Squat form check

[Mike Barry]

Hello coaches, I'm looking for some help with my squat. I'm in the later stages of LP. The last couple squat sessions have "felt" pretty ugly (I know you can't always go by feel). I worked up to 275 lbs for 3 sets of 5 on Monday, though I was having trouble staying in the groove and my elbows were aching after. I decided to add a mid-week light day on the squat, which is today's video. I figure if I can't get near perfect form at this weight, I probably need to spend a couple sessions working on it and ramp back up. Even after these "light" sets my elbows were aching - which I interpret as failure to stay tight enough and poor bar/hand position. Thanks for your input!

YouTube

[Steve Hill]

Note that by the end of the set you’re supporting the bar with your hands. This is most likely the cause of your elbow issues. Work on brining your hands closer together to build a better shelf for the bar. And we need a better angle to see if it (the bar) is in the right place. A bar placed to low on the back will tend to slide down, hence the desire to support it with the hands.

Additionally, on the way down, you’re trying to keep your upper back vertical - note the change in shape of your back on the descent. Point your nipples at the floor right away. Keep your back locked flat. It gets into the correct shape on the way up, but overextending it like that could lead to issues down the road.

Third, you need to get your knees gout better. Jam them out HARD - they need to travel out over your toes, not inside them. They should travel along the line of your foot on the way down.

Lastly, please read the sticky, and try to give us a higher quality video that conforms to the requests in the sticky. It really does help us to have an HD video in which you are not wearing black. Black hides things on camera. This is all discussed in the sticky.

[Mike Barry]

Thank you for for the help Steve. I’ve been trying to stay tight by maintaining a proud chest, I think poor execution of that cue is leading to the over extension. I’ll work on keeping my back locked flat like you say, along with bringing my hands in and shoving my knees out.

I think bad lighting is contributing to the video quality, but I understand your point and will try to get a better one next time.

I appreciate what you do on this forum!