Should I Deload my squats ?
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blopmiyers wrote: »Here's a side angle view. Unfortunately I can't go any higher with the camera
https://youtu.be/4VaElyW2VkY
This is an interesting one to me.
At first glance I think there's a couple of things I'd attempt here.
I'd like to see you try contracting your glutes at the top of the squat prior to descending. For some people this tends to slow down the eccentric and maintain a bit more tightness.
I'd like to see you squat a bit shallower. When you get to the very bottom of the squat, which is quite deep, you're getting some lumbar rounding and additionally you also mention pain at the bottom of the squat. It's possible that simply cutting it short will alleviate that.
I'm not suggesting you start squatting above parallel -- my opinion is that you can cut a few inches of depth and still break parallel and possibly improve your overall positioning.
Your squat is decent until you bottom out and that's where it seems to get wonky.
You could also stand to improve upper back tightness but I'd go with the above stuff first IMO.4 -
Slow down as already said.
What is your warmup?
Do you do any unilateral work? Incorporating some into your routine can help to fix and avoid imbalances.
Also, check out squat university for great information as well as the recent piece that barbell shrugged did with them that had all kinds of great squatting information.0 -
blopmiyers wrote: »Here's a side angle view. Unfortunately I can't go any higher with the camerahttps://youtu.be/4VaElyW2VkY
This is an interesting one to me.
At first glance I think there's a couple of things I'd attempt here.
I'd like to see you try contracting your glutes at the top of the squat prior to descending. For some people this tends to slow down the eccentric and maintain a bit more tightness.
I'd like to see you squat a bit shallower. When you get to the very bottom of the squat, which is quite deep, you're getting some lumbar rounding and additionally you also mention pain at the bottom of the squat. It's possible that simply cutting it short will alleviate that.
I'm not suggesting you start squatting above parallel -- my opinion is that you can cut a few inches of depth and still break parallel and possibly improve your overall positioning.
Your squat is decent until you bottom out and that's where it seems to get wonky.
You could also stand to improve upper back tightness but I'd go with the above stuff first IMO.
Never thought I'd see a trainer say that.
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blopmiyers wrote: »canadianlbs wrote: »you're dropping incredibly fast. i'm trying to un-learn that habit because dive-bombing into the bottom put a huge strain on . . . basically everything once i hit that bottom. i'm not a trainer or coach but i definitely think you should get comfortable with a more controlled descent before you add even more weight. when you're flexible, i think it can be hard to realise there's a difference between 'stopping because i'm deciding it's time to stop' and just dropping down and trusting the limitations of your own flexibility to do the stopping for you. hope that makes sense.
you didn't mention where you're feeling the pain exactly, and 'my right leg' is a lot of real estate
also curious if you notice it more at a particular point in the range of motion.
The pain is mostly felt near the abductor when my hips are pretty much as low as they can go, it's probably something to do with why I don't really feel my right leg being worked as much as my left. And I agree, I do drop down too fast, that is possibly one reason why I lose balance when going back up.
Other than that, do you think my form is okay? I'd like to be able to squat properly before adding weight.
If it hurts at the very bottom like you say, there's nothing wrong with raising that squat up an inch (maybe more). You're dropping extremely low and there is not much added benefit to squatting that low.
This probably won't be a popular opinion, but I'd be interested in seeing form with MORE weight. I only say so because my body weight squat and warm up squats look much different than squats at a higher weight.
If it hurts to squat, then you need to get to the bottom of that first and I'm not a doctor or any kind of specialist in sports medicine, muscular or skeletal system, or the body in general. Good luck and I hope the pain goes away.
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_incogNEATo_ wrote: »blopmiyers wrote: »canadianlbs wrote: »you're dropping incredibly fast. i'm trying to un-learn that habit because dive-bombing into the bottom put a huge strain on . . . basically everything once i hit that bottom. i'm not a trainer or coach but i definitely think you should get comfortable with a more controlled descent before you add even more weight. when you're flexible, i think it can be hard to realise there's a difference between 'stopping because i'm deciding it's time to stop' and just dropping down and trusting the limitations of your own flexibility to do the stopping for you. hope that makes sense.
you didn't mention where you're feeling the pain exactly, and 'my right leg' is a lot of real estate also curious if you notice it more at a particular point in the range of motion.
The pain is mostly felt near the abductor when my hips are pretty much as low as they can go, it's probably something to do with why I don't really feel my right leg being worked as much as my left. And I agree, I do drop down too fast, that is possibly one reason why I lose balance when going back up.
