Reply With QuoteYou just need to concentrate on your form. You simply CANNOT expect anything to "take care of itself". It won't. You just have to be mindful of your form and not let your ego get in the way of controlled, linear progression.
Member
Knees buckling in again
First off, I apologize if this has been posted before. I searched the forums and I didn't find exactly what I was looking for. maybe i'm just blind.
I had a problem with my knees buckling in during for a while that I didn't really care about. I got up to around 185 pounds, and then went all the way back to 125lbs because that was the highest weight I could squat at without my knees buckling in. Since then i've been alright, my knees haven't buckled in, I didn't really concentrate on keeping them out but they stayed out. just recently my knees started buckling on the last 2 reps of 235lbs. I kept progressing in weight, thinking it'd fix itself but it didn't.
I did a deload last week, although it was pretty crappy. I was at 240 before it, and now I could barely get 225 for 3 without my knees buckling in. i'm trying as hard as I can to shove them out. I went for a 4th rep on my last set today and my knees buckled in and I sort of did a good morning. whatever it was, it looked atrocious and nothing like a squat.
what do I do at this point?
edit: just to add, my stance is fairly wide and my knees are pointed out probably somewhere from 30-45 degrees. i've been asked if i'm a powerlifter quite a few times, probably because of the stance.
Last edited by mattciupak; 04-25-2011 at 10:09 PM. Reason: added more information
Member
You just need to concentrate on your form. You simply CANNOT expect anything to "take care of itself". It won't. You just have to be mindful of your form and not let your ego get in the way of controlled, linear progression.
Member
The knees don't squeeze in magically. You're squeezing them in. The only person that can make them not do this is you.
Member
Do you guys recommend I drop the weight a little bit?
yesterday I got 225 for 3 without my knees buckling. I knew if I went for fourth reps my knees would buckle. should I just use 225 next time and try to get 5 or drop the weight a little?
Member
Reducing the weight all the time leads to your not getting stronger. How do you know your knees would cave on the fourth rep if you didn't try it?
EDIT: You need somebody to yell at you.
Last edited by gzt; 04-26-2011 at 09:08 AM.
Member
I went for a fourth during my third and final set. knees caved in and it looked nothing like a squat.Originally Posted by gzt
are you serious about that last part? i was going to sign up for a powerlifting gym 5 minutes away from my current gym soon, i'll probably get some yelling there.
edit: I have one more question. does my knees caving in show some sort of muscle weakness? weak hips maybe? should I work on improving the weak link or just keep squatting?
Last edited by mattciupak; 04-26-2011 at 09:49 AM.
Member
Yes. If you have somebody yelling at you "KNEES OUT KNEES OUT KNEES OUT" - which is a very common powerlifting cue - you are a lot more likely to keep your knees out. Yelling helps a lot. The powerlifting crews at my gym do a lot of yelling of cues.
Member
alright, thanks for the help.
Member
I had this problem too. Your knees are caving in because you are trying to enlist your quads to help you lift the weight. Take a look at somebody doing a front squat. It involves using alot of quad strength. To avoid this, you need to concentrate on developing hip drive. Rip goes to great length to explain this in SS and in videos as well.
Member
I have the same issue, and a friend who's a PT told me that my gluteus medius and abductors could be the issue and to work on those. He's read Starting Strength and agrees with Mr. Rippetoe that the adductors play a big role in squats, but he says that keeping the knee out could be a sign of the abductors being a problem. I'm going to take his advice and see if it helps me out.
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