Thread: Squats

placing the bar lower will cause you to have to lean more and use your hips and lumbar. If you place the bar higher (high bar squating) you will have to sit more upright.

Anyway, maybe it is your flexability or stance. Can you post a video?

also, why did you think that squatting on the smith would make your free bar squat better?

whoa thanks for the quick response

i cant post a video.... i always lift by myself and I'd feel so weird asking others to do it aha.... my stance is maybe just a bit outside shoulder width, and I concentrate on pushing my knees towards my toes....

the bar HIGHER is better? weird... ill try that.... for some reason I thought it was the other way.... thanks


the ONLY reason I did the smith machine for the squats was because I just felt safer.... squats are one of my favorite exercises and I like pushing the last reps out.... I shake like fucking crazy on a free weight bar sometimes to keep going.... but I'm going to stay with the barbell now

Make sure your pull your elbows and upper arms up and parallel to the floor as well. This will allow you to sit more upright and not worry about losing the bar backwards. That is why most people tend to lean forward, they are afraid they will lose the bar behind them. A high bar position (as P-Funk said) along with this should make you feel more stable. Actually doing free bar squats will as well, so maybe lighter weights will be more appropriate for a while since you are accustomed to smith machine and your stabilizers are not accustomed to doing actual work in the squat.

it isn;t that it is better, it is that it is different. It will make you sit up more though.

Push your knees out, like you want to spread the floor with your feet. Don't push them forward towards your toes...i think you found your problem right there.

word..... ill definetly do that! i do deadlifts on my back day, so i try not to work my back on leg days..... but interesting
highbar, parallel elbows to ground, and pushing knees outwards

fucking awesome thanks so much guys!

great! Just make sure you touch your chest on your bench press and you are on your way!

ahahahaha you bastard
ill will do that next time though too (with barbells of course too!)

Holy shit, my favorite part of that video is about 1:45 into it, where he drops the weight down, it bounces up off the ground, and he catches it.

Originally Posted by MWpro

Holy shit, my favorite part of that video is about 1:45 into it, where he drops the weight down, it bounces up off the ground, and he catches it.

huh??

Originally Posted by P-funk

huh??

Hey, he's Muhammed Ali...
He gets hit in the head a lot.

Originally Posted by P-funk

great! Just make sure you touch your chest on your bench press and you are on your way!

P, you're such a smartass. I love it. Haha.

Those are all great tips. Also try to make sure you look straight ahead. Don't let yourself look downward; that tends to cause you to round your back. It's definitely nice to have a mirror in front of you to give you a good focal point.

Also, it couldn't hurt to throw in some additional lower back work if you think that may possibly be the cause of your instability. The upper back could also be culprit if you are having trouble keeping it tight and making a nice perch for the bar.

For the lower back, popular movements powerlifters use include reverse hyperextensions, hyperextensions, pull throughs, and the good morning (My favorite). Good upper back movements would be face pulls, high rows, overhead squats, and maybe even some farmer's walks or shrugs.

You be the judge of this. If tightening up your form a little bit takes care of the problem, then it's probably not necessary. I just thought I would throw that out there.

Originally Posted by P-funk

huh??

I posted in the wrong thread, that was meant for the "Powerlifting Site" thread.

As Monkey said, too many punches to the head.

Originally Posted by CowPimp

For the lower back, popular movements powerlifters use include reverse hyperextensions, hyperextensions, pull throughs, and the good morning (My favorite). Good upper back movements would be face pulls, high rows, overhead squats, and maybe even some farmer's walks or shrugs.

Okay, I've seen a few people post this: what the hell are farmer's walks? I've never heard of these until I started reading on this forum.

Farmer walks are when you hold heavy dumbbells and walk around with them.

Originally Posted by ihateschoolmt

Farmer walks are when you hold heavy dumbbells and walk around with them.

With your arms hanging on your sides and that's it? Huh, never thought that was an actual exercise per-say.

Originally Posted by dougnukem

With your arms hanging on your sides and that's it? Huh, never thought that was an actual exercise per-say.

It's an exercise for grip strength/endurence mostly.

I try to lean back on my heals when squating, makes you use your legs more than your back. p-funk is correct. listen to him..

Originally Posted by ihateschoolmt

It's an exercise for grip strength/endurence mostly.

Cool, got it. Thanks.

Originally Posted by CowPimp

P, you're such a smartass. I love it. Haha.

Those are all great tips. Also try to make sure you look straight ahead. Don't let yourself look downward; that tends to cause you to round your back. It's definitely nice to have a mirror in front of you to give you a good focal point.

Also, it couldn't hurt to throw in some additional lower back work if you think that may possibly be the cause of your instability. The upper back could also be culprit if you are having trouble keeping it tight and making a nice perch for the bar.

For the lower back, popular movements powerlifters use include reverse hyperextensions, hyperextensions, pull throughs, and the good morning (My favorite). Good upper back movements would be face pulls, high rows, overhead squats, and maybe even some farmer's walks or shrugs.

You be the judge of this. If tightening up your form a little bit takes care of the problem, then it's probably not necessary. I just thought I would throw that out there.

thanks man.... i stopped doing good mornings a while ago... like this past summer.... not sure why.... im gunna start doing them on my back day

Originally Posted by ihateschoolmt

It's an exercise for grip strength/endurence mostly.

When your grip strength is enough that you can walk around with some really heavy dumbbells, then you have to static retract and elevate your scapula using a lot of force. That is why I said it's good for the upper back.

Originally Posted by P-funk

great! Just make sure you touch your chest on your bench press and you are on your way!

Originally Posted by CowPimp

When your grip strength is enough that you can walk around with some really heavy dumbbells, then you have to static retract and elevate your scapula using a lot of force. That is why I said it's good for the upper back.

Yeah I definitely felt those hit my upper back when I used to do them. I did them with 110s once. That felt really good. I should add those in again, but without using gloves... Ouch...

Originally Posted by Squaggleboggin

Yeah I definitely felt those hit my upper back when I used to do them. I did them with 110s once. That felt really good. I should add those in again, but without using gloves... Ouch...

Be prepared for calluses. People's minds are blown when they see mine. They think I'm out of my mind because I don't wear gloves. I feel like whipping out my dick and saying, "I do have one of these. Thanks for asking though."

Originally Posted by CowPimp

I feel like whipping out my dick and saying, "I do have one of these. Thanks for asking though."

i'd like to be able to do that...

Originally Posted by CowPimp

Be prepared for calluses. People's minds are blown when they see mine. They think I'm out of my mind because I don't wear gloves. I feel like whipping out my dick and saying, "I do have one of these. Thanks for asking though."

I'm already trying to toughen up my hands by using double overhand grip on the deadlift without gloves, adding five pounds each week to my warm up sets. Hopefully this helps me somewhat by the time I start the walks.

Originally Posted by The13ig13adWolf

i'd like to be able to do that...

Are you Lebanese?

Originally Posted by Dale Mabry

Are you Lebanese?

would i have a large piece if i were?

Originally Posted by The13ig13adWolf

would i have a large piece if i were?

Only if you wanted to.