Help with Squats with Bar

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  • MsEndomorph
    MsEndomorph Posts: 604 Member
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    I'm great with front squats and body weight squats, but back squats and I aren't friends. After a month of no success I got about 25 second opinions, and it seems to be a core strength issue. All that weight is suddenly bearing down on my spine, and I'm not compensating well. I'm also having some tight hip flexor issues.
    And then not succeeding makes me sad and anxious and just makes matters worse.

    You might want to have someone check out your form :)
  • Huffdogg
    Huffdogg Posts: 1,934 Member
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    I'm great with front squats and body weight squats, but back squats and I aren't friends. After a month of no success I got about 25 second opinions, and it seems to be a core strength issue.

    That seems counterintuitive to me. Front squats are generally way rougher on the abs than back squats. Maybe it's mid/low back weakness?

    I thought I had hip flexor issues and it turned out it was actually my IT band. Try rolling that daily and see if things improve.
  • MsEndomorph
    MsEndomorph Posts: 604 Member
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    I'm great with front squats and body weight squats, but back squats and I aren't friends. After a month of no success I got about 25 second opinions, and it seems to be a core strength issue.

    That seems counterintuitive to me. Front squats are generally way rougher on the abs than back squats. Maybe it's mid/low back weakness?

    I thought I had hip flexor issues and it turned out it was actually my IT band. Try rolling that daily and see if things improve.

    Could be. It's something in that general area, because I end up collapsing more than squatting and I can barely get back up.

    I have it band issues too...I need to get a foam roller for home use. Rolling is super painful and I think I'm scaring people at the gym with my ugly faces and groaning. But I definitely injured one of my hip flexors. Not sure if it's because they're permatight or just a product of crappy back squat form.
  • Huffdogg
    Huffdogg Posts: 1,934 Member
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    I have problems foam rolling normally (why the hell are all foam rollers 6"+ diameter!?) so I use either a piece of 4" diameter pvp pipe or lacrosse balls for the most part. And yeah, it hurts like the ****ens.
  • S_Arr_Uh
    S_Arr_Uh Posts: 77 Member
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    I find this fascinating as I'm the complete opposite - I can't squat very low without a bar; but my form is miles better once I'm under the bar!
    I also had tight hip flexors a couple of months back - before I started squatting regularly. Now they don't bother me as much as they did when I was doing just deadlifts.
  • Kate814
    Kate814 Posts: 145
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    If you're worried about your form, I would definitely have someone check it. At least then you can find out if that is the issue or it's something else. Otherwise it could be a mobility issue like a few other people said. In that case you can either work on mobility or there are ways to adapt the movement. It also could be that you're starting out with too much weight. If it is just your confidence, I would recommend starting with box squats. They're a powerlifting exercise but the gym I interned at used them a lot to help people build confidence in the movement. This is a pretty good demonstration: http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/box-squat
  • tjsoccermom
    tjsoccermom Posts: 500 Member
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    Thank you for all the advice! I didn't realize there was a high and low position. I've been doing low because it felt more comfortable on my back but I'm willing to try other methods. I'll check out the links and try some different things tonight. Thanks!
  • Huffdogg
    Huffdogg Posts: 1,934 Member
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    Thank you for all the advice! I didn't realize there was a high and low position. I've been doing low because it felt more comfortable on my back but I'm willing to try other methods. I'll check out the links and try some different things tonight. Thanks!

    I have always found low-bar to be much more comfortable, but high bar is fairly tolerable once you learn to pack your neck before unracking the bar, and it's probably a better training lift. Most people can get more ROM with high-bar, but low-bar is generally capable of moving more total weight (for max strength testing and competition).
  • wilmnoca
    wilmnoca Posts: 416 Member
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    Widen your stance.
  • FizikallyFit
    FizikallyFit Posts: 180 Member
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    Bumping for the information, I am also trying to progress from Body weight squats onto barbell squats.
  • Stage14
    Stage14 Posts: 1,046 Member
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    I had to start with a wider stance and am working my way to shoulder width. I haven't been increasing weight until
    I can get parallel at least with good form and close to shoulder width apart on my feet. So far it's working really well. Be it mental or physical, I progress closer to it with each workout.
  • tjsoccermom
    tjsoccermom Posts: 500 Member
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    So last night I tried high bar, I got a little lower but still not where I need to be. However, I did find the hack squat machine and thought that might be a good way to work my way up to better squats. Any thoughts?
  • juliewatkin
    juliewatkin Posts: 764 Member
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    So last night I tried high bar, I got a little lower but still not where I need to be. However, I did find the hack squat machine and thought that might be a good way to work my way up to better squats. Any thoughts?

    No machine will replicate the movement of a free weight squat. The movement tracks differently and normal squats requirs the use of a ton of stabilizer muscles.

    I would just keep hammering away at it. Even if you don't want to use the bar, use a broom stick to work on positioning.
  • Huffdogg
    Huffdogg Posts: 1,934 Member
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    Yeah I'd ditch everything but just the bar and work on getting your depth dialed in. Try propping your heels up on a 5 lb plate and see if that makes it easier to go deeper. If it does, then you might benefit from some more mobility work.

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