Limited Squat ROM

i lift. i squat. most people do… but, im in a little precidiment. when i do squat, i can only go to, or maybe 1-2.5 inches below parallel, and heres why.

i have plenty of flexibility, i can do it no problem, and my knees are fine at the time. but if i do go the full ROM, the next day i can barely walk. its most noticable when im walking up stairs, i can feel it in the top of my knee.

tight quads maybe? or maybe im just not cut out to do full ROM squats. i prefer a somewhat wider stance, because i find my torso brings up in my femers if my legs are in too close, and my back bends at a bad angle, and no im not leaning forward too much, im just uncomfortable doing them that way… irrevelant anyway.

i point my toes out at a helathy, walking stance, perhaps a bit more, and with no weight, everything runs smooth. im not so sore the next day when i dont do the full ROM, and im limited to the leg workouts i do. so, do you think i maybe just have weak knees? or maybe they arent adjusted to squatting? who knows… thats why im here.

maybe try stretching more and taking some weight off, then give it time. I used to think I wasn’t cut out for full ROM squats, then I lost my obsession with numbers and I was cured instantaneously

Use a little less weight and start doing them deeper. Eventually, you’ll get bigger and stronger and won’t be so sore.

I think the above posters are correct. The deeper you go the less weight your body can handle. I switched to full rom and can only do about half the weight now.
Dont worry about not lifting so much weight either.

Full range of motion equals full development. Partial range of motion… partial development.
In the words of Milos Sarchev.

I always end up going deeper on front squats than back squats. Maybe it’s because I use a lighter weight than on back squats. Maybe it’s because I have a fixation with back squat numbers but only care about form with the front squat. Maybe it’s because of the way the weight and my center of gravity are positioned.

Do whatever works for you if you need to take your squat deeper. Taking a wide stance should allow you to go deeper than a more squared stance. I saw an article on bodybuilding.com about how EKG machines (Isn’t that what they measure muscle activity with) or some sorta machine doesn’t find any advantage for quad development or ham development based on squat stance.

So feel free to widen your stance in order to go deeper without worrying about becoming unbalanced.