A Lifter's Iron Log...

[ghettostudmuffin]

Everyone that initially sees me squat says I go deep as hell. In reality I go just below parallel, but I have literally a perfect squatters build and I think it makes it look like I go down lower than I really am. Basically I go as low as I can. I don't think about depth when I squat. I just go down until I hit bottom and then come back up.

The powerlifter's I know train in usapl which has pretty strict standards and I was told my 405 would have passed np on depth.

 

[ExtraMile]

Awesome. Out of interest, how high (or low) is the bar placement on your back? I use a real high bar placement, but I know most strength athletes will get it right down on the rear delts so they can sit back and use hip strength more. I just find that uncomfortable.

If your knees travel forwards then your upper thighs could be at parallel when infact you are achieving a pretty big or even a full ROM through the knee joint.

I suck at squatting lol. I think the fact that I squat high bar with a relatively narrow stance is partly to blame lol.

 

[ghettostudmuffin]

Well I can tell you pretty much exactly how I have been taught to squat and you can play with it and see if it helps you out.

How to Squat...Good.

1. Grip. Do not use a thumbless grip. I used to do this. It lessens control of the bar whether you realize it or not. I grip the bar on each side of your typical olympic bar where there is that ring notch. I put my index finger over that. This also happens to be around how wide many people use to bench with.

2. Setup. Keeping a tight grip on the bar duck under it with one foot forward for leverage and fairly straight wrists and wedge the bar into your traps. I do use a low bar position, but really I set the bar first higher up on the traps and then pull myself up bringing the bar lower on my traps until I feel the right spot.

Now that your grip is set and the bar is placed where you want it position both feet facing forward somewhere between 10-12" apart. Shrug your shoulders back and in and make sure you are tight. Now pull your hips in so you're using all leg strength to lift the weight up. Look forward as you are doing this.

3. The Walkout. Now that you have unracked the bar look down at your feet while keeping tight as you can. Whichever foot you prefer to step back with first use. Step back so that your foot's toe is a few inches behind the heel of your other foot. It helps to set the foot angle when you step back as well because this helps reduce energy wasted positioning your feet. Now step back with the other foot while attempting to place it at the proper squat width and angle. That's 2 steps and you should be very close to your squat stance and if you did it perfect you would be just about ready to squat. Now that both feet are at the proper width position you can make any last second adjustments to toe angle for your feet. Everyone's foot width is a little different, but it's generally safe to say anywhere from heels shoulder width to a few inches wider. Toe's should be angled out somewhere around 30 degrees. This reduces stress on the patella of the knee and activates the inner thigh more.

4. The Squat. Now look slightly upwards. This will tilt your head back abit and help in setting up proper upperback positioning. Retighten your upperback and try to pull your elbows up and back. This further enhances upperback tightness and will aid you when coming up. Now that your head position and elbows are back and up you take a strong breath into your chest and hold it during the duration of the descent. Don't inhale into your stomach despite what so many say. If you are wearing a properly snugged belt this will feel a little difficult to do. As you sink into depth your body will naturally press against the belt creating support plus you will have a big chest from breathing into your chest AND your stomach will be flexed tight. It's win-win all around. Head position-check. Upperback tight and elbows up-check. Big chest-check. Now tighten your abs.

SQUAT. Squat straight down. Both your knees and hips should be moving at the same speed. It should feel natural. You are not attempting to squat back or use just your legs. You are just squatting down naturally. If your body is in the proper position from the previous checklist this will result in perfect descent. Keep everything tight as you can. Remember big chest.

Hit bottom and I recommend going as low as you can. You shouldn't have to think about this. IF your form is good and your flexibility is adequate you'll go down and then come up without having to question depth. It's a good habit to get into.

As soon as you start rising up make sure you are looking upwards and now pull your elbows forward. By purposely looking up and cocking your elbows forward rather than holding them in the back position you are counteracting the tendency to lean and/or buckle over from heavy weight. Trust me it works. This will GREATLY aid in improving your form when rising up in the squat.

AS you are going up breath out through your teeth or pursed lips. You're not so much exhaling and letting pressure out of your chest as you are getting rid of excess pressure in your lungs. This will actually tighten your stomach even more as you are rising up. The combination of looking upwards, big chest, pulling the elbows forward and expelling a small amount of air as your rise up will help you tremendously in not buckling over from a heavy weight.

Once you are at top position you either "carefully" rack the weight(no time to get careless) or you setup again for the next rep. This is a rather long winded explanation on the squat, but once you start using a checklist like this you will be able to position yourself in moments.

One great thing about being a stickler for technique is you will find yourself concentrating on using proper technique rather than worrying about how heavy the weight is. This subtle difference helps psychologically when handling heavier weights.

Thanks to the veteran powerlifters I have recently been training with I am able to pass this knowledge on.

Hope this helps.

 

[ghettostudmuffin]

12-6-2010

135x5, 185x5, 205x3 warmup
225x5, 225x12+1 forced rep, was pretty cashed from that set
EDIT:forgot about this set 245x5+1 forced rep
275x5 forced reps now I was really fucking cashed
225x4+1 forced rep. Pretty sure the guy was trying to fucking trash my cns with those forced reps because I was going balls out on them. 2 hours later I'm still feeling frazzled and that's while on gear.

