Squat check please

[madcat]

Hello,

I've cleaned up my knee slide by using the block of wood in the video, but I'm still sort of stuck at this weight. Is there something that I am still doing wrong or could improve on to possibly push past this weight? I am gaining weight, but I am starting to wonder in my 7 hours a night at best sleep habits have finally caught up and causing my stall, assuming of course nothing seems obviously wrong with my form.

This was my first time using a belt, but I don't think it messed with my form much as they look more or less the same without it. I thought I'd give it a shot to see if it may help, but what it mostly does is help me not go too low, which it tends to happen on the 5th rep if at all, so I guess it does help as my back does feel less stiff-ish since using it.

There is no # 1 since I originally planned on not uploading a video on account of the first time with the belt, so I did not save it.

SQ 2: SQ 1 2 29 16 - YouTube

SQ 3: SQ 2 2 29 16 - YouTube

Thank you!

[Dan Flanick]

Hey there madkitty,

1) Break at the hips and knees at the same time. The hips are breaking a split second before the knees.
2) The knee slide isn't glaring, but it's there. Continue using the TUBOW during warm ups. Drill into your brain that your knees should be in place 1/3 of the way down and then stay put for the rest of the motion until you fully extend towards the top of the movement.

As for your ability to "push past this weight" my first question is....how much rest are you taking between sets?

[madcat]

Hello Dan,

OK, I'll continue with the TUBOW and focus on the break being more in synch. As for rest I'm doing about 4:30 to 5 minutes though closer to 4:30 since waiting for the full 5 or more makes me feel kind of sluggish for some reason.

[Dan Flanick]

You need to rest longer, man. Rest as long as you need in order to complete your sets. Since 4 1/2 to 5 minutes isn't cutting it, lengthen your rest time to make sure you get the weight.

[madcat]

ok, I'll try extending the rest period some since I always thought 5 min was the max I should rest. Since that part sticks out to you, am I safe to assume the the two issues you mentioned that I need to work on are not really holding me back for the most part?

Though I have not tried a new set with your suggestions yet so things very well may improve, but could it also be possible that I'm starting to reach my limit? I ask as I've been working at it for a few months now, gained about 25ish pounds and things have all improved quite a bit from where I started, but most of the lifts have already reset once or twice and things have been going up much slower then before. So that thought has started to cross my mind more frequently now as I'm having trouble gauging the difference between "room to grow because of form issues" or "form is good enough" for when to move on.

[Dan Flanick]

How long is a few months? What weights are you at and where did you start? What's your age? Height? Weight?

Based off of the information you have provided, what is holding you back is the fact that you don't rest more than 5 minutes. Therefore, I am highly doubtful you have reached your limit. Your form isn't bad, but less than perfect form will hold you back from efficiently handling the most weight possible. I'm not sure how long "a few months" is, but you have not been resting enough and that causes me to believe you may not have needed to reset, but instead rest longer between sets. Don't rush this, you want to squeeze every last pound out of the novice progression that you can....gains will not be as drastic once you complete this process. Rest longer, fix your form, milk the program.