Getting lower on squats?
haley183
Posts: 24 Member
Any recommendations/tips on how to get your butt lower doing squats? I workout alone at home and I finally videotaped myself so I could see how my form is. I am not getting low enough so my thighs aren't getting all the way parallel to the ground. When I try to get my butt lower, I end up just bending over more so my back gets lower...I hope that makes sense...so then its harder to stand back up.
I am thinking about going to see a personal trainer...I have access to free personal trainers on the military base I work on but I am really self conscious and don't like people watching me. Plus, working out at one of the base gyms... I feel like my self consciousness will be worse with hot army dudes walking around! lol.
I am thinking about going to see a personal trainer...I have access to free personal trainers on the military base I work on but I am really self conscious and don't like people watching me. Plus, working out at one of the base gyms... I feel like my self consciousness will be worse with hot army dudes walking around! lol.
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Replies
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How much weight are you using? Any form issues are usually easiest to correct if you deload so you can concentrate more on form.
Also work on your hip and ankle mobility as those can hinder squat form. I like to just squat (no weight) with a wide stance, putting my elbows on the inside of my knees and just holding there.0 -
This is hard for me too. What is helping me is this: Face a wall, stand about 8" away from it. Then place feet wider than hips and point out at 45 degree. Put your hands behind your head and pull your shoulder blades back, keep just a slight arch in your back. Practice squatting like that (push knees out, not in) without weight until you get used to the form. Remember to keep your back tight and break at the hips first. Don't let your face hit the wall!0
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I also agree with what the others have said. Mobility work is really important. Also, what type of squats are you doing? High or low bar? That will factor in to how low you can go as well.0
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When I try to get my butt lower, I end up just bending over more so my back gets lower...I hope that makes sense...
i can picture it . . . and i can see how leaning forward instead would make the recovery harder since doing that lets the bar get out in front of your centre of gravity, i.e. not directly over your heels/mid-foot. and then you can't use your body's biggest muscles (your legs) to help you stand up again either. also, i'm just guessing, but when i try that out in my mind, i find myself actually needing to raise my bum in order to counterbalance the bar. basically, in my mental model of it, my back's like a lever and the bar pushing down on one end (my shoulders) kind of has to either make me curve my back forwards, or bring my bum up in the air on the other end. it would definitely make coming back up much harder, since first you'd have to straighten your back to bring the bar back into alignment over your feet, before you'd be able to use any of the strength in your legs.
anyway. not especially helpful, i guess.
can you tell which part of your body is stopping you from getting to/below parallel? that might help people to know what kinds of suggestions to make. or if it's more of a balance thing/fear of falling, that would bring out different ideas as well. me, i don't have any problem getting my bum down in the squat
it's just, sometimes once i'm down there it feels so peaceful and restful, i don't really feel like i want to try standing back up.
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I was having this issue too. I could get my thighs to parallel, but I couldn't get any lower. I took my squats from 175 down to 115 to fix my form issues. Now that I've fixed my form issues, I am working back up and still able to break parallel going down. I basically restarted 5x5 for squats to be able to get the form right.
Another thing that might help, if it's from tight hips, is to do some yoga hip openers. I was also having issues with tight hips, piriformis issues, and IT band tightness. Since I started doing just a few stretches for my hips, hamstrings, quads, and glutes, I've seen a better ROM on all of my lifts.0 -
I had the same issue early on. I agree with what's been said already. Delmas and practice going lower. How wide is your stance? I went back to using just the bar & played around with my stance to find what worked. It sounds like you are pitching forward & not pushing up through your heels, too. Footwear could be an issue. Are you wearing a running style shoe or something flat?0
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Llamapants - I just started a couple weeks ago so I'm only up to 60 lbs
VeryKatie - That sounds like a great idea. I will try that some tonight since today is my rest day.
Spirit - I've been doing the low bar. Would it help if I did the high bar?
