Squat stance etc.

OK. So i need some help with my squat.

First thing’s first. I am confused about which stance i should use and when. Up until now i’ve always kept my feet a little bit more than shoulder width apart when squatting. A lot of the articles i have read suggest a very wide stance. I trust this would improve my squat numbers, but would it carryover into football and help me push around fat people and such?

My focus is NOT how much weight i can lift. I mean, it is kind of, but i want as much carryover onto the football field as possible. So how far apart should i have my legs on max effort days? dynamic days?

Also, with my goals in mind, what other excercises do you think would benefit me most? I’ve been thinking about going in my back yard and doing 20-40 yard sprints and such. I’ve been looking a lot at box squats and power cleans too. But, since i lift i alone i am hesitant to try these. I have a basic understanding of power cleans from my weight class at school (though the teacher didnt spend that much time on form :/). Box squats don’t seem like they’d be that hard to get form-wise. I’m not dumb. I woulnd’t use very much weight until i was sure of my form.

Oops, pushed ‘submit’ instead of ‘Preview’… Eh… O well, that seems about right :smiley:

Thanks in advance

WEK

For football I think a bit over shoulder width like you said, but work into classic full squats, as in leaving a skid mark on the platform. I know that’s more old school advice compared to a lot of the great Westside info, but since you’re not concerned with PL per se or max poundages, this is more functional for you. The posterior chain is the key in a sport like football, as in most sports. Just forget the poundages for now and set up a base goin’ deep-it will pay off in the long run. Ian King’s Squattin’ deep T-mag article is a great place to start. Also, trap bar deadlifts, power cleans, sprinting up hill. Best reads (for being geared spec. towards football, not OL or PL) in my opinion are Coach D’s Renegade training, and although some may consider it dated, Bill Starr’s classic, Only the Strong Shall Survive. Although I have not read it, Coach CT’s book would probably be a great help too.

all positions/stances are good, the point is to train one stance, make gains, then change to a different stance and repeat…

if you follow westside etc, have your ME SQ be wide stance, DE SQ be close stance, then when you switch, have ME SQ be close and DE SQ be wide etc…

do you have a rack? if so you shouldnt be as worried working out alone, just set the pins at a safety height and leave your phone nearby with 911 on quickdial :slight_smile:

as for football i think many people have had success using westside, or anything with 5x5/speed work/gpp etc…

peace

Sprinting up hill eh? Well I dont know of any hills to use around here but… what about dragging a tired behind me and sprinting??? or something.

Changing up your stance is going to be your best bet. Hittting differing areas in differing ways.

It will carry over best on the feild for you. Say that fat guy you are neeeding to push takes an angle that requires your stance to go wide in one direction or another. You will be prepared.

As far as not having any hills to spint up, yes dragging a tire or sled will be just fine. Better yet find something to push. As you stated you are required to push fat guys around, no better way to train for that than pushing around something heavy. If you can get something that rolls, this will allow you to include arm movement in also.

For examples of items that you may be able to find that you can push. I would look @ a local tire shop or commercial electric company. @ the tire shop look for a large loader tire. They are wide and heavy. Put in some concrete and there you go. Commercial electrical companies have the large wooden/metal spools to hold mass quantities of wire. Add some weight in the center and you got it.

Your cheapest route will probably be a tire shop. They actually have to pay to get the tire disposed of, so they will usually be happy to let you take one.

Hope that helps.

Phill

What about creatine? I just read Strength Training, Bodybuilding & Online Supplement Store - T NATION and it sounds like i might wanna get some.

Is it even legal in high school football? I’m pretty sure it is … i know of a few of kids at my school who take it. Sure most of them aren’t training all that smart (basketball players…) But they seem to be making nice gains.

Do i need it ??

Wek,

Yes you can use creatine. It is naturally found in much of the meat you allready eat.

As for gains, dont expect it to be like a steroid/prohormone or anything. It will shuttle more water into your muscle tissue along with more nutrients and such. So you will appear larger and will help with gains by shuttling needed macros where you want them.

If you do start just get regular old micronized creatine. Dont fall for that hyped up crap. Some of it is actually not good for you.

You ought to really do some research on it also. No excuse for ignorance on such a supplement. It has been written about numerous times on this very site. Do a search.

Phill

If you train with a wide stance you put more of the emphasis on the hips and hamstrings. This is what you want. You can always use a closer stance on another day to hit a more sport specific stance. As Louie says in special strengths, “If you want to set a record using a close stance, train wide.”