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  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
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    http://youtu.be/3vPDrTr28RM

    Squat 197.5kg/434lb x3

    Always helps to have a fresh set of eyes on your lifts, any thoughts?

    Looks fine to me, I assume this was maximal or close to it? Personally, I'm not a huge fan of such a quick descent but I've seen plenty of people do it successfully. You don't seem any worse for wear :)
  • QueenBishOTUniverse
    QueenBishOTUniverse Posts: 14,121 Member
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    Ok, so I've been working on my lifts. I backed the weight down on my squats and deadlifts to try and work form and have worked the weight back up. I'm running 5/3/1 and these are the lifts from my heaviest week so I'll be deloading next week and can work on any changes suggested.

    OHP:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTs9UxuO9SM&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA

    Bench:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rOrBJUL2NU&index=4&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA

    Deadlfts:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I5u4XCsExTI&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA&index=9

    Squats:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arw5CrmGfyI&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA&index=1

    Thanks for the input.
  • QueenBishOTUniverse
    QueenBishOTUniverse Posts: 14,121 Member
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    Now. My Husband started lifting SL 5x5 about a month ago. We struggled with his squats until we figured out he was mimicking my stance and needed to narrow it closer to hip width and that cleared the squat issue but that's why the weights are still pretty low on that lift.

    OHP:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNzz44XQgKw&index=2&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA
    After filming these sets he was complaining that his elbow was bugging him and I had him use a more narrow grip and that seemed to fix the elbow pain, so that has changed, but let me know if there's anything else you see that he can work on.

    Bench:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwZxJy8zGk4&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA&index=8

    Row:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjDq4Mlsb_I&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA&index=7

    Squat:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLhHnqyBkq4&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA&index=6
    He doesn't have the shoulder flexibility at this point to work the bar further down on his shoulders for low bar, but he's getting there.

    Deadlift:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ey8wGxbhC7g&index=3&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA
    Ok, I don't like how his back is curved during this lift, especially since he's had some back problems in the past, but he said it didn't bug him. After he finished we discussed what the issue might be and he says that when he squats down far enough to get his back strait it pushes the bar away from his shins (gut is getting in the way apparently...), but to keep it close to his shins he has to stand up taller which curves his back. Thoughts?
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
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    Ok, so I've been working on my lifts. I backed the weight down on my squats and deadlifts to try and work form and have worked the weight back up. I'm running 5/3/1 and these are the lifts from my heaviest week so I'll be deloading next week and can work on any changes suggested.

    OHP:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTs9UxuO9SM&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA

    Bench:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rOrBJUL2NU&index=4&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA

    Deadlfts:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I5u4XCsExTI&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA&index=9

    Squats:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arw5CrmGfyI&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA&index=1

    Thanks for the input.

    OHP looks pretty good. Just be aware that if your intentions are to have a strict form, you've got a decent amount of leg drive going on in some of your reps. Most notably, your first rep at 80lbs. If you want to be strict, try to keep those knees straight.

    Bench looks pretty good. If you're looking for more power, work on your leg drive, you don't appear to have any of it. It will help with stability and producing power. Furthermore, the second view shows a really narrow grip width. Narrow enough that I would call that a close-grip bench (more of a tricep isolation exercise). At the bottom of the movement, ideally you want your forearms close to vertical to the ground. Yours are leaning inwards due to a really narrow grip width. I'd experiment with pushing out your grip a couple inches on each side. It's not a big deal, these aren't really "bad form" but both things will definitely limit the weight you can push.

