February Q and A thread
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I believe I squat high-bar (high = next to neck, low = a couple inches lower, right?). I know I can't twist my shoulders back far enough to do any behind-the-head shoulder work, so I limit my squat bar placement to where it's comfortable for my shoulders to still grasp, which I believe means high bar.
As I understand it, high = more quad dominant, where low = bringing hams/glutes more even, right? I have really strong quads compared to my hams, so going high feels natural to me after doing it for several years, and considering I can squat 2x BW for reps w/o breaking a sweat I think I do them fine. Could I maybe squat heavier by going low? Perhaps, but it'd require a re-training period, assuming my shoulders even cooperate.
Stronger quads than hams probably also explains why my squat and deadlift numbers are nearly identical.0 -
Anyone doing low bar that has a jacked up shoulders, like past rotator cuff tear and some impingement problems therefore mobility?
You got me curious to attempt again, been years.0 -
Anyone doing low bar that has a jacked up shoulders, like past rotator cuff tear and some impingement problems therefore mobility?
You got me curious to attempt again, been years.
I had rotator cuff and labrum repair surgery. Took about a year of dedicated rehab but I'm back to low bar squatting.0 -
I believe I squat high-bar (high = next to neck, low = a couple inches lower, right?). I know I can't twist my shoulders back far enough to do any behind-the-head shoulder work, so I limit my squat bar placement to where it's comfortable for my shoulders to still grasp, which I believe means high bar.
As I understand it, high = more quad dominant, where low = bringing hams/glutes more even, right? I have really strong quads compared to my hams, so going high feels natural to me after doing it for several years, and considering I can squat 2x BW for reps w/o breaking a sweat I think I do them fine. Could I maybe squat heavier by going low? Perhaps, but it'd require a re-training period, assuming my shoulders even cooperate.
Stronger quads than hams probably also explains why my squat and deadlift numbers are nearly identical.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQuCi2h_kNI
This is a good explanation.1 -
StephieWillcox wrote: »How would I decide if I was quad dominant and go about correcting this? In particular I'm talking about squatting with quad dominance (or possibly lack of glute activation, or maybe quads are my weakest link. I have no clue but something is going on)
Casually bumping my own question - however looking at that video that @psulemon just posted it's fairly obvious that I'm squatting high bar as my pause squat bottom position looks identical to that one on the left. So my question may be completely redudant. I'm having less glute/hammy involvement because of how I squat.0 -
StephieWillcox wrote: »StephieWillcox wrote: »How would I decide if I was quad dominant and go about correcting this? In particular I'm talking about squatting with quad dominance (or possibly lack of glute activation, or maybe quads are my weakest link. I have no clue but something is going on)
Casually bumping my own question - however looking at that video that @pseulemon just posted it's fairly obvious that I'm squatting high bar as my pause squat bottom position looks identical to that one on the left. So my question may be completely redudant. I'm having less glute/hammy involvement because of how I squat.
Incorporating daily glute activation can help, and as they get stronger they are more likely to assist in your squat.. but keep in mind while squats work the glutes, they are not as glute or hammy dominant as other exercises. Some people are more quad dominant in their squat no matter what they try or how strong they get, so you may need to incorporate other exercises to focus on your glutes and hammies (hip thrusts, deadlifts, etc) if that is your goal of course.0 -
Regarding the dominance issue I'm not sure it's something that needs to be corrected necessarily.
You can look at joint angles and general squat mechanics to get some clue as to which muscles may be working harder -- for example someone with greater forward knee travel and a much more upright torso is likely using more quad and less posterior chain in the squat.
Someone who pitches forward when the squat gets tough could be attempting to incorporate more posterior chain into the lift if they are strongest in that position.
What's the motive behind asking the question?0 -
Regarding the dominance issue I'm not sure it's something that needs to be corrected necessarily.
You can look at joint angles and general squat mechanics to get some clue as to which muscles may be working harder -- for example someone with greater forward knee travel and a much more upright torso is likely using more quad and less posterior chain in the squat.
Someone who pitches forward when the squat gets tough could be attempting to incorporate more posterior chain into the lift if they are strongest in that position.
