Squat/deadlift form check

[Aly199]

Hi Mr. rippetoe. Been following your program since december and as a skinny kid I'd just like to say it's been a life changing experience.

I'd appreciate any thoughts you got on my squat/dead. I've been working on form for a while now.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fWTQkV35ro

[Mark Rippetoe]

Squats look pretty good, lean over a little bit more for better hip drive. But PLEASE do not walk backwards into the rack. You are going to have a bad wreck like that because you can't see where you're going with a heavy bar.

About the deadlift, two comments: 1.) I'll bet your first rep felt better that the last 4, because you started with a good back angle but ended up too vertical for the last 4, with your shoulders behind the bar. This is because 2.) you set the first rep down by bending your knees first instead of shoving your ass back and getting your knees out of the way. This makes your back too vertical and causes the bar to go forward out around your knees. This is dealt with on pages 127-29 of BBT.

[Aly199]

Thanks for the reply Mr. Rippetoe.

For the squat, I'm working on descending in one fluid movement. Do you think my stance width or the angle of my feet could be the culprit? Or maybe I just need to work on flexibility.

For the deadlift, what I started doing was bringing my shoulders forward as my hips are unlocked backwards and that helped me clear my knees with the bar (my knee caps were taking a beating before because my scapulas were still retracted as the bar came down). This also puts me in the right position for the next rep, I believe, with scapulas in front of the bar.