Cable Pressdown 50x15,15,13 my triceps and shoulders were like jello when I got to these.

That was it.

Bodyweight 240lbs.

Not sure I'm going be training bench with this guy again. There's another vet pl'er who I think does a much better job of training guys that I usually have calling my squat weights and reps.

I felt like the forced reps were WAY overkill. I'm on gear saying this. I felt pretty fried and I don't usually feel like that even when I'm getting pushed hard.

EDIT:5 hours later and I'm starting to feel less cashed out. That's gear for ya. Likely wake up in the morning feeling like nothing happened.

 

[the.gladiator1987]

lol nice workout bro. Forced reps are gay but they do allow you to push harder. I think youll be fine, I wouldnt do it every week tho like u said

You know what I used to hate the most? Id be doing bench and my friend would be spotting me but he wouldnt be touching it, but then he would start to put his hands on the bar and push DOWN so it made it harder for me. I would get so fucking mad and he would just say "its making you better and stronger since its harder"

I wanted to slap teh fuk outta him

 

[miked8c]

I learned long ago that I have to tell my spotters what I need. I'll say don't touch the bar unless I tell you to, then I'll tell them how many reps I am aiming for.

If I don't theres always the probability that I'll get the spotter who feels up the bar and tries to get to second base with it. Whether it be tapping it with his middle and index fingers or using both hands to give a little curl action I hate it regardless. What psychs me out the worst though is when they don't touch the bar, they just hover their hands about an inch off of it. following the path of the bar without touching it. They always do it when they think I am about to fail.

Ideally they would stand there with their arms ready but not in my face, once the bar stops progressing and starts going negative then they would start spotting me.

Agressive spotting is what every HS football team does in their lifting sessions, theres kids benching 150% of their 1RM with about 3 of their teammates "spotting" them. That kid comes in the next day and brags how he benched 205.

 

[ghettostudmuffin]

12-7-2010

Barbell Squat 135x5, 185x3, 225x3 warmup
315x8,8,8 last set of 8 I had a little help on the last rep. I blew chunks after the 3rd set. Full out puked over the side rail of the gym a couple times. Heart rate was high for over 10 minutes. That was probably the hardest I have ever been pushed. I was still huffing going into the 3rd set and my main spotter is telling me he wants my 8 reps. Another guys is yelling don't bitch out. I think on the last rep of set 3 I was standing for a good 4-5 breathes before doing the last rep. My form was good on all the sets. All raw no belt.

So there ya go. First time puking from a workout since I puked after doing the qualifying test for Seals way back in bootcamp.

Leg press-4 plates per side 3x15 good reps, got a nice walk altering pump from these. I couldn't go full balls out on these. The guys talked me into doing some leg presses because I was really not trying to do them after those balls out squat sets.

Having 3-4 people encouraging you, yelling at you, shouting form corrections while you are busting your ass really takes you to another level. There was no way in hell I though I could do 3 sets of 8 with 315. I figured maybe 1, but not 3. That;s the difference between training solo and training with a real crew of serious lifter's.

I have to say I really like this crew of lifter's.

Bodyweight 241-242lbs.

P.S. A guy in the gym said I was really looking big lately. I had to smile. Told him it was from busting my fucking ass lately which is true. Just not the whole truth

 

[Tblock1]

12-7-2010

Barbell Squat 135x5, 185x3, 225x3 warmup
315x8,8,8 last set of 8 I had a little help on the last rep. I blew chunks after the 3rd set. Full out puked over the side rail of the gym a couple times. Heart rate was high for over 10 minutes. That was probably the hardest I have ever been pushed. I was still huffing going into the 3rd set and my main spotter is telling me he wants my 8 reps. Another guys is yelling don't bitch out. I think on the last rep of set 3 I was standing for a good 4-5 breathes before doing the last rep. My form was good on all the sets. All raw no belt.

So there ya go. First time puking from a workout since I puked after doing the qualifying test for Seals way back in bootcamp.

Leg press-4 plates per side 3x15 good reps, got a nice walk altering pump from these. I couldn't go full balls out on these. The guys talked me into doing some leg presses because I was really not trying to do them after those balls out squat sets.

Having 3-4 people encouraging you, yelling at you, shouting form corrections while you are busting your ass really takes you to another level. There was no way in hell I though I could do 3 sets of 8 with 315. I figured maybe 1, but not 3. That;s the difference between training solo and training with a real crew of serious lifter's.

I have to say I really like this crew of lifter's.

Bodyweight 241-242lbs.

P.S. A guy in the gym said I was really looking big lately. I had to smile. Told him it was from busting my fucking ass lately which is true. Just not the whole truth

Good to see someone else puking on here! Embrace it....people say pain is weakness leaving the body. Bullshit vomit is weakness leaving the body!

 

[ghettostudmuffin]

I'm not really a fan of puking so if it never happens again that's fine by me. That said I was a little proud of it. I can now say I have squatted so hard I puked which I couldn't claim before.

 

[Tblock1]

I'm not really a fan of puking so if it never happens again that's fine by me. That said I was a little proud of it. I can now say I have squatted so hard I puked which I couldn't claim before.

Yeah I dont really think anyone is a fan of puking haha! However I think every once in a while puking is good because it teaches your body what a hard workout is all about..and develops mental toughness. It is one of the most catabolic things to do though and is terrible for lifting