    Deadlifts, your hips are shooting up at the start of each rep. This takes your legs out of the movement and you're basically just levering up the weight using your lower back and glutes only. It will really limit the weight you can use (which is clear, since you're barely beating your bench press with your deadlift) and it increases the potential for injury. Your hips should rise at the same rate as the bar, and they shouldn't move at all until the bar starts moving. That's an easy thing to say; harder to envision/accomplish. I've made every deadlift mistake but I haven't made that one. It seems very common in women for some reason. Try this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJTTm1BEeg4

    Squats look pretty decent, it looks like you're leaning over way too far at the bottom of the lift. I can't tell if this is intentional or if your torso is collapsing. It looks like that's why you failed your last rep, you were really leaned over and your back wasn't strong enough to lever the weight back up again. Try to keep that torso a little more upright and solid to boot. Work on keeping that chest up and strong, don't let it fall forward. It puts a ton of strain on your lower back and will cause you to fail lifts for the exact reason that you demonstrate in the video. I've struggled big time with this one, trust me. It's still my #1 form error, falling forward at the bottom of the lift. Keep that back solid and that chest up and don't let it collapse for any reason. You should fail the lift due to your legs running out of steam, not because your lower back couldn't Good Morning the weight back up.

    Side note: your stance looks super wide with your feet turned way out, is there any particular reason for this? Just curious since I wonder if it's related. Usually with the wider stances, the more upright your torso has to be. If you squat with a super narrow stance, usually you have to lean over more to keep the bar balanced over the middle of your foot. You're kinda doing that, but with a really wide stance. For a random example of someone who squats competitively with a super wide stance, Check out Stan Efferding: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWYLrkYeaEI Really wide stance but watch how his torso stays more upright than normal, even though this is a low bar squat. He really keeps that chest up and the back solid throughout the entire lift.
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
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    Now. My Husband started lifting SL 5x5 about a month ago. We struggled with his squats until we figured out he was mimicking my stance and needed to narrow it closer to hip width and that cleared the squat issue but that's why the weights are still pretty low on that lift.

    OHP:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNzz44XQgKw&index=2&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA
    After filming these sets he was complaining that his elbow was bugging him and I had him use a more narrow grip and that seemed to fix the elbow pain, so that has changed, but let me know if there's anything else you see that he can work on.

    Bench:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwZxJy8zGk4&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA&index=8

    Row:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjDq4Mlsb_I&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA&index=7

    Squat:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLhHnqyBkq4&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA&index=6
    He doesn't have the shoulder flexibility at this point to work the bar further down on his shoulders for low bar, but he's getting there.

    Deadlift:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ey8wGxbhC7g&index=3&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA
    Ok, I don't like how his back is curved during this lift, especially since he's had some back problems in the past, but he said it didn't bug him. After he finished we discussed what the issue might be and he says that when he squats down far enough to get his back strait it pushes the bar away from his shins (gut is getting in the way apparently...), but to keep it close to his shins he has to stand up taller which curves his back. Thoughts?

    OHP, looks a little sloppy but I think he's not nearly at maximal weight yet so he can get away with it for now. Once he gets heavier he'll be forced to keep more rigid so I wouldn't worry about it too much. Tell him to keep those glutes tight and he probably won't move around so much. He's got a lot of body english going on (the swaying back and forth), Oh and yeah, that grip is pretty wide. I usually shoot for just outside shoulder width. When the bar is against my collarbones, my hands are touching my shoulders. My hands are almost at the very inside of the knurling for example (maybe one inch showing on the inside). Way more comfortable for my elbows and shoulders.

    Bench looks good. Per my post above about your grip width, pay attention because his grip width looks just about perfect for him here. Look at the difference between your video and his. Other than that, this looks really light and I don't see any leg drive (not that it's needed). Form breakdown will be more likely to show up as he gets heavier.

    Rows look pretty good (pendlay rows I assume). Make sure the bar is touching his sternum/stomach for full ROM. Gotta go all the way up.

    Squats are pretty good too, again it's hard to tell because all of the lifts look really easy for him so you really don't see any form break down.