Canadian - You are totally right on your description of my upper body getting too low! It does put the bar too far forward messing up my center of gravitiy. I think I am afraid of falling backward when I try to get my legs lower so I lean forward too much putting me out of balance thus making recovery harder. I dont have a power rack...yet (hubby is getting me one for Christmas woohoo!)... so I think I dont feel as comfortable as I would if I had the rack backing me up for safety. I currently have a makeshift setup with sawhorses and cinder blocks (one of my friends said it looked like something out of a Rocky movie! haha).
xcalygrl - I've just been doing some basic stretches before starting but not really anything focused on loosening up my hips. I'll try that tonight and try to work on my form a little.
Thanks everybody for your suggestions! I'm a newbie when it comes to lifting free weights but I have played various competative sports in the past so I know that if you start with bad habits, then its extremely hard to correct them later. Since I am just starting out here, I want to make sure I work on getting things right in the beginning rather than doing it wrong all along thus making it harder on myself later. That whole muscle memory thing.0 -
This post was timely as I was just thinking about how low I go on squats. I have arthritis in both knees so have been doing only quarter squats but after reading up on the subject I think I will go back to the beginning on squats and start with a really low weight and work on form and getting to parallel.
You gals have some great ideas and I'm glad I joined the group.0 -
I'm still working on my form. I need to make a video of myself to check my form, like you did OP, but I'm a bit self conscious since I workout at a gym. I think you are on the right track in that you are thinking about it. Go for the free help from a trainer. I'm sure they will be happy to help you and getting good advice will help keeping you from getting injured. One of the regulars at my gym gave me some pointers on my squat technique (bar location) because he didn't want to see me hurt myself. I was a bit embarrassed at first but I really did appreciate the help. Now I feel like I can ask him the occasional form question
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I'm still working on my form. I need to make a video of myself to check my form, like you did OP, but I'm a bit self conscious since I workout at a gym. I think you are on the right track in that you are thinking about it. Go for the free help from a trainer. I'm sure they will be happy to help you and getting good advice will help keeping you from getting injured. One of the regulars at my gym gave me some pointers on my squat technique (bar location) because he didn't want to see me hurt myself. I was a bit embarrassed at first but I really did appreciate the help. Now I feel like I can ask him the occasional form question
As someone who works out in a gym and has videotaped herself, it's totally normal. It's the safest way to check form since trying to watch yourself in the side mirrors (if you even have that option) isn't always the best idea.
I agree with @sumiblue to go see a trainer. I recently did a free weight lifting event. I went in feeling confident, but I failed. (I wanted to hit 500 across the big three, but I only got 465.) But I walked away with form critiques that will make my lifts 1) safer and 2) heavier, so it's a win in my book. I've already implemented the form changes, videotaped, readjusted, videotaped, etc. and can feel and see a difference. Having a pro watch and critique is priceless (IMO).0 -
If I want to rebuild my squat form, how low would you suggest taking the weight? All the way back to just the bar, or a percentage of what I'm lifting now?0
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interesting. i think i actually had less trouble with balance when i went to low-bar, for some reason. you make your back into a shorter lever arm by placing the weight lower down. somehow for me that made it much easier to just bump my hips back so they could fold themselves out of the way, and then go straight down.
something strange that helped me more than i would ever have thunk was wearing a shirt that had a raglan sleeve line, and contrast-colour piping along the seams one day. i got myself sideways to the mirror and started doing my usual body-weight warmups while watching myself, i could SEE what was pretty much going to be my bar path, because there was this line of colour starting right underneath where the bar was going to be (i.e. just behind my armpit, under my shoulderblades. that was actually really neat and really helpful to see the path that the bar would be travelling - you want to drop pretty much straight down and then come straight back up again, of course.
also, this rippetoe video somehow put a few things together for me. i find him so entertaining i don't mind a whole 15 minutes, plus i like things explained to me with stick figures and skeletons.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLsnhIBTjaU ymmv, of course. 0 -
I'm still working on this as well.
