low bar squat check please

[Eric Larousse]

here some low bar squats i played with today I have run my high bar squat up to 375x5 but decided to switch to low bar for various reasons...took a big deload and heres what i did...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tf8ktwoyGJ4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tf8ktwoyGJ4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&f...&v=tf8ktwoyGJ4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=namDbLsYDzQ

i played around with depth on these in that last vid i think i was sinking too low but I am not used to low bar so please let me know what I can improve on.

[Steve Hill]

Yep. We can see that you were HBBS, because you still are, just with the bar in the low bar position.

-Far too wide a stance
-Excessive knee travel
-Little evidence of hip drive until you start to struggle, then you figure out that the hips are actually useful.

Any particular reason you posted the same video three times?

[Eric Larousse]

was trying to see it from different angles and I was trying to check depth..Really need a coach but this is the best I can do for now

o I didnt see it was the same video sorry about that Ill try to fix it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8nkAmh-m2o
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xmyk0s_QuIM

heres the other ones i meant to put up

[Eric Larousse]

whats up fellas! Tried some more low bar squats tonight went ahead and bumped it to 300. I went with a narrower stance tonight and tried to not let my knees shift over my toes as much although I'm not sure if I did it right. The squats felt great, how they look well I dont know? Please let me know if you have any pointers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_Fxu...ature=youtu.be
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHDHL...ature=youtu.be
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gPcy...ature=youtu.be

[Steve Hill]

Your knees are still moving throughout the entire range of motion. The knees should stop forward travel about 1/2-2/3 of the way into the rep, and then hold still for the remainder of the eccentric phase, and then back to the point at which they stopped moving on the concentric phase. Once that point is reached, the knees start returning to the start position. Do you have the 3rd edition of SS:BBT?

Also, you are not keeping your head down.

Your hip drive, however, has improved, esp. as you get deeper into your sets, as you fatigue. You have discovered a truth: when you squat from your hips, the squat is stronger.

[Eric Larousse]

Well I have the second edition but I think the problem is I have been doing high bar the whole time and it is just a habit to move the knees forward. Ill post my sets tomorrow and I will try to keep the knees from sliding forward.

[Steve Hill]

Well I have the second edition but I think the problem is I have been doing high bar the whole time and it is just a habit to move the knees forward. Ill post my sets tomorrow and I will try to keep the knees from sliding forward.

The 2nd ed. discusses knee travel as well, read pgs 45-47, esp. Figures 2-51 & 2-52 for an illustration of the knee travel concept.

[Eric Larousse]

First of all please excuse my idiotic looking hiking up of my shorts but I was trying to see if i was hitting depth and apparently it looks like I left a few reps a little high but I cant really tell. Went ahead and bumped the weight to 315 sense 300 was pretty easy even though my form wasn't too great last time. Tried to focus on keeping knees from sliding forward and looking down. Anyways pleae let me know how they look.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJrsl...ature=youtu.be
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5fP7...ature=youtu.be
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uPc6...ature=youtu.be

[Steve Hill]

First of all please excuse my idiotic looking hiking up of my shorts but I was trying to see if i was hitting depth and apparently it looks like I left a few reps a little high but I cant really tell.

We will excuse the shorts (for now), but there's really no excuse for those calluses. Also, stop worrying about looking in the mirror for depth - you need to be able to feel the correct depth, and you need to get your head down, which is probably the main reason you're not hitting depth. Also, I still think your stance is too wide, but the angles you've provided don't allow me to judge very well.

Since you know you're supposed to keep your head down, why aren't you? It has become the single most common issue on just about every single squat form check we do. KEEP YOUR HEAD DOWN. There's no valid excuse for not doing so.

Went ahead and bumped the weight to 315 sense 300 was pretty easy even though my form wasn't too great last time. Tried to focus on keeping knees from sliding forward and looking down. Anyways pleae let me know how they look.....

Knees have gotten better, but you still need to work on it. First, you're not setting them early enough. Once your knees get out over your toes, sit back and sit down. That's it. Don't let them (your knees) move forward any more. Watch your bar path on the first set - see how it slides forward? That's you, getting into your knees. Sit back / down and BEND OVER to keep the bar over the midfoot. Hip drive on these is pretty good, for getting into your knees this much.

And keep your damn head down.

Homework: Take another video. One set from the rear (first set), then read this sticky and decide on the others, though rear 45° oblique would be a real good idea. And on every single rep your head should be down or you won't post it.

[Eric Larousse]

We will excuse the shorts (for now), but there's really no excuse for those calluses. Also, stop worrying about looking in the mirror for depth - you need to be able to feel the correct depth, and you need to get your head down, which is probably the main reason you're not hitting depth. Also, I still think your stance is too wide, but the angles you've provided don't allow me to judge very well.

Since you know you're supposed to keep your head down, why aren't you? It has become the single most common issue on just about every single squat form check we do. KEEP YOUR HEAD DOWN. There's no valid excuse for not doing so.



Knees have gotten better, but you still need to work on it. First, you're not setting them early enough. Once your knees get out over your toes, sit back and sit down. That's it. Don't let them (your knees) move forward any more. Watch your bar path on the first set - see how it slides forward? That's you, getting into your knees. Sit back / down and BEND OVER to keep the bar over the midfoot. Hip drive on these is pretty good, for getting into your knees this much.

And keep your damn head down.

Homework: Take another video. One set from the rear (first set), then read this sticky and decide on the others, though rear 45° oblique would be a real good idea. And on every single rep your head should be down or you won't post it.

will do.. The calluses are from deadlifts. I use a mixed hook grip and if I let it slide into my fingers too much the weight just slides right out. They don't really bother me and the deadlifts are going pretty well (455x5 last night)so I really dont want to mess with the grip too much sense it is working.