    Deadlifts....hmmm where to start. His first rep actually starts off the closest. After that he's leaned way over and is barely even bending his legs at all. He's kinda doing what you do, in that he's just levering the bar up with his back and glutes and not even bending his legs or using them barely at all. The only difference is, you start with your hips low and they shoot up, he just starts with them all the way up. As I mentioned, this puts a ton of strain on the lower back. It probably doesn't hurt him because the weight is relatively light right now. It will hurt later when it gets heavier, trust me. Have him start in the position of his first rep, but then flatten out his back by bringing his shoulder blades together and down (put your shoulder blades in your back pocket is a common cue). This will force the chest up/out too. Having a neutral/flat back will be crucial to injury prevention, especially if he's already got a bad back.

    Furthermore, at the top of the lift he needs to stand up tall. Push his hips into the bar by squeezing the glutes. He wants to finish the movement standing straight up, not hunched over. Basically, hump the bar at the top of movement.
  • QueenBishOTUniverse
    QueenBishOTUniverse Posts: 14,121 Member
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    Hey Dope,

    Thanks as always for the help. Here are my thoughts/questions/concerns.

    Me first:
    OHP - I remember thinking I was using too much leg on that. I think I've gotten a little sloppy with that lately so I'll try to tighten it up.

    Bench - also noticed the narrow grip. I was working on keeping the elbows tucked in more from last time and may have inadvertently narrowed my grip as a result. As for the leg drive, clearly still clueless on that one. I think I understand the concept in principle, but I'm either forgetting it when I focus on the heavier lifts or failing at it. I'm leaning towards it being more of an issue of forgetting. I don't need it at the lighter weights so it's hard to "practice" it when I don't actually have to use it. It seems like when I push at lighter weights I end up just sliding myself along the bench.... :ohwell:

    DL - The good new is I think my hips are jumping a lot LESS then they were at the start of summer. I think I was all back at the start so I'm happy that the glutes are at least getting involved now :laugh: . Should I switch my focus to more of a leg press motion at the start of the lift and then lift/push the hips forwards after the bar is above the knees? I guess I'm a bit unclear on the mechanics of what is working where.....

    Squat - Yea, my back collapsed on the last rep. I actually had to reset once before that set because the bar was feeling really heavy on my back and I tried to reposition. I'm honestly not sure why I have such a wide stance. Probably a combination of it feeling more stable, being easier to push my knees out from that width because of hip mobility (still working on that, the stretch you linked me last time is amazing though) and that when I started lifting I had a lot more gut in the way which made a more narrow stance uncomfortable. I didn't even realize I COULD get below parallel with a narrower stance now until about a week or two ago in working with my husband. I can try working through my deaload and next round of weights with a narrower stance and see what happens.

    For the husband:
    OHP - I'll have him clean up the english :wink: . I notice it, but as you say, he won't get away with it as things get heavier. Although he swears every round now that he won't make it through the full 5x5 if it gets heavier on the next workout.

    Bench - he was actually complaining things felt too light this week, but he gets sloppy when he gets impatient so I'm trying to make him focus on the form and work through it even when it feels too light. Should I make him stick to 5lb increments on this or do you think he'd be ok to jump weight a bit?

    Row - he swears the bar touches his chest every time, I can't see it either but it might be because of his shirt.

    Squats - he laughed when I told him you said it looked easy, we went through such a fit trying to figure out a stance that would work to get him below parallel. His hips are VERY mobile and when he had the stance too wide he didn't have enough strength to get up out of the hole. He's better now and says OHP is his new nemesis, but this lift was making him punch things for a while :laugh: .

    DL - I was wondering if I should have him try a sumo stance on this one since he says he can't bend at the knees more without his gut getting in the way or his shins pushing the bar too far forward? Just a thought since we're both going to have to take some time this week to really work on getting perfectly set up on this lift anyways.
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
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    As for the leg drive, clearly still clueless on that one. I think I understand the concept in principle, but I'm either forgetting it when I focus on the heavier lifts or failing at it. I'm leaning towards it being more of an issue of forgetting. I don't need it at the lighter weights so it's hard to "practice" it when I don't actually have to use it. It seems like when I push at lighter weights I end up just sliding myself along the bench.... :ohwell:

    I have the same story. Personally, I have to practice/train consistently in order for things to sink in. Which means, every rep, no matter the weight, has to be the same. The only exception is adding some gadgets for maximal attempts (wrist wraps, belts, etc). But I practice leg drive even when I'm warming up with just the bar. It's the hundreds/thousands of reps that will instill it in your mind. So when the weight gets heavy and all you can think is "I'm gonna dieeeeeeeee" your training will kick in and you'll still do all the things you need to do correctly.

