Squat bar is starting to bruise/hurt my shoulders - tips?
Replies
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How long have you been lifting for? What level are your lifts?
(sorry, may have missed the answer).
I've been lifting about 13 months now. My squat and dead are at 122% of my body weight, my ohp at 56% and my bench and barbell rows are at 74%. Everything is poised to continue going up except squats bc of my shoulder pain which is what lead me to consider changing programs to one where I don't squat every workout. I was hoping to change to a different program that is 4x per week and includes accessory lifts over the summer bc I have more time, so I'm only pushing the switch up about a month.
At the stage you are at I would suggest that changing your program to a split where you only hit each body part 1 x a week will be sub-optimal. I would:
1 - work on form. You mentioned that you seemed to hurt your shoulders the first time when the bar was too low
if that does not help
2 - adapt the current program
Why change the whole program when you are having issues with one lift would be my question.
People jump to intermediate programs far too quickly imo.
I'm always working on form... every single squat I work on making sure my form is perfect. Obviously my bar is a little too low so I'll work on that, but aside from that I'm pretty sure my form is on par. I regularly check in with some experts in my area who help me with my form so I'm pretty confident about it
I could adapt SL to 3x5 like SS, and I'm open to that, but I was planning on starting a 4x per week lifting program this summer where I could work on some accessory moves so that I can build up strength I haven't been getting up until now so that I can get my big lifts even higher in the future. I don't think there's anything wrong with lifting 4x per week, whether it's an intermediate program or not... I just don't think it's that big of a deal if I move to a 5/3/1 program, they seem pretty common. It doesn't seem like it will hurt anything.0 -
I was planning on starting a 4x per week lifting program this summer where I could work on some accessory moves so that I can build up strength I haven't been getting up until now so that I can get my big lifts even higher in the future. I don't think there's anything wrong with lifting 4x per week, whether it's an intermediate program or not... I just don't think it's that big of a deal if I move to a 5/3/1 program, they seem pretty common. It doesn't seem like it will hurt anything.
There's no reason you can't lift 4x per week, but the reasons you state seem off-point as far as being purposeful, authentically performance-related reasons. You don't build up strength in your main lifts by doing accessory work. You do it by doing the main lifts (and some accessory work afterwards sometimes). Even Jim Wendler, the guy who wrote the 5/3/1 program you are talking about doing for the purpose of having programmed accessory lifts, rants about how tertiary they are as compared to the big compounds. And no, it's not a big deal to go to an intermediate program like Wendler's, and it won't hurt anything, but it could be shorting yourself some efficient progress as you are still really more of a beginner than an intermediate lifter.0 -
I was planning on starting a 4x per week lifting program this summer where I could work on some accessory moves so that I can build up strength I haven't been getting up until now so that I can get my big lifts even higher in the future. I don't think there's anything wrong with lifting 4x per week, whether it's an intermediate program or not... I just don't think it's that big of a deal if I move to a 5/3/1 program, they seem pretty common. It doesn't seem like it will hurt anything.
There's no reason you can't lift 4x per week, but the reasons you state seem off-point as far as being purposeful, authentically performance-related reasons. You don't build up strength in your main lifts by doing accessory work. You do it by doing the main lifts (and some accessory work afterwards sometimes). Even Jim Wendler, the guy who wrote the 5/3/1 program you are talking about doing for the purpose of having programmed accessory lifts, rants about how tertiary they are as compared to the big compounds. And no, it's not a big deal to go to an intermediate program like Wendler's, and it won't hurt anything, but it could be shorting yourself some efficient progress as you are still really more of a beginner than an intermediate lifter.
I can only imagine that strengthening my lats/traps/back would help me support the bar better. I know that the only way to make my squats better is to do more squats. I don't think it will short me of progress, since it has me squatting 185 by 2 weeks from now when I wouldn't have hit that mark on SL by then. Thanks for your help though, I'll figure it out!0 -
I can only imagine that strengthening my lats/traps/back would help me support the bar better.
Absolutely, but you'll get plenty of work on those with what you're already doing. Rows/Cleans and Deads are about all the work you really *need* for your entire posterior chain.
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Bump0
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How long have you been lifting for? What level are your lifts?
(sorry, may have missed the answer).
I've been lifting about 13 months now. My squat and dead are at 122% of my body weight, my ohp at 56% and my bench and barbell rows are at 74%. Everything is poised to continue going up except squats bc of my shoulder pain which is what lead me to consider changing programs to one where I don't squat every workout. I was hoping to change to a different program that is 4x per week and includes accessory lifts over the summer bc I have more time, so I'm only pushing the switch up about a month.
