Squat check (back tweak) and advice on switching to advanced novice

[CannedBass]

I have a long and storied history of lower back issues. They're mostly caused by sitting, but occasionally, lifting will aggravate something.

My back was a little sore this morning before I started lifting, but not so bad that I wanted to skip my workout. On my second work set of squats I could feel some stress/pain in my lower back as I was coming out of the hole on reps 3 and 4. I've long since learned not to screw around when it comes to back stuff, so I called it a day. I'm planning on just repeating the workout once my back settles down in a few days.

Anyway, is there anything about these squats that looks injurious, or was this just my already-sore back objecting to the stress that comes with even a properly-performed squat?

http://youtu.be/6DjU0vbgvFk


My second question is about whether it's time to switch to advanced novice on squats. Here are my stats:

Height: 6'
Weight: 245 (up from 225 before SS)
Squat: 280 x 5
Deadlift: 305 x 5
Bench Press: 170 x 5
Press: 115 x 5
Power Clean: 62.5 kg x 3
Sleep: 8ish hours
Food: 3300 kcal, ~200g protein (I only track macros every once in a while just to make sure I'm in the right ballpark)

From what I've read, these weights are a little light for a guy my size to be switching to AN. I've also never failed a set of squats, but I've done resets for form issues. My concern is that I've been constantly battling minor injuries and form issues that are interfering with my progress. Today was my first time back at 280 after I reset because I wasn't hitting depth (per Tom). Now I tweak my back at 280. I've also been fighting some elbow/wrist tendonitis that have been interfering with upper body stuff, and have had a host of other tweaks that are annoying, but go away in a few days. I know some of these are form issues, but I have a hard time working on form when I'm busting my ass just to get my reps.

I do think I have quite a bit of LP left on non-squat lifts. Does it make sense to add a light squat day at this point, or should I just continue trying to perfect my form while doing SS?

[Tom Campitelli]

Widen your stance a bit. Keep your chin down, especially on the ascent. Stay in the middle of the foot. Your last rep had your right heel well of the ground. Slow down at the top and really get tight. That doesn't mean arch your back harder. It means locking everything down so that your back doesn't move. You are rushing, resulting in a fair amount of variability between reps. A light day on Wednesday sounds like a good idea to me.