Why is SS coach Beau Bryant teaching a horiz back angle on low bar squat?

I saw this official SS video from 2016 on teaching squats to the elderly just now and was confused on two things:

1. Beau is teaching a horiz back angle coming out of the squat. Look at 2:09. ouch! Back angle is supposed to be constant in the lower 2/3 of the squat (with a slight allowance of going a little more horiz). This looks nothing like what is described in SS and in Mark's videos teaching the low bar squat. And Beau is teaching what Figure 2-22 (and 2-42) expressly says you should NOT do.

2. He instructs the gentleman to do "thumbs around" at 4:22, yet the book (and other videos) are clear that it's thumbs over.

So the obvious question is why the deviations from what the book teaches?

Also, it was amusing how the guy sitting on the bench literally vanished into thin air at 2:18. That's a great trick :)

He is teaching his client HIP DRIVE. When teaching people unweighted squats for the first time we often exaggerate the hip drive even at the expense of getting completely horizontal with the back. When load is added this cleans up. But at the beginning we have to decondition the clients brain from the notion that they are trying to "stand up straight with the barbell." Thumbs around bar / bent wrist is sometimes necessary for older people who struggle to get into low bar position. The SS method of low-bar carry is very difficult for old guys with tight / arthritic shoulders.

An update on Dan. He has recently squatted right around 240 beltless and pulled 280x5. I don't have a recent squat video but here is 165x5x3 from a year ago and the last rep of his 280x5 pull. Not perfect but we are working with 74 years of injury accumulation and arthritis.

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Going beyond your specific question to address something a bit behind it.

Starting Strength is not the back angle you assume coming up in a squat.
Starting Strength is not the 'chest down' cue.
Starting Strength is not the low bar back squat or wrapping your thumbs over the bar.

Starting Strength is a mechanical model of human movement under a barbell applied over time by coaches working with real human beings. If necessary, we overcue. We prioritize, ignoring some faults until more important issues are addressed. We accommodate. We simplify. We use different exercises and drills/tools to help particularly recalcitrant lifters. All these things are within the scope of the model, and in the hands of a skilled coach, they aren't deviations fromthe model but examples of the expert application of that model in unusual circumstances.

Post of the week.

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Originally Posted by CJ Gotcher

Going beyond your specific question to address something a bit behind it.

Starting Strength is not the back angle you assume coming up in a squat.
Starting Strength is not the 'chest down' cue.
Starting Strength is not the low bar back squat or wrapping your thumbs over the bar.

Starting Strength is a mechanical model of human movement under a barbell applied over time by coaches working with real human beings. If necessary, we overcue. We prioritize, ignoring some faults until more important issues are addressed. We accommodate. We simplify. We use different exercises and drills/tools to help particularly recalcitrant lifters. All these things are within the scope of the model, and in the hands of a skilled coach, they aren't deviations fromthe model but examples of the expert application of that model in unusual circumstances.

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Originally Posted by Beau Bryant

An update on Dan. He has recently squatted right around 240 beltless and pulled 280x5. I don't have a recent squat video but here is 165x5x3 from a year ago and the last rep of his 280x5 pull. Not perfect but we are working with 74 years of injury accumulation and arthritis.

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The heavy weight Dan is lifting is amazing after seeing that previous video when he started out. But that shake/shrug at the end really displays his new found control of his body and exudes a look of youthfulness we didn't see in his starting videos. Keep up the great work Dan and Beau!

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Originally Posted by Beau Bryant

An update on Dan. He has recently squatted right around 240 beltless and pulled 280x5. I don't have a recent squat video but here is 165x5x3 from a year ago and the last rep of his 280x5 pull. Not perfect but we are working with 74 years of injury accumulation and arthritis.

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Instagram

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right on man, thanks for sharing this. I was really curious about his progress since you first posted about him a while back.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by CJ Gotcher

Going beyond your specific question to address something a bit behind it.

Starting Strength is not the back angle you assume coming up in a squat.
Starting Strength is not the 'chest down' cue.
Starting Strength is not the low bar back squat or wrapping your thumbs over the bar.

Starting Strength is a mechanical model of human movement under a barbell applied over time by coaches working with real human beings. If necessary, we overcue. We prioritize, ignoring some faults until more important issues are addressed. We accommodate. We simplify. We use different exercises and drills/tools to help particularly recalcitrant lifters. All these things are within the scope of the model, and in the hands of a skilled coach, they aren't deviations fromthe model but examples of the expert application of that model in unusual circumstances.

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Originally Posted by Jonathon Sullivan

Post of the week.

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Candidate for post of the year.

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Originally Posted by Beau Bryant

An update on Dan. He has recently squatted right around 240 beltless and pulled 280x5. I don't have a recent squat video but here is 165x5x3 from a year ago and the last rep of his 280x5 pull. Not perfect but we are working with 74 years of injury accumulation and arthritis.

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I remember when the vid of Dan first came out. After watching Dan's deadlift vid I just have to say, "Wow! He's really benefited from his training".