Squats?

MsNewBooty83

knees never past ur toes and squat as if you about to sit back into a chair. maybe go deper into ur squats as u build more strength, might eliminate that tendancy to want to lean forward into it (which is probly ur body just trying to naturally find its balance point). also your weight should be pushing into ur heels, my toes always stay a little lifted as i squat. i hope that helps a little and doesnt sound as confusing to you as it was for me to write! lol

"A study done by Fry AC, Smith JC, Schilling BK. (Effect of knee position on hip and knee torques during the barbell squat. J Strength Cond Res. 2003 Nov;17(4):629-33) examined joint kinetics during back squats under two conditions. The first condition placed a board in front of the participants’ shins, which restricted forward displacement of the knee. In the second condition, movement wasn’t restricted at all. They squatted normally and the knees were allowed to pass the toes.

The researchers found that restricting the forward excursion of the knees during the squat (not allowing the knees to go over toes) increased anterior lean of the trunk and promoted an increased “internal angle at the knees and ankles.”

The results showed a 22% decrease in knee torque and a 1070% increase in hip torque! That stress has to go somewhere. Keeping the knees behind the toes definitely reduces the forces on the knee, but those forces were transferred more than tenfold to the hips and lower back."

Forces at the hip/lower back at such a dramatically increased rate are not acceptable, and natural joint movement should be encouraged, included knees over toes (dependent on foot positioning, whether or not there is excessive pronation/supination, etc.) as long as there is minimal compensation at another joint (in the case of this study, hip and low back)

s*** good to know! thank you!

Natihilator

"A study done by Fry AC, Smith JC, Schilling BK. (Effect of knee position on hip and knee torques during the barbell squat. J Strength Cond Res. 2003 Nov;17(4):629-33) examined joint kinetics during back squats under two conditions. The first condition placed a board in front of the participants’ shins, which restricted forward displacement of the knee. In the second condition, movement wasn’t restricted at all. They squatted normally and the knees were allowed to pass the toes.

The researchers found that restricting the forward excursion of the knees during the squat (not allowing the knees to go over toes) increased anterior lean of the trunk and promoted an increased “internal angle at the knees and ankles.”

The results showed a 22% decrease in knee torque and a 1070% increase in hip torque! That stress has to go somewhere. Keeping the knees behind the toes definitely reduces the forces on the knee, but those forces were transferred more than tenfold to the hips and lower back."

Forces at the hip/lower back at such a dramatically increased rate are not acceptable, and natural joint movement should be encouraged, included knees over toes (dependent on foot positioning, whether or not there is excessive pronation/supination, etc.) as long as there is minimal compensation at another joint (in the case of this study, hip and low back)

Thanks for this, I have hip and lower back problems and I have to be so careful when doing squats, maybe this will help!

jenhelle

Mark Rippletoe has some good videos on youtube too.
I use a wider stance, & there is a pocket that I feel myself hinge into if that makes any sense.
I think you should do as others have said, & hold on to something until you feel more comfortable.

jcolier

Try to lower your head a little. Looking up will arch your back. I see many people lifting their head up to watch themselves in the mirror, which naturally arches their back.

halleymw

One thing that I found helpful is practicing the squat while facing a wall. Start about a foot away, and move closer as you improve your technique, until you can do it with your toes just a couple of inches from the wall.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pye8XXTf7c

Mike