    So, having said that. Pushing yourself down the bench. I struggled with this mightily. Here are some tips:

    1) Dig your shoulders into the bench. I mean, seriously try to burrow them in during your setup. That should be the very first thing you do, get your shoulders set into the bench. On my bench, the vinyl material covering actually gets bunched up just on top of my shoulders, that's how much I dig myself in.
    2) Per the above, however, I have a newer rogue bench which has somewhat of a good friction surface on it. At my old gym, the benches were super worn and super smooth. Like the slickest vinyl imaginable. So I would stretch a resistance band or four (depending on thickness of the band) from one end of the bench to the other. So it would look like this:
    no-slip-bench-press-with-resistance-bands.jpg
    This picture reminded me of another trick. If you look closely, there is a layer of toolchest drawer liner under the bands to provide an even better surface. It's super "tacky" to prevent your tools from slipping inside of a toolchest drawer. This is the stuff:
    http://www.amazon.com/Big-Horn-19410-16-Inch-7-Feet/dp/B002LVUWMW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1412140124&sr=8-1&keywords=tool+chest+drawer+liner
    3) Try wearing a compression shirt instead of a cotton t-shirt. Cotton t-shirt + smooth vinyl == slide city

    Some combination of the above will absolutely keep your planted. With the above tricks, I can push myself as hard as possible and you know what happens? The bench slides on the floor (before I added rubber feet). So sticking yourself to the bench is crucial. It helps maintain your arch too, if you slide down the bench you generally flatten out.
    DL - The good new is I think my hips are jumping a lot LESS then they were at the start of summer. I think I was all back at the start so I'm happy that the glutes are at least getting involved now :laugh: . Should I switch my focus to more of a leg press motion at the start of the lift and then lift/push the hips forwards after the bar is above the knees? I guess I'm a bit unclear on the mechanics of what is working where.....

    Yeah, I'm not a very good coach on this one. That's what I was trying to say when I mentioned I've made every mistake but this one. One thing that may help is indeed to think of a DL as a two-part lift (that you perform more or less seamlessly). Ripping the bar off of the floor is basically a matter of solidifying your torso, and then trying to push the floor away with your legs. Once the bar reaches past your knees, THAT's when you hinge at the hips and try to push your hips towards the bar to straighten up. So your analogy of doing a leg press is probably pretty good. Building and maintaining that torso rigidity is the hard part.
    OHP - I'll have him clean up the english :wink: . I notice it, but as you say, he won't get away with it as things get heavier. Although he swears every round now that he won't make it through the full 5x5 if it gets heavier on the next workout.
    Is he totally new to weight lifting? If so, that makes sense. He barely looks like he's trying in any of his lifts, but it's probably a matter of him not realizing how strong he really is. I'll bet he doesn't even come close to stalling out until at least 100lbs on OHP. That's honestly half of the fun of weightlifting for me, realizing what I'm actually capable of.
    Bench - he was actually complaining things felt too light this week, but he gets sloppy when he gets impatient so I'm trying to make him focus on the form and work through it even when it feels too light. Should I make him stick to 5lb increments on this or do you think he'd be ok to jump weight a bit?
    Stick to the program, it will get really heavy before he knows it. Going slow is good, it will allow him to build up his technique and also acclimate his joints to the stress. His muscles will get strong fast but adding weight too fast is asking for an injury. And if he's impatient now, ask him how he's gonna feel when he has to take 6 months off of bench pressing due to hurting his shoulder or elbow or something. Trust me, I've been there, it's infuriating on a totally new level.
    DL - I was wondering if I should have him try a sumo stance on this one since he says he can't bend at the knees more without his gut getting in the way or his shins pushing the bar too far forward? Just a thought since we're both going to have to take some time this week to really work on getting perfectly set up on this lift anyways.