What's the motive behind asking the question?
I guess I'm feeling quite unbalanced. I barely ever feel my glutes/hams working whereas my quads are pretty much permanently feeling worked.
I feel like that is ultimately affecting how much I can squat, and getting some other muscles involved would help me out!
However, as sardelsa mentions, I'm probably looking at this the wrong way. I should be switching my accessories to work on glutes/hams, and letting my squat be what it is0 -
StephieWillcox wrote: »Regarding the dominance issue I'm not sure it's something that needs to be corrected necessarily.
You can look at joint angles and general squat mechanics to get some clue as to which muscles may be working harder -- for example someone with greater forward knee travel and a much more upright torso is likely using more quad and less posterior chain in the squat.
Someone who pitches forward when the squat gets tough could be attempting to incorporate more posterior chain into the lift if they are strongest in that position.
What's the motive behind asking the question?
I guess I'm feeling quite unbalanced. I barely ever feel my glutes/hams working whereas my quads are pretty much permanently feeling worked.
I feel like that is ultimately affecting how much I can squat, and getting some other muscles involved would help me out!
However, as sardelsa mentions, I'm probably looking at this the wrong way. I should be switching my accessories to work on glutes/hams, and letting my squat be what it is
What program are you on and how many days per week are you squatting?
Has your squat gone up in the past 4 to 6 months?0 -
StephieWillcox wrote: »Regarding the dominance issue I'm not sure it's something that needs to be corrected necessarily.
You can look at joint angles and general squat mechanics to get some clue as to which muscles may be working harder -- for example someone with greater forward knee travel and a much more upright torso is likely using more quad and less posterior chain in the squat.
Someone who pitches forward when the squat gets tough could be attempting to incorporate more posterior chain into the lift if they are strongest in that position.
What's the motive behind asking the question?
I guess I'm feeling quite unbalanced. I barely ever feel my glutes/hams working whereas my quads are pretty much permanently feeling worked.
I feel like that is ultimately affecting how much I can squat, and getting some other muscles involved would help me out!
However, as sardelsa mentions, I'm probably looking at this the wrong way. I should be switching my accessories to work on glutes/hams, and letting my squat be what it is
What program are you on and how many days per week are you squatting?
Has your squat gone up in the past 4 to 6 months?
Candito linear progression - two squat days per week. First is 3x6 and second is pause squat 6x4 2 days later.
Yes, squat has improved (slowly) but finding it extremely difficult to get past 75kg. Pause squat has massively improved.0 -
StephieWillcox wrote: »However, as sardelsa mentions, I'm probably looking at this the wrong way. I should be switching my accessories to work on glutes/hams, and letting my squat be what it is
This would be my suggestion. All forms of squat are quad dominant, but high-bar even more so (and front squat and SSB squat even more so than that). Just do more posterior work like deadlift variants if you're concerned about balance.0 -
Great discussion, why I'll keep SLDL with DL.
Hand going to sleep attempting low-bar because of something being pinched, other elbow going that direction too, just tells me this isn't a matter of stretching mobility. Much like one ankle bottoms out before the other, I'll just keep the form that allows doing something good.0 -
Yep, definitely a high-bar squatter.0
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Great discussion, why I'll keep SLDL with DL.
Hand going to sleep attempting low-bar because of something being pinched, other elbow going that direction too, just tells me this isn't a matter of stretching mobility. Much like one ankle bottoms out before the other, I'll just keep the form that allows doing something good.
Side note, have you played with grip width? There's a reason why a lot of people have wide grips. VERY wide grips (like touching the collars). It can make upper back tightness a bit more difficult but it is a lot more forgiving on the shoulders.
Specialty curved bars like the duffalo bar can be very useful for things like this as well.
Not that I'm trying to convince anyone to join the low-bar mafia, I'm just trying to illustrate options.1 -
Going very much wider then narrow does lose my shelf and the slide starts.
But not so bad with high bar, I like the quad focus anyway, and not going for max I can squat in general like for power lifting, but for that quad focus.
When I come out of winter lifting, the biking and running up hills is so much easier.
