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Squat Check Please - Adductor Injury
Hi,
I have been doing SS for about 4 months now, and am posting this form check video to ask for opinions on whether or not there may be a technique error that could explain an adductor injury I have been dealing with for the last couple of months. I did post a thread yesterday to Rip's Q&A regarding the injury, which got moved to the repetitive inquiries section. I thought it might be helpful to go ahead and post a form check video here to see if that might be a contributor to the injury. Here is a link to the injury thread: http://startingstrength.com/resource...ad.php?t=54144. This thread explains the timeline of injury, but if you don't want to read it, then the quick version is that I hurt my right adductor (gracilis origin area) about 2 months ago. There wasn't an isolated incident in which I hurt it, pain just developed over the course of a few weeks (no bruising/swelling). I tried working through it, but it got worse to the point that I had to stop squatting due to pain. A couple different times now I have taken a few weeks off, the pain would stop, and then I would try to start squatting again. The pain soon would come back. I have tried a narrow stance with toes/knees forward and this was fine. I had been squatting like this for a few weeks and then tried toes/knees slightly out for a few workouts and the injury started to flare up again. This was last Wednesday and I haven't squatted since.
Would you please take a look at this video of me squatting 225 from last Monday: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S101...JLwtntKENS68Xg, skip to the 45 second mark. Is there anything that stands out? I know I have some knee slide at the bottom. Sorry for the less than ideal video angle - I wasn't planning to post this video when I initially filmed it, it was just for my own review of my technique. Do you think it's best to continue to take time off from squats, or should i try to continue with toes/knees forward?
Stats are 25 year old male, 6'1", 180 lbs. If it is of any consequence, Michael Wolf kindly gave me several critiques of my technique a couple months back in this thread: http://startingstrength.com/resource...ad.php?t=51760. Your time is greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.
Aaron
✓ Member
Your video is private. If the video angle sucks you could do us all a big favor and spend the two to three minutes required to get a better video and repost. At 6'1" and 180 pounds you are underweight. At 200 pounds, you would still arguably be underweight, but you may also have less trouble with this. Have you gotten anyone, preferably a sadistic massage therapist to get in there and beat up the area around your injury? I would strongly consider that, too.
Member
My bad. I rarely upload to Youtube. It is public now. Valid point about posting a video with ideal angle - I did not do this only because my injury flared up last week and I didn't want to do more damage to it by squatting normally for a video. I just took the latest video I had of me squatting that way and posted it. It wouldn't aggravate my injury to squat toes/knees forward, but I don't think a video of this would be helpful, because I did not/do not hurt myself squatting this way. I can do a weight that is lighter than work set, and film it with better angle. Let me do that and I'll repost.
Yes, I am still very thin, but am up from ~150 a few months back, so I am getting there. I haven't had anything done by a massage therapist. Had my wife work on it once, but I don't know if it helped. I didn't really notice much difference, but she wasn't "beating it up". If this is a tendon issue, would this be productive? When the injury is flared up, it hurts like hell to stretch it, so I have not really stretched it, thinking that it would make it worse. I don't know how to tell the difference between "good" pain that will help the recovery and "bad" pain that won't. I have a friend who has a good sports masseuse, I will follow up on that. Thanks very much for taking the time to reply.
✓ Member
Yes, get a massage. Also, get some weightlifting shoes. Some of your reps are high, your spine is in mild flexion, your knees slide forward on later reps (as you noted), and you are having trouble with bar path and hip drive. However, aside from the fact that I don't like how your squat looks, there is nothing I can see from here that would cause an adductor injury. Here is the sad truth of the matter: muscles often tear without good reason. I just suffered a mild tear of my right adductor. Never happened before and I felt great right up until when it happened. Same thing when I slightly tore a hamstring deadlifting. I was warm, feeling good, and right in the middle of a PR set. Do what you can. Eat more. Get a massage. Maybe a few massages. They probably will not feel good. If they do feel good, that is a problem. Train it as it will allow. In the meantime (great song from Helmet), you can still train deadlifts, presses, bench presses, power cleans, chinups, and Paul Horn's favorite lift - the barbell curl.
Member
I am not an expert by any means, so I won't comment on anything but the lifting belt. First thing is I tighten mine just before I get under the bar, and from what I saw you are wearing the belt up high, seems to bemuse under your rib cage, not around the belly were you can exert your abs against it. If I am out of place commenting,sorry.
Member
Thanks, Tom. I will get some massages, and I am in the process of getting lifting shoes. Appreciate the critique, I will work on all those things. I thought I was starting to really get the hip drive, but if you think I'm struggling with it, that is actually good news - when I get back to squatting and really get it down, I will be even stronger. Good to know that it doesn't look like my technique caused the injury. Hopefully then, it won't happen again once I start squatting again. I am still training my other lifts as usual, and did add in some curls and LTEs this week since I have some extra time in the weight room now that I'm not squatting. Thanks again for your time! Hope your adductor is healing well. These injuries are no fun.
✓ Member
It may be a bit high. Tough to say for sure from here.Originally Posted by BrooklynJerry
Member
Yes, good comments, thank you. I started wearing the belt intentionally higher than what felt natural, because when I wore it lower, it dug into my lower stomach like hell, and left me all kinds of bruised. Perhaps I just haven't found the sweet spot?
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