    He's definitely gonna have to experiment for a bit to figure this one out. Notice in my suggestions I didn't say for him to bend his knees more. He just needs to flatten his back out. It will take some getting used to. It's very unnatural for most people to deadlift correctly. Most people don't pick things up off the floor using their legs, they just bend over at the hip and then lever back up (similar to both of your current forms). Proper deadlift form is much different from that, and allows for a much greater weight lifted and with much less risk of injury. It just takes time to get used to. Sumo isn't a bad thing to try, I struggled with conventional for years before I finally gave up and switched to sumo and I do MUCH better now. I have a tall torso so sumo puts a lot less stress on my lower back. If he has a tall torso or short arms or tall legs then sumo will probably be optimal for him regardless. If he wants to stick to conventional, he may have to go with a wider stance to prevent stomach interference (I struggled with this too when I was over 300lbs).

    For things like this, I tend to video myself from the side for example. And then I will try setting up for a deadlift in a few different ways. Wider stance, narrower stance, different grips, different hip positions, etc. Then review the video and see at what point you actually looked correct and try to duplicate that. Makes trial and error easier.
  • n3ver3nder
    n3ver3nder Posts: 155 Member
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    SQUAT

    You - Are you hitting the safety bars on the way down? Stop it! Toes in, work on your ankle flexibility if this is the reason your toes are pointing out so much - it looks like you're rolling your feet inwards to compensate for a lack of mobility. Mobility WOD is your friend here. Read up on valgus knee collapse if ankle mobility isn't the issue but your knees don't seem to be collapsing inwards so I'd say ankles.

    Hubby - Tighter upper back, stick with high bar unless he wants to start powerlfiting. First rep is best then his bar path starts to wander. Tighter setup should sort this - watch http://youtu.be/zoZWgTrZLd8?t=44s

    BENCH

    You - DopeItUp has already said everything I would. Grip width and leg drive, keep feet flat.

    Hubby - get tight, slow down the descent. Keep feet flat.

    Get some blocks for you both to put your feet on whilst benching

    Lots of info here: http://www.powerliftingtowin.com/powerlifting-technique-bench-press-form/

    Deadlift

    You - Knees are 'locking out' too early - but they're soft at the top of the lift. Pause your video at 11 seconds, and you'll see that your hips are shooting up very high and you're pretty much doing a stiff leg deadlift. Having a better setup should solve this. (see below)

    Hubby - Tidy up the setup. If he starts the setup properly it'll probably clear up his lower back rounding. Lockout is soft - lock knees, engage glutes, pull shoulders back.

    This is from Starting Strength;
    1. Take your stance, feet a little closer than you think they need to be and with your toes out more than you like. Your shins should be about one inch from the bar, no more. This places the bar over the mid-foot – the whole foot, not the mid-instep.

    2. Take your grip on the bar, leaving your hips up. DO NOT MOVE THE BAR.

    3. Drop your knees forward and out until your shins touch the bar. DO NOT MOVE THE BAR.

    4. Hard part: squeeze your chest up as hard as you can. DO NOT MOVE THE BAR. This establishes a “wave” of extension that goes all the way down to the lumbar, and sets the back angle from the top down. DO NOT LOWER YOUR HIPS – LIFT THE CHEST TO SET THE BACK ANGLE.

    5. Squeeze the bar off the floor and drag it up your legs in contact with your skin/sweats until it locks out at the top. If you have done the above sequence precisely as described, the bar will come off the ground in a perfectly vertical path. All the slack will have come out of the arms and hamstrings in step 4, the bar will not jerk off the ground, and your back will be in good extension. You will perceive that your hips are too high, but if you have completed step 4 correctly, the scapulas, bar, and mid-foot will be in vertical alignment and the pull will be perfect. The pull will seem “shorter” this way.


