Weak Squats! Seriously!

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chantels1
chantels1 Posts: 391 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I read somewhere that a good starting squat would be 70 lbs for me. Ha ha! As if I could budge the bar! 40lbs is about my max and I can't do 3 sets of 10! I'm blushing admitting this... I did 3 sets of 10 last night at 35lbs and that was hard, but I did it. Today will be cardio, and tomorrow weights again. Any suggestions to help with my squats?

BTW, I am working out at home, and don't have a squat rack yet. What's the best way to do squats safely without a rack? I don't always have a spotter.

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  • LAWoman79
    LAWoman79 Posts: 348 Member
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    Bump
  • contingencyplan
    contingencyplan Posts: 3,639 Member
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    If you don't have a squat rack then the 70# doesn't apply to you. Getting a heavy weight like that up off the ground and in position is extremely difficult if you're a beginner. Squat racks start out with it already "in position" so to speak.

    Start with dumbbells at your sides. You're going to want to go relatively heavy starting out because your legs are a lot stronger than you think. 25# DBs is a good starting weight.
  • gerard54
    gerard54 Posts: 1,107 Member
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    I suggest do dumbell squats/ jump squats/or lunges instead...
  • Mayor_West
    Mayor_West Posts: 246 Member
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    I read somewhere that a good starting squat would be 70 lbs for me.

    Whoever wrote that is completely full of it. There is no starting weight anyone should be squatting with. We're all very different in terms of fitness ability and strength level and to give a "one size fits all" approach to fitness clearly needs to find a clue. Since you are having trouble moving even 45 pounds, I would strongly recommend working with your body-weight and adding weight from there. Once you can do body-weight squats for 15 or more reps, you can move to a barbell. I would advise however, that once you do so, aim for lower reps (4-8) and give yourself longer recovery between sets.
    BTW, I am working out at home, and don't have a squat rack yet. What's the best way to do squats safely without a rack? I don't always have a spotter.

    Other than body-weight squats, I would not recommend squatting without a rack. There's too much that could go wrong, especially once you're finished with your set and you have to get the bar off of your shoulders.
  • dlwyatt82
    dlwyatt82 Posts: 1,077 Member
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    Do 5 sets of 5 reps rather than 3 sets of 10, and make sure you're resting enough between sets (anywhere from 1 to 5 minutes; if the last set was hard to complete, take a longer rest).
  • bleemoore81
    bleemoore81 Posts: 17 Member
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    I am doing squats with 25 pounds and set of 10 at a time through out the day. I amt trying to do 50 a day and it seems to work ok like that. I can even do that on my own with no help and I am not worried I cant handle it. You are more petite then me and 25 should be plenty fine!

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