Other than that, do you think my form is okay? I'd like to be able to squat properly before adding weight.
If it hurts at the very bottom like you say, there's nothing wrong with raising that squat up an inch (maybe more). You're dropping extremely low and there is not much added benefit to squatting that low.
This probably won't be a popular opinion, but I'd be interested in seeing form with MORE weight. I only say so because my body weight squat and warm up squats look much different than squats at a higher weight.
If it hurts to squat, then you need to get to the bottom of that first and I'm not a doctor or any kind of specialist in sports medicine, muscular or skeletal system, or the body in general. Good luck and I hope the pain goes away.
I agree with the more weight idea as well. I was working with a woman in the gym a few weeks ago and she had issues squatting the bar because she had the typical posture issues that come from sitting a lot so she would lean forward and was off balance a lot. She did goblet squats and DB squats and she was fine. So when she loaded up the bar to 95 and her squats improved because it allowed her to overcome some of the structural resistances she has. She still leans forward naturally but is working on those imbalances and is improving.0 -
_incogNEATo_ wrote: »
This probably won't be a popular opinion, but I'd be interested in seeing form with MORE weight. I only say so because my body weight squat and warm up squats look much different than squats at a higher weight.
EXACTLY what I said, and now that I've seen your video OP I'm convinced that's what you should do. Your form is not bad. I think the reason you're "dive-bombing" into the hole is because you need more weight. Put some weight on the bar, GET TIGHT, control your descent, and squat to just a little below parallel-that's all the lower you need to go to be effective and protect your knees.
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Leadfoot_Lewis wrote: »_incogNEATo_ wrote: »
This probably won't be a popular opinion, but I'd be interested in seeing form with MORE weight. I only say so because my body weight squat and warm up squats look much different than squats at a higher weight.
EXACTLY what I said, and now that I've seen your video OP I'm convinced that's what you should do. Your form is not bad. I think the reason you're "dive-bombing" into the hole is because you need more weight. Put some weight on the bar, GET TIGHT, control your descent, and squat to just a little below parallel-that's all the lower you need to go to be effective and protect your knees.
Low squats do not hurt your knees, this was an unjustified conclusion from bad research. Going lower can actually help build them up. If low squats actually hurt your knees then every Olympic lifter on the planet would end up with massive knee injuries and that's just not the case.
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"Wheelhouse15 wrote: »Low squats do not hurt your knees, this was an unjustified conclusion from bad research. Going lower can actually help build them up. If low squats actually hurt your knees then every Olympic lifter on the planet would end up with massive knee injuries and that's just not the case.
???
I never said low squats hurt your knees-high squats (above parallel) can due to more pull on the knees from the quads. Squatting @ parallel or below now involves the hamstrings more which stabilizes the knees (equal pull from quads + hamstrings)
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Leadfoot_Lewis wrote: »"Wheelhouse15 wrote: »Low squats do not hurt your knees, this was an unjustified conclusion from bad research. Going lower can actually help build them up. If low squats actually hurt your knees then every Olympic lifter on the planet would end up with massive knee injuries and that's just not the case.
???
I never said low squats hurt your knees-high squats (above parallel) can due to more pull on the knees from the quads. Squatting @ parallel or below now involves the hamstrings more which stabilizes the knees (equal pull from quads + hamstrings)
Ahh, ok misread that than, apologies for that. Squatting ATG is definitely harder because it's pretty much only the hamstrings that are going to bring you up. Also, I only tend to do high bar squats to ATG depth, which makes it a more quad than hip dominant movement. Low bar I tend to go just below, i.e. PL depth, but that gets more hip into it so more weight can be lifted normally.
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Wheelhouse15 wrote: »Lowering the weight is not technically a deload since a deload is a working rest using a much lower weight than you normally work with to give yourself a rest for a week or two. I think goblet squats or DB squats are going to be the way to go until you can adapt to the movement pattern.
A few questions though, as an 18 year old male your squats, even starting, should be far higher than the empty bar so is there some medical issue? How long have you been trying to squat? Have you been seeking help? When I was 16 I was a 100 pounds and started squatting at around 95 pounds the first week so something seems way off here.
Also, are you really 18? If you are under age then I suggest you find another site as this is not a sight for minors.
