Tall Low-Bar Squat Form Check

[JimmyScritsquat]

Hi,

I attempted the low-bar squat for the first time and I'd be very grateful for some pointers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNjgGx6lrDY

I can deadlift 180kg, but as you can see, 100kg on the squat wasn't all that easy.

Also, is there anything a taller lifter (6'6) with long femurs should be doing differently?

My goal is to get a 3 plate squat by Christmas.

Thanks.

[BareSteel]

Hi Jimmy,

You have a tendency to start the descent with your hips. Instead, use hips and knees together.

Really for a full critique we need a better video. Get your entire body in the shot (even your feet) and preferable get a 45* shot from the rear. Only so much can be determined by a side view - especially so close. I think you might be losing some drive by going a little too deep, but the plate obscures my ability to say this for certain.

I think you've got the idea, but there is some cleaning up to do. Nothing you can do about your height or femur length.

[Sean Herbison]

Also, is there anything a taller lifter (6'6) with long femurs should be doing differently?

My goal is to get a 3 plate squat by Christmas.

Yes. Eating more. How much do you weigh?

[JimmyScritsquat]

Hi Jimmy,

You have a tendency to start the descent with your hips. Instead, use hips and knees together.

Really for a full critique we need a better video. Get your entire body in the shot (even your feet) and preferable get a 45* shot from the rear. Only so much can be determined by a side view - especially so close. I think you might be losing some drive by going a little too deep, but the plate obscures my ability to say this for certain.

I think you've got the idea, but there is some cleaning up to do. Nothing you can do about your height or femur length.

Yeah, I'll try and get another video.

I think starting with my hips may have contributed to my leaning over. I'm also experiencing some serious lower back DOMS today, suggesting they did a lot of the work. How do I bring my glutes and hamstrings into the movement, given my poor leverages?

Yes. Eating more. How much do you weigh?

90-94kg, I haven't weighed myself in a while.

But yes I agree.

[Bryan Dobson]

You need to stop a little higher. You are also allowing the bar to move horizontally, I see this the most as you are coming out of the hole. The bar goes forward then you have to fight it to get back over your foot. Stay tight and keep the bar moving straight up and down.


A taller squat rack has to be available for you as well.

[BareSteel]

I think starting with my hips may have contributed to my leaning over. I'm also experiencing some serious lower back DOMS today, suggesting they did a lot of the work. How do I bring my glutes and hamstrings into the movement, given my poor leverages?

You can't really force which muscles you want to contribute to the movement. Your body will use the right muscles when you squat correctly.

Your limb length proportions are unalterable and the bar has to stay over mid foot. The only factors we can really manipulate are bar placement, stance width and heel height. The first two have very little wiggle room within the Starting Strength model. Heel height you can play with. You've got flats, and shoes with .5" - .75" heels. Try a little heel. It'll put your knees a little bit farther forward. Plus, oly shoes just feel darn good to squat in. But even this change would not fit your criterion of adding more glute/hammie to the movement. If anything, it might add a little quad.

I've got to say though: I just re-watched your video and there's not a thing wrong with your torso angle. At all. This is how a low back back squat looks.

[Sean Herbison]

I'm also experiencing some serious lower back DOMS today, suggesting they did a lot of the work. How do I bring my glutes and hamstrings into the movement, given my poor leverages?

You can't really force which muscles you want to contribute to the movement. Your body will use the right muscles when you squat correctly.

In this case BareSteel is right/kind of wrong. More right than wrong. He's right in that you can't really force muscles to contribute other than what they're anatomically designed to do. He's definitely right that your body will use the right ones when your form is right.

However, in this particular case you can force your hamstrings to contribute more, because your form is off. You're getting some excessive back-rounding (butt wink) at the bottom, which lets your hamstrings shorten, making them less effective at providing a stretch reflex to get you out of the hole.

You look like you're trying to set your back at the top by arching it in. Instead of that, think about keeping it all tight. Basically what happens for a lot of people is that they try to put too much of an arch in the lumbar spine, then, when the hamstrings pull towards the bottom, your back loses the fight against your hamstrings, and your pelvis tilts toward your hamstrings, causing your lower back to round and letting the hamstrings go slack.

If, instead, you just maintain a neutral spine position, and focus on keeping it there, there's no excessive pull, and it's easier to keep your pelvis tilted the way you want, keeping tension on the hamstrings and getting a better bounce out of the bottom.

tl;dr, keep your trunk tight, don't let your back round, get more out of your hamstrings.

[BareSteel]

Good eye for the over extension at the top, Sean. That was hard to see with his baggy t-shirt. I've got to hand it to you that you point out a valid clarification to the rule I stated about the hamstrings' contribution.

Jimmy, it's hard to see exactly how deep you are. You're probably a little too deep. Is it an inch? A few inches? The next video will clarify that better. Certainly once you cut these to correct depth and stay tighter, it'll clean up.

I think part of the setup issue is what Bryan said about the rack. You're a pretty tall guy and it's tough for you to get under that bar with good form. Keep at it.