Form Check: Squat (pelvis tucking/butt-wink)

[alexy]

Okay, so here is the deal.

Some weeks ago I finally got the book (Starting Strength) and discovered that I'd been doing my squats with a too wide stance. So I tried some squats with a shoulder-width stance and found that when I squatted with a more narrow stance I lost my lumbar arch at the bottom of the squat.

So I searched upon the matter and found the article about the "active hip" and I also saw the video regarding controlling the lower back. So now I've been focusing on shoving my knees out hard and to arch my lower back harder. Heres the videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xY_w40oHp7E (close-up side angle)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLMoo-B6O-Y (side angle)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9Nn-_jtp_I (back angle)

When I was doing these I focused really hard on "opening the groin" and keeping a tight arch. Are these squats hazardous or do they look normal? Please point out everything that I could improve on my squat and say if something is looking awkward/weird. Soo, what can I improve on these squats?

Thanks !

[Tom Campitelli]

You aren't losing your back arch, nor is your butt winking (awful term, best not to use it). You are actually over extending your spine at the top. Stand up normally, take a deep breath in, and then keep everything tight in the squat. Your descent it a little too slow, but other things look fine. Add more weight, rinse, and repeat.

[veryhrm]

i agree w/ TomC about the squats.

For me these videos also highlight how much difference camera angle and clothing color make. based on the "side angle" vid which has depth obscuring black shirt and is a bit from the back i would have sworn that there is significant, but not a lot, of back rounding.

However, the "close up" which is from straight 90 deg and has no black shirt it's pretty clear the straightening of lumbar is minimal.

(As a purely subjective matter, there's something "Silence of the Lambs" about this vid. You don't happen to have an affinity for liver w/ fava beans and Chianti, do you? :-) )

[alexy]

You aren't losing your back arch, nor is your butt winking (awful term, best not to use it). You are actually over extending your spine at the top. Stand up normally, take a deep breath in, and then keep everything tight in the squat. Your descent it a little too slow, but other things look fine. Add more weight, rinse, and repeat.

i agree w/ TomC about the squats.

For me these videos also highlight how much difference camera angle and clothing color make. based on the "side angle" vid which has depth obscuring black shirt and is a bit from the back i would have sworn that there is significant, but not a lot, of back rounding.

However, the "close up" which is from straight 90 deg and has no black shirt it's pretty clear the straightening of lumbar is minimal.

(As a purely subjective matter, there's something "Silence of the Lambs" about this vid. You don't happen to have an affinity for liver w/ fava beans and Chianti, do you? :-) )

Thanks for the input guys! As you said I kinda exaggerated the arch of my back so I could maintain a lumbar arch, but I guess it went the opposite way with my back overextending instead. Anyways, could it be something wrong with my bar position? In my SS log I got the advice to bring the chest up more and not too have my shoulders so rounded forward. Could this be a cause to the problem? Today I will add some weight and stop overextending my spine and see how it goes...

[veryhrm]

Yes, it is possible that thinking too much about "chest up" would lead you to over arching your mid back. Check page 25 of SS and note that "chest up" is a relative thing that means "don't let your upper back hunch forward too much". Basically you set this when you're at the top and then, like the rest of your back, you keep everything in the same position throughout the squat. You just want to bend at the hips and knees (and a little at the ankles) but everything else is just one solid piece. Also note that the picture on page 25 is exaggerated to make the point of how you teach what "chest up" means. In that picture his back is probably overextended you'll note that isn't in that position in any of the other pictures where he's got a bar on his back so don't aim for that position).

But let's not over complicate things at this point. You said you're focusing on pushing your knees out. Good. Keep those out and execute the squats like TomC said.