I'll be turning 19 in a few weeks. I've been "attempting" to squat for 3 months now making changes and trying out different stretches, I never really tried with more weight as I don't have any plates to put on the bar.0 -
Right so from what I've read, I have a few things to try out. Box squats/goblet squats, adding more weight to see how that goes, using my glutes when going to the top and to go a bit shallower. I can't try the added weight for the time being, I only purchased a barbell to try and get good form on a few different exercises before upping the weight.0
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blopmiyers wrote: »Wheelhouse15 wrote: »Lowering the weight is not technically a deload since a deload is a working rest using a much lower weight than you normally work with to give yourself a rest for a week or two. I think goblet squats or DB squats are going to be the way to go until you can adapt to the movement pattern.
A few questions though, as an 18 year old male your squats, even starting, should be far higher than the empty bar so is there some medical issue? How long have you been trying to squat? Have you been seeking help? When I was 16 I was a 100 pounds and started squatting at around 95 pounds the first week so something seems way off here.
Also, are you really 18? If you are under age then I suggest you find another site as this is not a sight for minors.
I'll be turning 19 in a few weeks. I've been "attempting" to squat for 3 months now making changes and trying out different stretches, I never really tried with more weight as I don't have any plates to put on the bar.
You should probably go to a sports store and load up with some weight then. 2x25, 2x25, 2x10 2x5 and 2x2.5 shouldn't be too expensive and will give you a good start with 220# and you get another 2x45 as you need it and that should keep you going for awhile. Although it depends on your goals, 45# is really just spinning your wheels and you might as well do KB or DB goblet squats or even just bodyweight squats.2 -
Wheelhouse15 wrote: »blopmiyers wrote: »Wheelhouse15 wrote: »Lowering the weight is not technically a deload since a deload is a working rest using a much lower weight than you normally work with to give yourself a rest for a week or two. I think goblet squats or DB squats are going to be the way to go until you can adapt to the movement pattern.
A few questions though, as an 18 year old male your squats, even starting, should be far higher than the empty bar so is there some medical issue? How long have you been trying to squat? Have you been seeking help? When I was 16 I was a 100 pounds and started squatting at around 95 pounds the first week so something seems way off here.
Also, are you really 18? If you are under age then I suggest you find another site as this is not a sight for minors.
I'll be turning 19 in a few weeks. I've been "attempting" to squat for 3 months now making changes and trying out different stretches, I never really tried with more weight as I don't have any plates to put on the bar.
You should probably go to a sports store and load up with some weight then. 2x25, 2x25, 2x10 2x5 and 2x2.5 shouldn't be too expensive and will give you a good start with 220# and you get another 2x45 as you need it and that should keep you going for awhile. Although it depends on your goals, 45# is really just spinning your wheels and you might as well do KB or DB goblet squats or even just bodyweight squats.
I was planning on buying plates as soon as I finished cleaning my basement. I have a power rack to set up, and would like that added safety before putting on weight if that makes sense. I was hoping to do Stronglifts when all was clean and my form was good.0 -
blopmiyers wrote: »using my glutes when going to the top
use your glutes when going down too. turn them into the pouch on a slingshot and kind of sit down into them. that way they'll catch you at the bottom before your skeletal geometry does, and they'll already be ready to turn you around and bring you back up. only trying to engage them when you're already down there is not the best path.
it goes against everything i've ever read, but doing a few sets of front squats while i'm warming up seems to help me a lot with the glute-centric idea.
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blopmiyers wrote: »Wheelhouse15 wrote: »blopmiyers wrote: »Wheelhouse15 wrote: »Lowering the weight is not technically a deload since a deload is a working rest using a much lower weight than you normally work with to give yourself a rest for a week or two. I think goblet squats or DB squats are going to be the way to go until you can adapt to the movement pattern.
A few questions though, as an 18 year old male your squats, even starting, should be far higher than the empty bar so is there some medical issue? How long have you been trying to squat? Have you been seeking help? When I was 16 I was a 100 pounds and started squatting at around 95 pounds the first week so something seems way off here.
Also, are you really 18? If you are under age then I suggest you find another site as this is not a sight for minors.
I'll be turning 19 in a few weeks. I've been "attempting" to squat for 3 months now making changes and trying out different stretches, I never really tried with more weight as I don't have any plates to put on the bar.
You should probably go to a sports store and load up with some weight then. 2x25, 2x25, 2x10 2x5 and 2x2.5 shouldn't be too expensive and will give you a good start with 220# and you get another 2x45 as you need it and that should keep you going for awhile. Although it depends on your goals, 45# is really just spinning your wheels and you might as well do KB or DB goblet squats or even just bodyweight squats.
I was planning on buying plates as soon as I finished cleaning my basement. I have a power rack to set up, and would like that added safety before putting on weight if that makes sense. I was hoping to do Stronglifts when all was clean and my form was good.
