My wife can squat, after all

[DanlB]

I'd posted a bit ago about my wife beginning the SS program with me, after having watched me fart around with it for a week. At the time, we didn't think she'd be able to squat with one knee having been replaced last year and the other needing replacement. Tom C replied to that post, and I've been meaning to say thanks, and to write a followup. But life has its own ideas, and I'm just getting to it.

So we saw her doc recently, and he cleared her to squat: she can do whatever she wants under the bar, with pain as the guide as to what's too much. We were pleasantly surprised at that news, and very happy about it.

Her overall response to barbell training has been fantastic, especially in its apparent effect on her multiple sclerosis symptoms (probably a good subject for a post to the testimonials forum). We still have a question regarding the squat, though.

She has full range of motion in the operated knee, though that is reduced when bearing weight. Her first squat workout, we followed the sequence in the recently-posted video in which Beau's coaches Dan in the squat as a beginner in his 70s. When she got the bar on her shoulder, we found she really couldn't get below a half squat without pain -- in the operated knee, probably due to scar tissue. She's had surprisingly little pain in the other knee.

So we have treated this as a rehab case, working on range of motion in the squat, without the bar. We had her doing squats onto and off of a stack of practice plates, lowering the height a bit at a time. Today, we abandoned the stack and had her start practicing the squat as in the book. She is able to reach parallel regularly, but there is still some pain and stiffness driving a few form errors we're working on.

So right now, we're treating ROM as the variable in her progression for the squat. (Her other lifts are coming along nicely, though if she pushes too hard in her squat work, she can't always finish the deadlift work set due to knee pain.) Our thinking is that we'd like to see her get full depth in the squat without pain or loss of form before we add weight. She's made good progress in the last two weeks, and we only wish we'd started this rehab business a long time ago (just as I'm wishing I'd started lifting 20 years ago....)

Now we'd like to know whether our rehab approach to working her into the squat -- getting solid on ROM first before introducing weight -- makes sense to someone with actual experience and credentials in coaching this program?

Many thanks!
Dan

[Tom Campitelli]

So right now, we're treating ROM as the variable in her progression for the squat.

This is exactly correct. Well done.

(Her other lifts are coming along nicely, though if she pushes too hard in her squat work, she can't always finish the deadlift work set due to knee pain.) Our thinking is that we'd like to see her get full depth in the squat without pain or loss of form before we add weight.

Once again, this is what you need to do. Realize, however, that the squat may not be completely pain free at this point. She had a knee replacement and things may hurt as she works into new ranges. The keys will be how distracting that pain is and whether the pain gets worse. Obviously, neither of us can feel what she is feeling, but that knee may hurt a little for a while.

Now we'd like to know whether our rehab approach to working her into the squat -- getting solid on ROM first before introducing weight -- makes sense to someone with actual experience and credentials in coaching this program?

If only more people understood this, the squatting world would be a better place.

[DanlB]

Tom, thank you very much for your feedback. It's very encouraging, and a bit humbling.

Luckily, she's gotten good at recognizing her limits, but of course some days she does tend to want to push through pain harder than she maybe should. All part of the process, I suppose.

Thanks again.
Dan