Squat form check #2

[Adam Stevens]

I went to the squat camp on Jan 21 at the Woodmere Fitness Club (thanks Nick and John), and was able to use what I learned there to make some good progress on my LP since then (squatted 200x5x3 at the camp).

I've been developing some pain/a pinching sensation in the crease of my left hip, where the thigh meets the V of the groin. It's only painful in and around the bottom of the squat, and it does get slightly better as my warm-up progresses. If there's anything in my squat form that could lead to this, I'm keen to hear about it. I'm also searching the forums for similar experiences, and posting with some more details in the Recovery section.

Stats:
Bodyweight: 208lb
Height: 6'1"
Age: 27
Bodyfat: 15-20%?

Current lifts:
Squat: 245
Deadlift: 290
Press: 112.5
Bench: 200

Link to video (this was my last set):
YouTube

Thanks,
Greg

[Adam Stevens]

Here's a link to my post in the Recovery section:

Pain in crease of left hip around bottom of squat

-Greg

[KangaJoo]

These look pretty decent with some minor issues to me. I've had a similar problem in both my hips, although it was a lot worse in my case since I would feel it for a long time after squatting whenever I moved my leg up and away from my body, and what caused it with me was not keeping my hips back far enough and as a result having to leg press the weight up with my quads instead of using hip drive. The side that I would get pain on was whichever side I was leaning towards since I had some asymmetry in my squats as well. Based on your vid, you pretty consistently allow your knees to cave in a little bit when you drive up which could be a problem and on a couple of reps you let your knees and hips slide forward slightly which could definitely contribute to pain in that area if done often. Focus on keeping your knees out on the way up and make sure you're consistently sitting your hips back and not letting your knees come forward.

[Jeff Illingworth]

Let's get a bit nit-picky. You're knees are popping back at the very beginning of your ascent - make them stay put longer. As KangaJoo notes, your knees are a little cavey - drive them out another inch on the way down. Your grip on the bar, especially with your right hand kind of draped on top of the bar, isn't as solid as it could be.
Also, be sure to lock your knees at the top and take a much bigger, harder breath.
Be patient. A lot of times these pains that come on gradually take awhile to clear up.

[Adam Stevens]

Thanks for the detailed feedback. Yesterday I focused on staying more in my hips, and there was a noticeable reduction in the pinching sensation, only coming back on my last few reps (I probably let the form drift a little). Looking forward to tackling those little details next workout.

[Adam Stevens]

Re. the knees sliding back: I hadn't noticed that before it was pointed out, and I'm finding it tricky to fix. Is it because a) my knees are too far forward once I reach the bottom, in which case I can fix it on the descent; or b) my knee placement is good, but my hips pop up faster than the bar, which I imagine would also cause the knees to slide back at the start of the ascent.

I'll try both approaches tomorrow.

[Adam Stevens]

Should add, I could see an argument for both based on my video. I'm leaning towards b) at the moment...

[jessemecham]

GregS, I'm working on the exact same thing, trying to keep my knees from sliding back right after the bounce at the bottom. It's a tricky one to catch. If the knees move back right after the pop from the bottom, it means my hips are going back as well. It's slight, but a slight backward movement from the hips (vs just going straight up) seems to be the ticket for me. I try and cue myself with thinking about driving straight up with the hips. It's helped (though we'll see if I can hold that for my heavy sets in two days). Hope that helps! New here, so take all of that FWIW

[Adam Stevens]

Thanks for the suggestion. I've got my 80% squats today, I'll see how it goes with that.

[Adam Stevens]

Quick update - If I keep the "knees out" cue in my mind from the very beginning of the squat, it almost entirely removes the pinching sensation during the squat. There's still some irritation after the workout, but it's progress. Previously I'd only start thinking "knees out" coming in and out of the hole.