Squat Depth Issues - The Chicken Or The Egg?
I am a little older than most starting lifters, I suspect (38), former Navy, but have led a fairly sedentary lifestyle for the last 12 years or so (working at a desk all day and have just generally been lazy when not at work). But, I have decided to turn that all around and get started and try to do things right. I will not make excuses like my back or knees hurt when I squat or anything like that (even though they do, I would prefer to work on the issues that are causing that to happen rather than use as an excuse to stop doing them).
So, anyway, I was wondering how I should handle the issue I have with not getting deep enough on my squats. I am fairly sure it is due to a lack of flexibility and somewhat lower back strength (though not entirely sure). I have attempted the advice you gave to somone else about pushing the knees apart as I go down. It does get me lower, but not quite to parralel. I am wondering which of the following approaches I should take:
1) Stop squatting for now, work on stretching, improve lower back back and glute weakness and then pick back up squatting after a while
2) Deload back to beginning weight levels, but keep up the stretching and such as #1 above, but not move up in weights until I can do the squats with the proper depth
3) Keep moving up in weights and keep working on depth as I go (I really worry about this approach)
4) Some other approach
I am thinking #2, but will go the path you suggest. Thanks in advance for your assistance and for the great book (SS), as well as all the advice you give to the folks in question on this board.