I've seen two of the personal trainers at the gym with the first initial one, then later when I had some questions about form with rows and deadlifts. The first one showed me how to squat in general with a light bar and little bit of weight. The other watched me through the actual SL set of lifts and recommended a few things to keep my knees from going past my toes. Not sure on that factor but it's what she recommended.
I also feel a bit awkward going low cause my stomach ends up on my legs, so maybe when I get below the obese category it will feel a bit different. We'll see as I'm slowly making progress towards that goal.0 -
If I want to rebuild my squat form, how low would you suggest taking the weight? All the way back to just the bar, or a percentage of what I'm lifting now?
When I dropped my weight to work on form, I dropped from 175 down to 115. For me, 115 is "light" and an easy to work weight. Even though 115 was light, it still kicked my butt because I was completely revamping/correcting my squat form.
Choose a weight that you feel is "light," but one that will also still challenge you.0 -
I was thinking about this thread during my workout this morning. My gym only has a squat rack, not a power cage. I can only go so low unless I get out of the rack completely, away from the safeties. I am only 5'2" and when I go all the way down to almost touching the safeties I am just at parallel. I did a set of 5 with just 55lbs outside the rack to go very low and I really felt it. I hadn't been getting DOMS after squats for a while.0
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Spirit - I've been doing the low bar. Would it help if I did the high bar?
I apologize for the late reply! You've gotten a lot of great advice here and I would also recommend having a PT look at your squat or do a form check video. Low bar squats don't really need you to get ATG. Low bar hits the hamstrings more and going to parallel and slightly below will stretch them out enough. There is also more forward lean in the low bar.
It's personal preference, but you can always try out high bar.
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I am out this week sick but have been scouring the internet for squat form videos and articles and one thing that stands out for me is that I have very long thighs relative to the rest of my body. When I am over this cold and can get back in the gym I am going to try some of the suggestions they make like squatting with a wider stance, toes out.
Your might need to address your body type with adjustments in form. Just a thought.0 -
If I want to rebuild my squat form, how low would you suggest taking the weight? All the way back to just the bar, or a percentage of what I'm lifting now?
When I dropped my weight to work on form, I dropped from 175 down to 115. For me, 115 is "light" and an easy to work weight. Even though 115 was light, it still kicked my butt because I was completely revamping/correcting my squat form.
Choose a weight that you feel is "light," but one that will also still challenge you.
Thanks for this!
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SouthernDaisy4 wrote: »I am out this week sick but have been scouring the internet for squat form videos and articles and one thing that stands out for me is that I have very long thighs relative to the rest of my body. When I am over this cold and can get back in the gym I am going to try some of the suggestions they make like squatting with a wider stance, toes out.
Your might need to address your body type with adjustments in form. Just a thought.
This is a very interesting point. I have fairly long legs in proportion to my height. In general men tend to have shorter legs and longer torsos, so I wonder if most advice is aimed at those body proportions? Similar with us having different hips and hip joints?0 -
Question My squat is getting less low as the weight gets heavy. Do you think I should continue to increase (as I feel I have it in me), or should I deload and work on form before things get worse?
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Question My squat is getting less low as the weight gets heavy. Do you think I should continue to increase (as I feel I have it in me), or should I deload and work on form before things get worse?
Your form will always break down a bit when the weight gets heavy. If you never push through a bit it'll be harder to gain strength. So it's about finding a happy medium between okay form and the challenge. When you reach the point where the reps are ugly per your risk vs rewards standard, is when you should deload. But just because you had one grinder or squatted an inch higher than usual doesn't mean you have to regress. Take a note and try to correct it the next workout. Chances are it'll be a little tighter the next time around.
