bumblebums Member

Have you had your back problem diagnosed? A good chiropractor would be able to tell you what type of structural weakness you have. We might be able to help if you post a video of your squat in the form check thread. Deadlifts: start *really* light if you have back problems. In fact--and I do not usually recommend this, but…

I'll be honest, I didn't understand your question.

I would try again next week with the same weight and pay more attention to depth. What sort of program are you following right now, still linear or something more complicated? You mentioned 5RM so I assume the latter?

The first set looked pretty good to me--your stance is a touch wider than shoulder width, but if nothing hurts and it feels comfortable, don't mess with it. You are a bit shy of depth in most of your reps in the 5RM video--something to keep an eye on.

Because the third post in this thread said that OP squats high bar...

OP, in addition to being unwilling and/or unable to do any research on your own, you also only listen to the things you already want to hear. If that's what you are after, just use the Google machine, and look for sites that support what you already believe. The internet is pretty good for that. I would point out that one…

Nobody said you couldn't ask. But some of us have been here long enough answering these questions that it is nice to get a heads up that your answers will not be heard, and that the advice will not sink in.

I don't know an awful lot about high bar squat form, but the principles are the same when it comes to knee and femur position. I learn well enough by reading so no videos to recommend, either :) There are some links to videos in the sticky though--there has got to be at least one good video on high bar squats there.…

MCD, are you being sarcastical or ironicity?

OP is impervious to advice, hence the same questions get asked again and again. I thought her username sounded familiar so I dug this up: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/997920-front-bar-squats-question?page=2

Yep, there are a lot of mistakes you can get away with at lighter weights :) wrong number of reps/sets, bad form, and not taking enough rest or eating enough. Most of these are no longer options as the weights get heavier if you want to continue making progress.

Shove your knees out to the sides when you squat--especially at the bottom. And have a look at this--it explains what might be going on (hip impingement). http://startingstrength.com/articles/active_hip_2_rippetoe.pdf

I take four rest days a week.

I had a good chuckle over that one when I first saw it. Rip is a dyed in the wool Western libertarian, so this is how he rolls.

Knee injuries are pretty well understood by the medical profession. You would be in good hands if you went to any halfway competent doctor. From what you are describing, it is hard to guess what your injury might be, but there is the Google machine for refining your diagnosis. The bending backwards thing sounds like an ACL…

It would be helpful to see this--can you make a video and post it in the form check thread? What kind of shoes are you wearing when you squat? Someone with inflexible ankles might benefit from a real lifting shoe with a higher heel.

Of course you're welcome to post, and she is, too! About the bar--it's perfectly okay to start with something lighter; the whole point of barbell training is that it is scalable. You just have to find something like a bar. I would say it's better to use a fixed weight bar than dumbbells for things like squats and deadlifts…

Don't worry about it. At the beginning, deadlifts are light enough to where you can recover even if you do them in sets across. The reason it's not trained in sets across at heavy weights is because it's one of the most stressful lifts for your nervous system. It involves so many muscles and such an intense effort that…

Are you trying to squat high bar or low bar? For the low bar squat, shoulder flexibility is usually the limiting factor in being able to take a good grip. In general, flexibility will improve over time. You can do extra warm-ups--I've found that doing a set of 5 overhead presses with just the bar (45 lb) warms my shoulders…

There is some pertinent discussion in this thread: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1101859-anyone-over-50-here

Nah. People are obsessed with visible abs in this culture. It's kind of bizarre, considering that very few people actually see your abs. Unless you expose them to the world compulsively every five seconds, Marky Mark style. Functional abdominal strength is extremely important, and it needs to be counterbalanced by strong…

To be honest, I've always done a lot of walking--I've lived in cities most of my life so I don't even consider it exercise, and it would never interfere with recovery from lifting for me. I think walking is one of the easiest and healthiest things that humans can do for themselves. When I say things about cardio in this…

Nope, that's not true. Trust me, abs get plenty of work under the bar when you squat a heavy weight. All of your trunk muscles, back and front, are working in hard isometric contraction to hold your spine erect. This does not happen with weak abs. By all means continue, but keep in mind that older people have a harder time…

Yeah, the steps I outlined would be the entire workout. Take enough time between sets to catch your breath, and resume when you feel ready. The rests will need to get longer as the weights get heavier. You can add some stretching or foam rolling at the end if you start getting sore. Regular (Olympic size) barbells are 7…

Go to the gym, warm up on an exercise bike for 5 minutes. Then go to the squat rack, practice an air squat to make sure you can get to the right depth (crease of hip just below the top of the knee, so the top of your thigh is parallel to the floor). Then put a barbell on your back and try five squats. A couple of times. If…

Something like an exercise bike or a rowing machine would be best for warm-ups, as it approximates the range of motion you will use in squatting. Squats are usually done with just the bar first, which serves as a warm up for heavier squats. Squats are a good full-body warm-up for the rest of the workout so do them first. I…

Three things: 1. Eat more. You can maintain a standard cardio bunny routine on 1200 calories--plenty of people seem to. Lifting requires food for recovery. You are rebuilding muscles and tendons and ligaments and making your bones denser after a major stress on the body--don't trifle with low calorie diets while you are on…

Many people want to gain muscle and lose fat simultaneously, but it's basically impossible. You always gain some fat along with the muscle (which happens when you eat at a surplus), and you always lose some muscle when you lose fat (which happens when you eat at a deficit). Weight training simply allows you to stack things…

A low bar squat done at a below parallel depth is a neutral exercise. People who are missing ACLs can do it, and people who have missing menisci can do it. But you have to be extremely careful about form. Read the squat chapter of Starting Strength, several times.

I used to take about 45 min at the beginning. Now it takes me 1.5 hours, three times a week, because I have to take a lot more rest between sets than I used to. You will know soon whether you like it enough to invest the time--some people don't stick with it after a few weeks, and some get addicted. This is the only thing…