That's a good plan, best of luck and enjoy the lifting! Just be careful because it's really addictive!
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canadianlbs wrote: »blopmiyers wrote: »using my glutes when going to the top
use your glutes when going down too. turn them into the pouch on a slingshot and kind of sit down into them. that way they'll catch you at the bottom before your skeletal geometry does, and they'll already be ready to turn you around and bring you back up. only trying to engage them when you're already down there is not the best path.
it goes against everything i've ever read, but doing a few sets of front squats while i'm warming up seems to help me a lot with the glute-centric idea.
One point to add, for those with "lazy glutes" doing exercises like glute raise and glute bridges can really help you activate them. @Willbenchforcupcakes had this issue as well and did a lot of assistance exercises to get her glutes to activate. This might be something that the OP has to do as well.1 -
X band walks pre squatting also help0
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Wheelhouse15 wrote: »blopmiyers wrote: »Here's a side angle view. Unfortunately I can't go any higher with the camerahttps://youtu.be/4VaElyW2VkY
This is an interesting one to me.
At first glance I think there's a couple of things I'd attempt here.
I'd like to see you try contracting your glutes at the top of the squat prior to descending. For some people this tends to slow down the eccentric and maintain a bit more tightness.
I'd like to see you squat a bit shallower. When you get to the very bottom of the squat, which is quite deep, you're getting some lumbar rounding and additionally you also mention pain at the bottom of the squat. It's possible that simply cutting it short will alleviate that.
I'm not suggesting you start squatting above parallel -- my opinion is that you can cut a few inches of depth and still break parallel and possibly improve your overall positioning.
Your squat is decent until you bottom out and that's where it seems to get wonky.
You could also stand to improve upper back tightness but I'd go with the above stuff first IMO.
Never thought I'd see a trainer say that.
when you get to much butt wink- you lose strength and weird things start happening.
I can squat all the way down under reasonable loads- but under my heaviest it causes me to truly fail a squat- my "powerlifting" squat is much prettier and more technically correct than my "oly" squat- for this reason exactly.
I can't even see the video- but from the hip impinging issues OP mentioned- I share those- and the above things have been very helpful to my fix.
(I also squeeze at the top prior to descent to iron out hip imbalances)
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blopmiyers wrote: »Wheelhouse15 wrote: »Lowering the weight is not technically a deload since a deload is a working rest using a much lower weight than you normally work with to give yourself a rest for a week or two. I think goblet squats or DB squats are going to be the way to go until you can adapt to the movement pattern.
A few questions though, as an 18 year old male your squats, even starting, should be far higher than the empty bar so is there some medical issue? How long have you been trying to squat? Have you been seeking help? When I was 16 I was a 100 pounds and started squatting at around 95 pounds the first week so something seems way off here.
Also, are you really 18? If you are under age then I suggest you find another site as this is not a sight for minors.
I'll be turning 19 in a few weeks. I've been "attempting" to squat for 3 months now making changes and trying out different stretches, I never really tried with more weight as I don't have any plates to put on the bar.
you have a bar bell and no plates?- time for a new gym- you can make progress without a bar bell for sure- but if you want to learn to squat big- you need a bar and plates.
or you have fix weights? (I can't see the video) on a bar?
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blopmiyers wrote: »Wheelhouse15 wrote: »Lowering the weight is not technically a deload since a deload is a working rest using a much lower weight than you normally work with to give yourself a rest for a week or two. I think goblet squats or DB squats are going to be the way to go until you can adapt to the movement pattern.
A few questions though, as an 18 year old male your squats, even starting, should be far higher than the empty bar so is there some medical issue? How long have you been trying to squat? Have you been seeking help? When I was 16 I was a 100 pounds and started squatting at around 95 pounds the first week so something seems way off here.
Also, are you really 18? If you are under age then I suggest you find another site as this is not a sight for minors.
I'll be turning 19 in a few weeks. I've been "attempting" to squat for 3 months now making changes and trying out different stretches, I never really tried with more weight as I don't have any plates to put on the bar.
you have a bar bell and no plates?- time for a new gym- you can make progress without a bar bell for sure- but if you want to learn to squat big- you need a bar and plates.
or you have fix weights? (I can't see the video) on a bar?
I'm slowly investing in a home gym, I've got myself a press bench, a power rack and a barbell. Like mentioned before I didn't want to get plates right away, I wanted to make sure my form was correct on a few exercises before adding weight. Also, the fact that my basement is messy doesn't help2
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