead of dropping the lift.
The curve shifts the bar's mass and it oscillates if your reps aren't smooth. Grip the bar hard, brace before you move, and keep your descent controlled, the sway settles when your tempo does.
Close, but give it a session or two. The sway and the slightly different bar position take adjustment, so start around 10 percent lighter and build back up once it feels stable.
