Lumbar Flexion in the Squat

[DanH]

Hi I am a 17 year old from Ontario. *I am having trouble squatting to depth. *When I squat my lower back "tucks under" just before I reach parallel depth. *I can maintain lumbar extension during deadlifts but not at the bottom of a squat. *I have read starting strength and tried squatting with my knees out and my toes pointed outward but I always experience lumber flexion. ***
*****Do you know why this is happening? *Are there any corrective/ strengthing exercises I should be doing? *Starting strength recommends holding the bottom position of the squat as a stretch, should I avoid this stretch because I cannot achieve the proper position?
****Thank you very much for your time, I am looking forward to hearing your advice.

[Tom Campitelli]

Video, por favor.

[cubbieblue]

I've got the same damn problem. I'm pretty flexible too, but I've got the tuck under/buttwink/whatever the hell you want to call it. I tried shoving the knees WAY out, narrowing stance, widening stance, squatting while holding a plate in front of me, letting the hips sink first, and then letting the knees bend first, but it's always there at the very bottom of the squat. I think that for myself (all torso, stubby ass legs), it's a direct result of my proportions.

I ignored it, because I've read here from most that it's not a big deal. But, after ignoring it for long enough I've been stuck with some pretty bad SI joint pain on the left side for about 5 months now.

Sorry to hi-jack, but I'm interested in the responses you get.

[cubbieblue]

Here is an article by Rip on the issue as well:
http://startingstrength.com/articles...2_rippetoe.pdf

So maybe I'm just not pushing my knees out hard enough?

[Brodie Butland]

Guys...we need a video to determine this. What you think is lumbar flexion may not actually be lumbar flexion. Unless you're really flexible, your back will probably not appear motionless for the entire range of motion even in a proper squat. It serves no purpose for anyone to speculate whether you're doing something wrong when there's nothing to judge you on.

[DanH]

http://youtu.be/23nKawWJxys
Here is a video of me squatting at home with 65 pounds. The "tuck under" is more pronounced when I am not using any weight.

[Brodie Butland]

Several penalty flags on the field here.

(1) Don't ever, ever, EVER back up a squat into a rack. EVER. Especially for 10 feet. What happens if you fall backwards?

(2) You actually have the flexibility to reach depth without any problematic flexion...your problem is that you relax your lower back to get even more depth than you need. Keep your back tight, squeeze your abs hard, and stop an inch or so below parallel--cut off your reps higher than you are.

But that's not the biggest problem with your form...

(3) Your squat bears little resemblance to the squat described in the book. You're leading with the chest, with no noticeable drive from the hips. Next time, focus on driving the hips up, not pushing with your legs.

[DanH]

Thank you very much Brodie!
Do you think having my back at a slightly more horizontal angle would help me to drive with my hips?

[Brodie Butland]

Thank you very much Brodie!
Do you think having my back at a slightly more horizontal angle would help me to drive with my hips?

Yes, bending over a little more generally helps with hip drive. But the first step is to have the right conceptualization of the movement...focus on driving your hips up, and your legs will do what they need to do on their own.