At the stage you are at I would suggest that changing your program to a split where you only hit each body part 1 x a week will be sub-optimal. I would:
1 - work on form. You mentioned that you seemed to hurt your shoulders the first time when the bar was too low
if that does not help
2 - adapt the current program
Why change the whole program when you are having issues with one lift would be my question.
People jump to intermediate programs far too quickly imo.
I'm always working on form... every single squat I work on making sure my form is perfect. Obviously my bar is a little too low so I'll work on that, but aside from that I'm pretty sure my form is on par. I regularly check in with some experts in my area who help me with my form so I'm pretty confident about it
I could adapt SL to 3x5 like SS, and I'm open to that, but I was planning on starting a 4x per week lifting program this summer where I could work on some accessory moves so that I can build up strength I haven't been getting up until now so that I can get my big lifts even higher in the future. I don't think there's anything wrong with lifting 4x per week, whether it's an intermediate program or not... I just don't think it's that big of a deal if I move to a 5/3/1 program, they seem pretty common. It doesn't seem like it will hurt anything.
I do not think there is anything wrong with a 4 day split per se. It's picking the right 4 day split that is the challenge. It's not a case of it hurting anything - its a case of it not being optimal and therefore not making the gains that you could have made.
Intermediate programs are really designed for people to make intermediate level gains - which are less than beginner gains, and advanced programs are designed for people to make advanced gains - which are less than intermediate gains.
That being said, if someone is bored or there is another reason to change programs, there is nothing wrong with that. There is nothing wrong with doing 5/3/1 for example - it's just not as optimal for people to do so when gains are being made under a program like 5 x 5.
It's a trade off.
5/3/1 is relatively common on here - but most people doing it are basically doing a sub-optimal program for them as they move onto it too quickly (I am guilty of it myself).
Accessory lifts are totally fine, and often beneficial to work into a program. The accessory lift should be to support the main lift. You find out where your weakness is and focus on that.0 -
I can only imagine that strengthening my lats/traps/back would help me support the bar better. I know that the only way to make my squats better is to do more squats. I don't think it will short me of progress, since it has me squatting 185 by 2 weeks from now when I wouldn't have hit that mark on SL by then. Thanks for your help though, I'll figure it out!
Not necessarily true - it depends on where your weaknesses are.
Also, where are you getting that it will have you squatting 185 by 2 weeks? You are supposed to start at 90% of your 1RM as the basis - and the 5 rep range is a max of 85% of that. The first mesocycle, assuming you do the program properly, will not have you increasing your squat PR.0 -
I can only imagine that strengthening my lats/traps/back would help me support the bar better. I know that the only way to make my squats better is to do more squats. I don't think it will short me of progress, since it has me squatting 185 by 2 weeks from now when I wouldn't have hit that mark on SL by then. Thanks for your help though, I'll figure it out!
Not necessarily true - it depends on where your weaknesses are.
Also, where are you getting that it will have you squatting 185 by 2 weeks? You are supposed to start at 90% of your 1RM as the basis - and the 5 rep range is a max of 85% of that. The first mesocycle, assuming you do the program properly, will not have you increasing your squat PR.
^^^0 -
bump, great info here, I may need to check my squat form too as my elbow aren't back but rather directly under the bar, thanks again!0
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I can only imagine that strengthening my lats/traps/back would help me support the bar better. I know that the only way to make my squats better is to do more squats. I don't think it will short me of progress, since it has me squatting 185 by 2 weeks from now when I wouldn't have hit that mark on SL by then. Thanks for your help though, I'll figure it out!
Not necessarily true - it depends on where your weaknesses are.
Also, where are you getting that it will have you squatting 185 by 2 weeks? You are supposed to start at 90% of your 1RM as the basis - and the 5 rep range is a max of 85% of that. The first mesocycle, assuming you do the program properly, will not have you increasing your squat PR.
That doesn't mean it won't make her stronger. Even if her overall PR doesn't jump but maybe she can do an existing weight for one or two more reps, that is a gain in strength. I think the progress made in SL5x5 is far far overvalued and if you want to take a deep dive into the real progress we can do that.
This whole thread is so far over-analyzed it's kind of disgusting already. LOL0 -
Maybe it's time to progress to a more advanced program?
Suggesting she quits squatting? Disgrace!
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Excavating this old thread because it's just what I was looking for to find a bar position that won't beat up my shoulders.
Yay for forum search features, and thanks to the OP and respondents. :flowerforyou:0 -
If you're getting pressure pain with the bar on your shoulders, then lay off back squats for awhile. You can still attempt dumbell squats, Zercher squats, and sumos to keep your leg strength progressing till the inflammation in your shoulders heal. Take it from me (since I've been training consistently for more than 30 years), back off when you need to or that small issue may end up being a big one later.
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