    OHP

    You - Put the hooks for your rack on the outside of the rack. This way you'll be able to press with your stance shoulder width without the bar hitting the top of the rack, which I'm assuming is why you're lifting with quite a wide stance for OHP.

    Hubby - grips too wide, torso isn't tight - that's why he's leaning forward at the bottom of the reps. Keep glutes tight and core engaged. Watch https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqKhLR1zRaU

    Row - Form is great, assuming he's actually touching the chest, make sure he stays like that as the weight progresses.

    I implore you both to do a bit of homework and have a read through http://www.powerliftingtowin.com/powerlifting-technique/ and also watch the videos, to understand the whats and whys of technique in the big 3. .
  • QueenBishOTUniverse
    QueenBishOTUniverse Posts: 14,121 Member
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    Ok, questions and comments part 2:

    Squats - I have been using the bars as a cue for depth. I WAS NOT getting to parallel even though I thought I was before, so I use touching the bars as a way to make sure. I can stop doing this if it's going to be detrimental, but that was the reason for it. If I need to lower the bars, do you have any suggestions for other cues I can use to ensure I am at or below parallel? As for the ankles, I don't *think* a lack of mobility is the issue. My ankles are actually extremely loose and unstable from repeat injuries over years and years of being a klutz. I can basically dislocate them and they would just pop back in to place, that hurts a LOT, but I've done it....:grumble: I think this might be why I have such a wide stance on both this lift and the OHP, I just don't feel stable when my feet are closer together. I can work on breaking the habit though and will try working with a narrower stance on both lifts during my deload this week.

    DLs - the husband and I will both spend a lot of time this week working on set up to try and find a stance etc. that works the best for each of us. I did read starting strength six months ago before I started lifting and I have a background in anatomy and functional mechanics so I understand the theory, I'm just having trouble making my body do what I want it to do on this lift, and since I'm sort of coaching/setting the example for my husband since he's COMPLETELY new to this, some of his issues might be from watching me.

    Bench - I got some grip tape for my pull up bar, I'm thinking that might work on the bench as well since I have plenty extra. Don't know why we didn't think of using blocks for our feet, both of us have b!tched about the bench being as high as it is.

    OHP - The husband is narrowing his grip. He's still struggling with the keeping his torso tight concept. Like I said, he's never done ANY lifting before so it's something we're working on. His stability on all the lifts is improving though, his bar paths were all OVER the place a month ago. As for me, again, the wide stance wasn't intentional, just sort of happened. I don't *think* I would hit the top of the rack anyways, but the husband definitely does. We move him outside the rack, so I see no reason I can't move out there as well.
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
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    Just a quick note, Mrs. QueenBish, if you're looking for a depth marker on squats, you could always obtain/build a box that's the appropriate height and you can tap it with your butt on the way down. Commonly recommended for learning where to stop on a squat. I don't really think it's a big deal either way, but hitting the bar on the safety bars can potentially lead to the bar shifting on your back, or you might not hit them evenly, causing you to lose balance to one side or the other. Some sort of box/platform to lower yourself down to is probably a safer option. I don't think it's a huge deal either way, especially at this point in your lifting career.

    Personally, I just ended up mounting a cheap home depot door mirror right in front of me when I squat, so I can physically see my depth as I drop. And I video a lot of my sessions to ensure I'm hitting where I want to hit.
  • n3ver3nder
    n3ver3nder Posts: 155 Member
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    Instead of a box, sets the bars at the level where your butt is when you break parallel and run a resistance band across them. Squat down to this instead of a box, the give of the band won't affect your technique like the solidity of a box can.
  • QueenBishOTUniverse
    QueenBishOTUniverse Posts: 14,121 Member
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    Ok gentlemen,

    Lots to be getting on with. Thanks again for all the advice. :flowerforyou:
  • _benjammin
    _benjammin Posts: 1,224 Member
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    Instead of a box, sets the bars at the level where your butt is when you break parallel and run a resistance band across them. Squat down to this instead of a box, the give of the band won't affect your technique like the solidity of a box can.

