Weight belt magic

[SteelWeaver]

Awwright! So I finally caved and bought a weight belt, since Westside calls for so many max lifts. Woweee! I had NO idea what a difference they make! I hit my heaviest squat ever (low box), without ANY of the customary forward lean/ core collapse that I normally have. This just tells me what I've been suspecting all along - I really DO have a core weakness problem that would appear to be the factor holding my squats and deads back ...

Now I wonder just exactly which part of the core .....?

 

[JJFigure]

You're pretty tall, so a forward lean on the squat is almost hard to escape - it doesn't necessarily mean your core is weak. Can you do front squats? I think that's a good indicator for a weak core - your core strength is so important on a front squat, it's pretty obvious if it's weak or not. When I front squat, I don't lean at all; when I regular squat with a shoulder width stance, I really lean (long leg syndrome). To compensate for my leg length, I only regular squat with wide stance which helps limit how much I lean forward.

 

[bignate73]

when I regular squat with a shoulder width stance, I really lean (long leg syndrome). To compensate for my leg length, I only regular squat with wide stance which helps limit how much I lean forward.

how is your ankle (soleus) flexibility?

 

[spatts]

If I've learned anything about powerlifting it is that your core can't be strong enough...ever. Also, just because your core is strong in one pattern of recruitment that may not mean it will be strong in others. Front squats are easy for me...so easy in fact that I only front squat raw 100 pounds less than I back squat with a suit and belt. Sad, isn't it? My lower back takes more pounding in a back squat, and I use more ab stability in a front squat. I'm not short, though not as tall as you two, but the PARTS of you that are long come into play too. If you are all leg with a short torso, then I don't see why the forward lean would be any greater than a shorter person. I have a long torso, so I have to work to fight the lean. All the work I do is for my lower back. The more chaos recovery skill I build (the ability to come back up when starting to go forward with a squat), comes from work I do for lower back strength (GMs, reverse hypers, etc...). Obviously the farther the bar is from the fulcrum, the harder it is, but there are SO many ways to work around that...and they all involve a VERY strong lower back.

 

[JJFigure]

how is your ankle (soleus) flexibility?

I've never had problems with my ankles; however, I know my calves and ligaments behind the knee are not very flexible - it's something I've been working on.

I wasn't implying Steel shouldn't work on core strength; it's just that her core may not be the issue. I assumed my lower back was the weak point of my deadlift; turns out it was really my hamstring strength, not my lower back strength, that's been holding me back. So, I've been focusing on building that area with GMs, RDLs, and GH raises. Luckily, these exercises also strengthen your core as well as hamstrings, so I've got all my bases covered.

 

[JJFigure]

HA! I just realized BigNate was asking about my calf flexibility (duh, soleus). Yes, that definitely an issue for me.

 

[spatts]

JJ, I didn't mean for that to sound like it was directed at you.

It just reminded me of when I go to raw bench, and I can only put up like 200 pounds...then I put on some good shoulders (a.k.a. a bench shirt) and all of a sudden I can do 270. Kinda reminded of Steel in her squat. If she puts on a good back (a.k.a. a belt) she can lift more. That would tell me she's weak where she added the assistance.

Steel, were you using your air too? Pressing out against the belt and holding your breath?

 

[JJFigure]

"Puts on a good back" - what a great way to phrase it. I never thought of it that way.

 

[SteelWeaver]

Steel, were you using your air too? Pressing out against the belt and holding your breath?

OH, yes! Valsalva manoeuvre (yes, that IS spelt right looks weird, doesn't it?) I've worked for some time on breath control and patterning, and on keeping everything tight. Funny how much concentration/thought breathing can actually need, for something so automatic ...

J - ever since I tried wide stance squats I've never gone back - they're really much more comfortable. My front squat is about 2 thirds the strength of my back squat - I don't know if that's average or not. My SLDL, though, is very close to my conventional DL.

I KNOW my upper back is not as strong as it could be - bb rows are going up, painfully slowly, but I think not knowing how to fully target the back properly for the first couple of years I was training have left it a bit lagging.

Anyway - I'm interested to see how my lifts go on this program, with the added core work. And of course, will resist all temptation to use that danged belt on any but the heaviest lifts ...