5.2.2.5 Squat
“If a lifter cannot squat 100 kg, he is very unlikely to be able to clean and jerk it.”
Squats are a key accessory lift for you. You can work really, really hard at your lifting but if you cannot get the stimulus and loading right on your legs, you won’t progress.
If legs are your weakness, do your squats before you do your lifting and pulls. This is because you improve most on the exercises that you do first in a training session.
The most important thing to consider is their execution. Squats should always appear fast and explosive. If you are training at such an intensity that they appear slow and laboured then you had doing them too heavy.
The right stimulus for squats can be found at as low as 80% of your 1RM. So if your best backsquat is 150kg, then 3s on 120 is a good strength training minimum. Squats are used at the end of a training session to finish off your legs if you have some steam in the tank left over. If leg strength is not your weakness a simple 4 set of 3 reps at ~80% is a good level to aim for. Try to squat at least 3x per week.