    Or just a bungee cord.
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
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    Instead of a box, sets the bars at the level where your butt is when you break parallel and run a resistance band across them. Squat down to this instead of a box, the give of the band won't affect your technique like the solidity of a box can.

    That's a good suggestion. Though, except you'd then lose some of the functionality of the safety bars. I guess another pair of bars would be perfect if you're a safety freak like me.
  • QueenBishOTUniverse
    QueenBishOTUniverse Posts: 14,121 Member
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    Ok so I worked on form for my lifts during my deload last week and I'm feeling fairly confident on everything but my DL. After comparing to my video from two weeks ago I do feel *better* because there seems to be improvement, but it wants me to go to 170 next week and 180 the week after and if I'm going to be working above body weight I feel like I should probably have my form nailed down. So... question is, full steam ahead, full steam ahead with some adjustments, or back off and work on some things?

    Here's two weeks ago for comparison:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I5u4XCsExTI&index=10&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA

    And here's from today:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pn79IUQJmHA&list=UUepllmxz5TqbdGdEUYoEIXA
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
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    Pretty marked improvement to me. You'll probably just have to keep an eye on things. I video every single deadlift session, personally. My form seems to just gradually break down over the course of weeks if I don't constantly work at it. You might be in the same boat for a while. You can see your old habits start to slowly come back as you get more and more tired. Pretty typical, just have to stay vigilant and keep working on it over time until it becomes second nature. Even world record powerlifters are constantly tweaking things.
  • QueenBishOTUniverse
    QueenBishOTUniverse Posts: 14,121 Member
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    DopeItUp wrote: »
    Pretty marked improvement to me. You'll probably just have to keep an eye on things. I video every single deadlift session, personally. My form seems to just gradually break down over the course of weeks if I don't constantly work at it. You might be in the same boat for a while. You can see your old habits start to slowly come back as you get more and more tired. Pretty typical, just have to stay vigilant and keep working on it over time until it becomes second nature. Even world record powerlifters are constantly tweaking things.

    Yay! I was actually feeling better and better about that lift the more I compared the two. And I FELT my form starting to give out around rep 6 or 7 but I was trying to hold it together. Yes, I think I'm going to have to film for a while but at least now I feel like I have and idea what to look for. I *thought* I finally had it right this time but with as new as I am to this I wanted be sure. Thank you!
  • Meevenbetter
    Meevenbetter Posts: 4 Member
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    The bar looks a bit low on you - or at least not on the 'shelf' of your traps. You look to be a bit uneven/wobbly and your hips are come up a bit too much compared to your shoulders (most on the 4th rep) - which is not a big deal now but may become one as you get more weight on the bar. There are a few other things, but I would like to see you play with the bar position first as well as to see a video from the back and the front to see if you are uneven (and too see how much your knees are coming in). You can PM me if you are not comfortable posting that.

    This is a good video re bar position - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2tyOLvArw0

    To be honest, I would keep the weight as is for a session or two.



    When you re-rack - do it the same way you unrack - with both feet parallel and not split.

    Thank you sooo much! I noticed too that my hips come up way earlier than my shoulders, will work on that. The bar was definitely low after I watched that video, that's probably why my wrist is hurting a bit :( I'll try to find that shelf on my next workout. Will also keep this weight and get a different angle. Thanks again for your input! :smile:

    Needed this, thanks
  • smittybuilt19
    smittybuilt19 Posts: 955 Member
    edited October 2014
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    https://youtube.com/watch?v=CqWOtVPNYy0&feature=youtu.be

    It's been a while, please critique squat.

    Thanks.
  • smittybuilt19
    smittybuilt19 Posts: 955 Member
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    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8cbuo--2xE&feature=youtu.be

    * I particularly want to get feedback on these power cleans. I have not done them since HS and I sucked terribly at them then. I know they can't be correct, but how bad are they?

    Thanks.