The "bounce" out of the hole

[Irishman301]

Since reading SS, I have been trying my damn hardest to reach the lowest depth as possible. I find that I can get lower when using a narrower stance, but that bothers my knees (no matter how hard I try to push my butt back instead of down, it still hurts my knees). I found that a slightly wider then shoulder width stance works best for me, as far as not bothering my knees goes. The problem with the wider stance is that I find it harder to reach full depth. In my attempt to go all the way down, I usually get to the bottom position of the squat, and I literally try to push myself to get that extra inch or two lower. It actually becomes like a pause and contraction of the leg muscles at the bottom (think of doing a bench press and squeezing everything at the top for a few seconds), where I fight for more depth. By doing this I don't get that "bounce" that you talk about out of the hole, and it's not just one continuous movement - down then up. Is it okay to squat this way?

PS. eventually I will be getting a video up of my form, but for now I'm just trying to explain my best.

[Mark Rippetoe]

Your video will show that you don't push your knees out at the bottom, that your knees are pointed too nearly forward, as are your feet, I'm sure.

Have you read the book? This seems to be a rather common question today.

[Irishman301]

I do know about pushing my knees out and angling my feet outwards. I still do reach full depth, but I just have a tendency to not get that bounce out of the hole. I always feel like I got more out of the rep when I pause and push downwards at the bottom of the squat.

I actually read the squat chapter about 20 times . It's the best explanation of a squat I've ever seen. I just don't bounce out of the hole, and I was wondering if that was a terribly bad thing to do.

[Mark Rippetoe]

You need to bounce, because the correct use of this stretch reflex is important for using heavier weight, and to ensure that your knees are protected by hamstring tension. Again, I'd need to see.