Well done stef! This is an excellent distillation of the problem with focusing on “technique” and even added a point that I hadn’t previously considered about the difference in technique as the COM changes. As I learned first-hand, the only way that a 3-plate squat became easy (and technique became flawless) was to add 50 lbs to it. Wasn’t it Rip who said “the weight is always heavy…you just get stronger.”