Well, except for the loss of aerobic capacity over the winter, but it sure builds up fast when muscles are ready and willing.
I've not even heard of that bar, have to look it up, sounds interesting.
And hey, who knows who else is lurking that this was exactly what they needed to hear - options.
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My goal is to lose weight and retain as much LBM as possible.
My stats:
41yo, female, 5'10", started at 208 beginning of January, currently 194. So in 6 weeks I lost 14lbs.
My workout routine:
weights 3 times/week - All Pro's beginner routine, details found here
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=4195843
Squats 67lbs
Bench Presses 45
Bent-Over Rows 60
Overhead Barbell Presses 24
Stiff-Legged Deadlifts 80
Barbell Curls 24
Bridge 44
and cardio 3 times/week - walk/run
I started at 1450 calories a day, but kept increasing. Now at 1750(131g carbs, 78g fat, 131g protein).
Here are my questions: am I losing weight too fast? should I increase my intake to slow it down?
Am I doing everything right?
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My goal is to lose weight and retain as much LBM as possible.
My stats:
41yo, female, 5'10", started at 208 beginning of January, currently 194. So in 6 weeks I lost 14lbs.
My workout routine:
weights 3 times/week - All Pro's beginner routine, details found here
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=4195843
Squats 67lbs
Bench Presses 45
Bent-Over Rows 60
Overhead Barbell Presses 24
Stiff-Legged Deadlifts 80
Barbell Curls 24
Bridge 44
and cardio 3 times/week - walk/run
I started at 1450 calories a day, but kept increasing. Now at 1750(131g carbs, 78g fat, 131g protein).
Here are my questions: am I losing weight too fast? should I increase my intake to slow it down?
Am I doing everything right?
How are you feeling so far and how is your gym performance?
I would consider a slight reduction in fat in favor of increased protein. Not mandatory but I would speculate the potential for better results in skeletal muscle.0 -
My goal is to lose weight and retain as much LBM as possible.
My stats:
41yo, female, 5'10", started at 208 beginning of January, currently 194. So in 6 weeks I lost 14lbs.
My workout routine:
weights 3 times/week - All Pro's beginner routine, details found here
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=4195843
Squats 67lbs
Bench Presses 45
Bent-Over Rows 60
Overhead Barbell Presses 24
Stiff-Legged Deadlifts 80
Barbell Curls 24
Bridge 44
and cardio 3 times/week - walk/run
I started at 1450 calories a day, but kept increasing. Now at 1750(131g carbs, 78g fat, 131g protein).
Here are my questions: am I losing weight too fast? should I increase my intake to slow it down?
Am I doing everything right?
How are you feeling so far and how is your gym performance?
I would consider a slight reduction in fat in favor of increased protein. Not mandatory but I would speculate the potential for better results in skeletal muscle.
I have been doing weights for 5 weeks and so far so good, I finish all my sets.
I picked up running after 2 years and have progress as well. After workouts I feel really tired, but it's normal, right? (I workout after work)
I will lower the fat(from 40% to 35), it will be hard
I love nuts and sunflower seeds. 0 -
I'd love to hear some opinions on these comments I've read concerning bench press and rows. I read if you can't complete a push up don't bench press- just work on push ups first and if you can't do a complete pull up/ chin up don't bother with rows- achieve pull up/chin up first. The rationale was bench press could be dangerous if you're not strong enough. Also, if you don't have the strength to do a pull up you might not be activating the correct muscles during rows.
I'm doing strong lifts and wondering if I should switch out rows for assisted pull up machine.0 -
FragileMoonDreamer wrote: »I'd love to hear some opinions on these comments I've read concerning bench press and rows. I read if you can't complete a push up don't bench press- just work on push ups first and if you can't do a complete pull up/ chin up don't bother with rows- achieve pull up/chin up first. The rationale was bench press could be dangerous if you're not strong enough. Also, if you don't have the strength to do a pull up you might not be activating the correct muscles during rows.
I'm doing strong lifts and wondering if I should switch out rows for assisted pull up machine.
I disagree with those claims generally speaking.1
