Pain from squats

glwerth

Not from the movements or the weight, but from the bar across my back/shoulders (that's a hard area to define).

I'm getting bruising there where the bar rests, in any case. Will this go away eventually? Grow a callus or something or will I get used to it?

Any advice would be welcomed!

Leadfoot_Lewis

What is your bar position - high or low?

Low bar is much more comfortable as you can grip the bar closer, stick your elbows up, which squeezes your traps together and gives the bar a nice place to rest.

I do high bar (personal preference) for Step Ups, Calf Raises, and Lunges and I do break out the old barbell pad for those.

glwerth

What is your bar position - high or low?

Low bar is much more comfortable as you can grip the bar closer, stick your elbows up, which squeezes your traps together and gives the bar a nice place to rest.

I do high bar (personal preference) for Step Ups, Calf Raises, and Lunges and I do break out the old barbell pad for those.

High...and it hurts my shoulder too, maybe I'll try low next time and see if that helps. The pad they have at the gym falls off all the time, so I don't use it.

I didn't know about high/low, so thanks for sending me on the search!

I'm still pretty new to this whole lifting thing.

Leadfoot_Lewis

High...and it hurts my shoulder too, maybe I'll try low next time and see if that helps. The pad they have at the gym falls off all the time, so I don't use it.

I didn't know about high/low, so thanks for sending me on the search!

I'm still pretty new to this whole lifting thing.

Cool, glad I helped out.

I've always used low bar for squats - I think you'll find it much more comfortable and it will put your body in a better position when squatting as well.

auddii

I agree about making the shelf with low bar squats. I thought I was too fat to have one, but it turns out I was dropping my elbows. If you keep them pulled back, it make a nice, comfortable spot (low) to rest the bar.

tameko2

I agree about making the shelf with low bar squats. I thought I was too fat to have one, but it turns out I was dropping my elbows. If you keep them pulled back, it make a nice, comfortable spot (low) to rest the bar.

^^ this exactly. Look for some pictures - I think there's one on the stronglifts blog - especially of women or thinner guys so you can actually see them kind of squeezing their shoulder blades back together (whereas with a big built up guy its harder to see that)

Fittreelol

I agree about making the shelf with low bar squats. I thought I was too fat to have one, but it turns out I was dropping my elbows. If you keep them pulled back, it make a nice, comfortable spot (low) to rest the bar.

Same here. I was having front shoulder pain when I squatted. I was iming with a friend and he suggested I wasn't flexing enough. I found a good video where the guy said it was like a back bicep flex. Since I've been practicing that my shoulders are so happy.