Trainee's heels come off the ground when he squats deep - how to fix?

[Corrie]

Hi guys,
I'm training with a friend tonight and every time I've had him squat deep he ends up on the balls of his feet with his heels in the air.

I'll try fixing his stance tonight but is there a known fix for this? I know I can put some plates beneat his heels which may help a bit, but I'd prefer to have him do it without the heel support.

Any possible fixes that you could suggest would be good.

[mwhities]

Need a video. Stance not wide enough? Sorry I can't be much more help.

[ColoWayno]

(NASSC)
Does he have lifting shoes?
He's not keeping the bar over the center of his foot, try the "sit back" cue.

[skipbeat]

I told my partner to shove his ass back like he's about to take it in the shower at jail, it worked.

[PaulBeech]

Box squats have helped me fix this issue with trainees. Always reminding them that the box wrong always be there though.

[AdamW]

Ankle flexibility can also create this problem. It seems like it goes away with heavy enough weights, but then it manifests itself as the bar coming forward instead of traveling vertically.

[Corrie]

k thanks guys.

I'll focus on having him go for a vertical bar path.

He's a bigger guy, probably 240 at least but he does MMA and is very strong naturally. I think he'll get the hang of it once I put some weight on the bar.

[Joel]

I told my partner to shove his ass back like he's about to take it in the shower at jail, it worked.

That’s a pretty good cue.

OP: Depends on the squatting style. If he’s doing Oly style, tell him to “$hit between his shoes.” If he’s doing powerlifting style, tell him to “$hit between the shoes of the guy spotting behind.”

[AdamW]

For what it's worth I can't squat less than 135 with a vertical bar path because there's not enough weight to counteract the inflexibility of my ankles, and that's with weightlifting shoes. Have him practice sitting in the hole with no bar but holding onto something so he doesn't fall on his ass, so he can at least feel what it's like to have his weight on his heels. I also agree that a box can be useful for this, but if you can get him just doing pause squats I find they help even more. Sitting in the hole with a bar on your back forces you to really find where your balance should be.

[Corrie]

For what it's worth I can't squat less than 135 with a vertical bar path because there's not enough weight to counteract the inflexibility of my ankles, and that's with weightlifting shoes. Have him practice sitting in the hole with no bar but holding onto something so he doesn't fall on his ass, so he can at least feel what it's like to have his weight on his heels. I also agree that a box can be useful for this, but if you can get him just doing pause squats I find they help even more. Sitting in the hole with a bar on your back forces you to really find where your balance should be.

Ooh good one. I think I'll have him hold onto something and sit back into a deep squat just so he knows how it feels to have the weight closer to the heels.