How do I fix my squat when I've been doing it wrong for years?

[Supraspinatus]

Hello,
I'm new to this community and have signed up here because I'm desperate. I have recently realized I have been squatting wrong for about 2-3 years which made me have a serious lower back injury from which I'm recovering for over 4 months already.

I am having trouble fixing the squat even after reading the squat chapter from SS 3rd edition because of my reflexes for doing it wrong.

Here's how my squat has looked this thursday:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JusHlnZ_MqE

Would appreciate your help in fixing it and in whatever tips you got for someone who is too used to doing wrong squats that changing things is just incredibly hard.

Thanks in advance and sorry for the English errors.

[Mark Rippetoe]

What do you think is wrong with the squat?

[Supraspinatus]

What do you think is wrong with the squat?

I think that my knees aren't out enough, my hips are too close together and my back is more tensed than it should be. The thing is that it's hard for me to fix it consciously, whenever I do it with weight that is even a little heavy my body just goes back to old habits.

[Mark Rippetoe]

Your hips are too close together?? You want your back more relaxed when you squat?

[Supraspinatus]

Your hips are too close together?? You want your back more relaxed when you squat?

Well, I think that I got some sort of butt wink/hip flexion at the bottom of the squat. In your book I remember reading that to fix this problem I need to widen my hips so my pelvis has more place in between them, and another fix could be to widen or shorten my stance while keeping my feet at around 30 degrees.

I don't want my back more relaxed, I'm just trying to figure out the source of the problem and the cue's I should use to solve them.

[Scott Hanson]

By "hips too close together" I think you mean "femurs". I really don't think your squats look too bad, except you are not getting deep enough and yes, you are getting "some sort of butt wink/hip flexion" at the bottom. Contract your spinal erectors hard and don't let that happen. Try angling your toes out just a bit more and push your knees out harder.

[DannyP]

There's a very helpful video that Rip did about achieving lower back tension. Until I watched it, I'd always thought I was tightening my lower back in the standing position, only to realize I'd actually been tensing my mid back.