Bulletproofing Knees..

[Twitched]

Fellas,


So far so good on my powerlifting expedition, bench press is coming along at an astonishing pace.. (Put 50lbs on my raw max in just 5 weeks of rack lockouts and 4board presses {had never tried them before})..my deadlift is going well too.. but squats.. although my knees have no pain, and feel fine.. I get this "sense" that they are the weak link.. I have really knobby knees.. and even though my quads are a good size the tendon must be real long because it's real skinny above the knee... (my bicep is the same way, I have 1.5" of tendon from joint to "bicep mound".)


When doing squats I just have this sense that the knee is just going to be the first thing to explode.. and it limits my poundages I risk using...what should I build up to make my knees seem more "stable" and "high capacity"..Should I do quad work? leg extensions?...




twitched

 

[IrishPower]

hey,

if you are doing westside ultra-wide, you should not notice too much knee strain unless you are shooting forward when you begin your ascent. if you are doing this, check your shoes, drop your weight, and practice form. have a partner warn you about it. if you have to, raise the box until your form is perfect.

if you want to build up the quads, i recommend hatfield squats off a box with a narrow stance. you can vary the reps around. they are good because you can force yourself to maintain decent form by holding yourself in place in the rack. one of the problems i have always had with free squats for reps is that your form goes to shit after 3 reps or so with heavy weight.

i have the hatfields as the last exercise in my training journal if you want to see 'em.

i dont think leg extensions, leg presses, or any of that other stuff does a damn thing. in fact, loading 1000+ lbs on the leg press will just make you more prone to injury.

good luck.
/irish

 

[NFG123]

Fellas,


So far so good on my powerlifting expedition, bench press is coming along at an astonishing pace.. (Put 50lbs on my raw max in just 5 weeks of rack lockouts and 4board presses {had never tried them before})..my deadlift is going well too.. but squats.. although my knees have no pain, and feel fine.. I get this "sense" that they are the weak link.. I have really knobby knees.. and even though my quads are a good size the tendon must be real long because it's real skinny above the knee... (my bicep is the same way, I have 1.5" of tendon from joint to "bicep mound".)


When doing squats I just have this sense that the knee is just going to be the first thing to explode.. and it limits my poundages I risk using...what should I build up to make my knees seem more "stable" and "high capacity"..Should I do quad work? leg extensions?...




twitched

Stop PLing you tool!

NFG

 

[Skizac]

High-bar, relatively narrow stance, ass to the floor squats are the best quad and knee stabalizer exercise for me. I usually do 2 sets of these on my max effor lower body day. I know that standard doctrine these days is that the power behind the squat is all hamstrings, but I feel that building my quads a bit has helped me to have more power and stability.

 

[IrishPower]

its not good to let any muscle group become way underdeveloped.

weak external shoulder rotators and subsequent injury are common among people who are heavy benchers all throughout their careers because all the emphasis has been placed on the front delts throughout their lives. i am experiencing this situation right now and working to correct it.

i would never let my quads get no work. this will create the same dangerous situation over a long period of time.

my new personal favorite is close stance hatfield bar squats. this allows me to nail quads, while keeping my form tight and elbows and shoulders stress free by stabilizing hands against power rack.