Barbell Squat Help!

weightliftingdiva

Hi everyone! I'm doing Strong Lifts and I just made it to squatting 100 lbs. Yay! However as I've been increasing weight I'm having a problem. On the way back up I'm finding that I'm falling forward too much, to the point where I feel like I'm off balance.

I try and keep my back flat and my pelvis pushed back on the down. I keep a narrow grip and focus on contracting my upper back muscles (lats? i'm sorry I'm a noob), with the bar balanced higher up on the back.

Does anyone have any ideas of why I'm falling forward and how to fix it? Thanks!

Jason3589

widen your stance?

SezxyStef

you are going to be asked to post a video...it's hard to say how to improve form without actually seeing it.

But if you feel like you are leaning forward are you pushing your knees out as you drive up? where is the bar positioned?

I find if I am not focused on my knees and the bar is too high I lean as well...another thing is are your hips coming up faster then the rest of your body...that often is the leading culprit of the lean...

others will correct me if I am wrong...I am just speaking from my own experience.

HappyStack

You're leaning forward, or not "sitting back" enough, or lifting your hips up while the shoulders stay low and "good morning"-ing the weight instead of squatting or all of the above.

When you squat, you should feel the majority of the force through your heels and your outer foot. If you can wiggle your toes, you're using the right part of your foot.

You may have to lower the weight and work on your form.

Bun_Ya

Look at pictures of 'high bar squat vs low bar squat' and tell us where you put the bar. If it's low then leaning forward is to be expected. If high then it's something else.

JenMc14

I try to focus on sitting back and keeping the majority of my weight in my heels, then driving up through my heels. Obviously over correcting could have you falling backward, though. Try dropping the weight and focus on sitting back and see if you feel a difference from your normal form. It could be that your form is off, but it doesn't affect you at lower weights. If you're at the gym, could you ask a trainer or someone else in the weight room (if there's anyone there who seems to know what they're doing) to give you a quick form check?

weightliftingdiva

I'm looking at pictures of high bar versus low bar, and I thought I was doing high bar but honestly I think I'm actually doing low bar. :embarassed: Which one does everyone recommend?

I'm going to work on widening my stance and pushing through with my feet. If I still feel like I'm leaning forward after that I'll ask a friend to take a video of me.

JamBlaze

Also - what kind of shoes are you wearing? A lot of trainers have a bit of a heel on them, which doesn't help matters.

asdelmonte

Also - what kind of shoes are you wearing? A lot of trainers have a bit of a heel on them, which doesn't help matters.

^^ This. Try lifting in Chuck Taylors.

IronSmasher

High or low, you still shouldn't feel like you're falling forwards. As already stated, you need to concentrate on driving the force through you heels.
The idea that you're firing your legs too much, too soon is a good shout. I see it all of the time. You end up getting a sore lower back because what you end up doing is an extremely heavy 'good morning'.

Concentrate on pushing the bar up, on your shoulders travelling up through the movement instead of only thinking about your legs.

HappyStack

I'm looking at pictures of high bar versus low bar, and I thought I was doing high bar but honestly I think I'm actually doing low bar. :embarassed: Which one does everyone recommend?

I'm going to work on widening my stance and pushing through with my feet. If I still feel like I'm leaning forward after that I'll ask a friend to take a video of me.

Low bar is best for recruiting all of the posterior chain, but even a high-bar squat (sitting on the traps) won't make you feel off-balance at the top of the squat if you're doing everything else correctly.

If your stance is already wide (i.e. wider than shoulder width, aka sumo stance/powerlifting stance), trying to widen it further could lead to more issues. Just work on "sitting back" and driving through your heels in the stance you currently have. If you change everything at once, it makes it harder to pinpoint the issue.

geekyjock76

Could be lack in mobility at the ankle, hip or hamstrings preventing you from pushing your butt back enough and getting on your heels properly. You could be allowing your pelvis to tilt back too much. You could be wearing shoes that lack stability. If you draw a line from the barbell down to the floor, where is it in relation to your ankle/heels?

Bun_Ya

I'm looking at pictures of high bar versus low bar, and I thought I was doing high bar but honestly I think I'm actually doing low bar. :embarassed: Which one does everyone recommend?

There is really no need to feel embarrassed, it's an easy mistake to make.

People will recommend different bar placement for different reasons (a simplification - high bar = quads, low bar = glutes, hips, ham strings) but it all depends on what your goals are. As you're doing Strong Lifts I presume your main goals are strength rather than looks or any particular athletic application. If that is the case then you can just do whichever you prefer.

