Hi,
I’m 36, around 5’5" & 150 lbs, and have been powerlifting for a couple of years now. I’ve only been low bar squatting for about 6 months. Today, not too many people were around, so I filmed a couple of sets. The 290x2 felt ok, but the 315x1 was kind of rough. It looks like it started to go up and then I hit some sticking point.
I hit 330x1 about 6 weeks ago, so a bit discouraging that this rep was that rough. I did do some work leading up to this that I wouldn’t have done if I really intended on maxing (225x5, 260x5, 275x2) so maybe that played a role.
If anyone has a moment, I’d appreciate any feedback about my squat form here. It does look like I’m maybe getting too much depth. Not sure if I’m sitting back enough or I have too much forward knee travel.
Thank you!
290x2: Training log: Squat - 290 x2 on 4/20/17 - YouTube
315x1: Training log: Squat - 315 x1 on 4/20/17 - YouTube
My analysis is that if you can’t PR while listening to Rob Zombie, then obviously you’ve caught the ghey.
Several hours of Rambo and Chuck Norris Movies are the only cure.
But seriously, those vids looked pretty good to me. I didn’t even see much if any funkiness when you hit parallel that I frequently see even in videos of squats.
I’m betting that extra volume before you hit that single is what did it.
On the subject of sitting back vs knee travel, here are some good questions to ask yourself regarding that.
Are my joints holding up to my current style? If your knees are giving your crap, then you might want to consider sitting back more.
Is my squat poundage going in the right direction? If not, it might be one factor you consider among others.
Whatever your doing, if it’s working, I’d roll with it and just keep getting stronger to work through that sticking point.
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Better to squat extra deep than too high.
It’s only too deep if it is limiting how much you can lift. Simply cutting your squats higher is going to make you lose the stretch reflex that you get at the bottom, so it’s no benefit. You could try sitting back a bit further or using a slightly wider stance, or both, which will make you reach your end ROM of hip flexion sooner. I can’t see what sort of shoes you are wearing, but generally speaking you should be able to squat deeper in heeled shoes and less deep with a flat sole, so if you are wearing heeled shoes then try a flat shoe.
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