That's my take on it, anyway 0 -
Question My squat is getting less low as the weight gets heavy. Do you think I should continue to increase (as I feel I have it in me), or should I deload and work on form before things get worse?
i'm having that with the 100lb sets of my mixed 95-and-100 experiment. not depth, but i'll start to fold in the middle like a cheap paperclip as i come out of the hole for the last rep of the last couple of sets ;-)
i guess i hold myself to about an 80 or 90% rule: out of the 25 reps in a given workout, i need to have at least 20 reps that are good and solid. and so long as i'm getting at least one more good rep each time compared with last time, i'll call that 'progress' and stay at that weight. but if i can't get 20, and/or i just don't seem to ever get any more than 20, then i guess i take it as time to back up. i don't want to be stuck for the rest of my life in an endless loop of never-improving 100lb squats.
that assumes that my form isn't getting the kind of ugly that scares bystanders too, of course.
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Thanks folks, appreciate those tips. I think I'm still doing ok.0
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So I deloaded a bunch on squats and have been really trying to get my form right. After all of your helpful suggestions and working on it while video taping myself, I think I finally have it mostly down. My thighs are now consistently getting parallel to the ground. Whew! No that I know what 'right' feels like, I think I'll do much better now. Thanks everyone! And good luck to everybody else trying to get lower too!0
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So I deloaded a bunch on squats and have been really trying to get my form right. After all of your helpful suggestions and working on it while video taping myself, I think I finally have it mostly down. My thighs are now consistently getting parallel to the ground. Whew! No that I know what 'right' feels like, I think I'll do much better now. Thanks everyone! And good luck to everybody else trying to get lower too!
Just a side-note: as your weight increases you may find it harder to keep your form correct. If that happens, don't be afraid to "stall" on your lifts for a few sessions to get your body used to the heavier weight while doing the proper form. (I've done that a couple of times as-of-late and it really has helped me with higher weight and form.)0 -
Glad it isn't just me having issues with depth - does anyone have any good exercises to increase flexibility? I feel that depth is an issue for me because of this rather than the actual weight. I have cut my weight right back and am still only at 60% of my max to work on form. I'm not sure how to identify which muscles/ joints are causing the problem?0
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I do lots of dynamic stretches before lifting jo focusing on my hips, and during the day, when appropriate and when I remember, Asian squats. If I've just done a set I'm not happy with I do a few very low body squats, hoping to remind my body what it should be doing.
I had a tight muscle in the groin which was really holding back my form a couple of months ago. I could tell that this was a problem because it hurt and also because I found my knee tracked inwards and around in order to protect that muscle.0 -
Glad it isn't just me having issues with depth - does anyone have any good exercises to increase flexibility? I feel that depth is an issue for me because of this rather than the actual weight. I have cut my weight right back and am still only at 60% of my max to work on form. I'm not sure how to identify which muscles/ joints are causing the problem?
Yoga squat pose--where your feet are pointed to the sides, you squat down low keeping your back straight, and use your elbows to gently press your thighs outward. Great for increasing flexibility, and getting you to feel your knees pushing put. If you find your upper body falls forward while squatting, you can also do this with your back against a wall.
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Glad it isn't just me having issues with depth - does anyone have any good exercises to increase flexibility? I feel that depth is an issue for me because of this rather than the actual weight. I have cut my weight right back and am still only at 60% of my max to work on form. I'm not sure how to identify which muscles/ joints are causing the problem?
Hip openers might help you the most with increasing flexibility and, therefore, depth. Pigeon pose, frog pose, and prayer squat from yoga are good ones. Another is to lay on your back on an elevated surface (like a bed or a bench) with your rear almost hanging over the side. Then pull one knee into your chest, letting the other leg hang free. Deep lunges are also good.
I did these stretches when rehabbing my knees. My hips and IT bands get tight and was causing my knees to ache after running. I've found that they also really help me warm up for squats.
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Thanks everyone - I am going to google all these and have a go. Deep lunges are fine (easy almost) for me - but yoga squats are very tricky. I know everything is tight in my legs from the agony caused by foam rolling (just got one for Christmas!). Just figuring out how to loosen things off is harder than anticipated! Thanks again everyone0
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