Obviously this is all from some guy on the internet who hasn't seen you squat and is working on the idea of you using a different bar placement than you thought. You need someone to watch you for any kind of certainty.

MstngSammy

In for info

juliewatkin

Try driving your elbows under the bar. I used to be plagued with a 'good morning' out of the hole. This means I was folding over and my hips were rising faster than my shoulders. When you are ascending out of the hole, drive your elbows forward, under the bar. That action forces your chest up and makes you a bit more upright. However, a low bar squat will naturally force more forward lean than a high bar squat due to the simple physics of levers.

You may also find that you are leaning a bit to accommodate heavier weight on your back that you don't feel you can properly support. I will still do that when the weight goes up. I bring my hands in as tight as I can get them into my shoulders to build a bit of a bench on my back to hold the weight. I will also cast my wrists with wraps to keep them from cocking and rolling. I wouldn't worry about doing that though.

LolBroScience

Video would be the easiest to assess, since it could be any number of different things.

LolBroScience

Try driving your elbows under the bar. I used to be plagued with a 'good morning' out of the hole. This means I was folding over and my hips were rising faster than my shoulders. When you are ascending out of the hole, drive your elbows forward, under the bar. That action forces your chest up and makes you a bit more upright. However, a low bar squat will naturally force more forward lean than a high bar squat due to the simple physics of levers.

You may also find that you are leaning a bit to accommodate heavier weight on your back that you don't feel you can properly support. I will still do that when the weight goes up. I bring my hands in as tight as I can get them into my shoulders to build a bit of a bench on my back to hold the weight. I will also cast my wrists with wraps to keep them from cocking and rolling. I wouldn't worry about doing that though.

Also this. This elbows cue really helped me.

TwoPointZero

You're leaning forward, or not "sitting back" enough, or lifting your hips up while the shoulders stay low and "good morning"-ing the weight instead of squatting or all of the above.

When you squat, you should feel the majority of the force through your heels and your outer foot. If you can wiggle your toes, you're using the right part of your foot.

Without a video, best guess is this ^^^.

CoachDreesTraining

It's hard to diagnose the issue without seeing a video, but it's perfectly fine to lean forward during the movement as long as you keep a neutral spine position. It only becomes a problem if you let your shoulders roll forward or if you put an excessive arch in your back.

I would recommend using a high bar squat - much less stress on the lower back and hips.

JoRocka

High or low, you still shouldn't feel like you're falling forwards. As already stated, you need to concentrate on driving the force through you heels.
The idea that you're firing your legs too much, too soon is a good shout. I see it all of the time. You end up getting a sore lower back because what you end up doing is an extremely heavy 'good morning'.

Concentrate on pushing the bar up, on your shoulders travelling up through the movement instead of only thinking about your legs.

this sounds about right- I know I have the issue as I get really heavy- really pushing the earth away from me mentally is helping rather than thinking "stand up"


and as for which is better or not- there is no right answer to high or low. It's what works best for you- or if you are specfically trying to target certain areas.

I prefer high- low tends to give me back problems and weird spinal compression I'm not happy with during high volume squatting.

weightliftingdiva

Thanks everyone. I'll let you know how tomorrow goes! The goal is to drive down in the heels more. I'll see if that helps.

sjaplo

Bump to remind myself - I found the same thing this morning and I think it was not pushing up properly.

lemonshredding

Weight in heels, chest up and open, squeeze your butt to come back up and before you squat take a deep breath - it naturally opens the chest.

Em x

steve0820

All great advice here already, have you ever tried a box squat? Helps a lot of people learn to "sit" and rest even at the bottom so you can focus on the drive back up.

mjudd1990

Do body weight squats as well as just sit in the hole for a minute or two before you even touch the bar. Simple piece of advice that has always helped me stay on my heels is just to lift your big toes off the ground throughout the movement. If you can't do that, then you are leaning too far forward.

lifeisbueno

work on your hip mobility. www.mobilitywod.com has some awesome mobility stretches. think about shoving your knees outwards in the bottom of the squat and activating your "prison butt"

juliewatkin

Weight in heels, chest up and open, squeeze your butt to come back up and before you squat take a deep breath - it naturally opens the chest.

Em x

Except you should breathe into your belly, not chest.

JTick

It might help to drop the weight back off the bar and work on driving through your heels. Even though I'm up to squatting 200 lbs now, I always do a couple warm ups with an empty bar to make sure my form is there before I add my plates on. Also, I found that when I added front squats in to my routine, my back squat form improved even more. The front squats really helped with staying upright and squatting through my heels.

balancedbrunette

interesting advice on here, think i also need to work on driving through my heels from the sound of things, will practice at my next session without the weights first.