Squat vid please help!

[djeclipse]

http://jumpcut.com/view?id=DD72D9DA0E8D11DB80D8865CEB87FBE1

I got a video of myself squatting and I see I have some issues I need to fix.

The weight is 200 x 6, though the last rep cut off. My 5 rep max is 242.5 so it's not even a real heavy set yet my form is horrible.

Form what I see I am leaning too far forward, my heals come off the ground and my knees are past my toes. The thing is how do I correct it? I feel like I'm sitting back and if I go any farther back I will fall backward.

Also I made a conscious effort not to bounce at the bottom, is it ok in this vid or should I pause longer in the hole?

Next time I will wear a brighter colored shirt as it may show my lower back better. I'm not sure if it's rounded at the bottom or not.

Please help, I want to get this right before I add any more weight.

Thanks.

 

[Protobuilder]

Shit man. Those look really damn good. Seriously. Your torso stays vertical. You dno't lose your arch. Your weight shifts to your toes a bit but not too much. You're getting good depth and turning it around quickly but w/out bouncing. They look really good. You can take a look at my squat vid that is on the 1st post of the member vid thread . . .Glenn said they looked just fine and they weren't as sharp as yours. So, I don't think you have anything to worry about.

Have you tried squatting w/out the shoes? I had balance trouble until I dumped the shoes . . . and now I always squat barefoot/socks. Give it a try and see if that doesn't help you from shifting forward. At the very least, just consciously think, "Drive through the heels" as you come up. Also, a tip that worked well for me was, consciously pull your toes UP as you squat. Lift them up off the ground, ball of the foot stays on the ground though, but lift your toes up in the air. That'll force you to keep the weight shifted along the whole foot/heel.

 

[glennpendlay]

there is nothing wrong with those squats... sure on a couple you shifted your weight forward a bit much, but its hard not to do when you are using crappy shoes. you might try to point your toes out just a tad, and spread the knees a bit as you go down, that might help you stay on the heels. but overall, those are nice squats.

 

[Cynical Simian]

Horrible form my ass. Those looked fine.

There's nothing wrong with your torso angle. You're getting good depth and not GMing it up. Take a look at T's comments in Guinness's squat thread in the sticky to refresh your memory of what you should worry about in Oly squats (as opposed to power squats). Also, the Gayle Hatch back squat vid in the sticky will show you what Glenn is talking about with pointing your toes and keeping your knees out.

Definitely get some new shoes as well; better stability alone should make a big difference in keeping your heels down. You could probably pick up some Chucks for ~$30, which would be a big improvement if you don't want to spend the money on Oly shoes right now.

Nice work on the cut so far, BTW. You're barely recognizable as the guy from the deads vid you posted a while ago.

 

[BiggT]

They were perfectly fine squats. Shitty shoes though, but you have so few real flaws that I think weightlifting shoes would cure any issues. You can get them from vs athletics for $50, and honestly they are just as good a shoe as the ones from Adidas in the 70-100 dollar range, and you probably wouldn't notice much of a difference from the top of the line.....only thing is the vs athletics ones are ass ugly, but who cares? lol...it is a quality shoe.

Nice squatting though.....I consider myself a form stickler for the most part, but there is a difference between solid form and dork form.....your form is solid, if it were any better, you'd have to use dork weights which would not allow strength ot physique development......just look into weightlifting shoes or even work boots (raised heel, firm sole)....but seriously, the vs athletics cost just as much as work boots, so I'd just get them.

 

[Jim Ouini]

I'll just chime in and say that your squat looks great to me. The first thing I thought of one I saw your first rep was 'WTF is he complaining about?'

But I agree you need new shoes, those look pretty billowy.

 

[blueta2]

nice squat! Good job! I hope I can do that one day!

 

[Tweakle]

Chucks, no more squatting in squishy shoes! If you can't bring yourself to look like Avril in the gym then barefoot for you ... gotta sit back if you want to avoid coming up on the toes

slow down the descent by a little and the ascent will be tighter

box squats would help you sit back more

otherwise, not bad at all.. post with a heavier weight to see a more accurate form breakdown

 

[solarclimax]

Nice depth, why not squat in socks or bare feet ?

 

[salemlot]

Your squat looks good to me also. could you use another squat rack or squat in the rack. Once the weight gets heavier it going to be harder to walkout that far back.

 

[Sassy69]

On the shoes another option is wrestling shoes - I bought a pr of guys' wrestling shoes for about $18 at a local Play it Again Sports.

 

[super_rice]

I second the weightlifting shoes. You are just having some stability issues since you are using those soft cross training shoes. On heavier weights you do not want to be using those as they can cause you to loose your arch in the hole or worse.

Back looks fine, just remember to STAY TIGHT in the bottom so that you can

1) catch a bigger spring out of the hole = more weight
2) so you won't loose your arch in lower back and your positioning, so heavier weights won't crush you

 

[silver_shadow]

good form dj - and especially nice depth.
BTW, you've done a pretty good job cutting.

 

[djeclipse]

Thanks everyone for the replies, when I looked at the vid myself I thought my form was horrible, i thought I was leaning forward too much.

glennpendlay, my toes are pointed out, maybe 20deg or so, should I point them out more? My knees do go pretty much straight, maybe I will try spreading the knees as I go down. You all have sold me on weight lifting shoes, I may go at lunch today to see if I can pick some up.

I thought your knees weren't supposed to go past your toes?

My depth has never been an issue. You people here are what got me into squatting and depth has always been stressed here, so right form the start I dropped the weight and made sure I was dong true ATF squats.

The thing is my lower back is still bothering me super_rice you mentioned staying tight at the bottom, maybe this is my issue? Or maybe my squat is not the issue and I should look at my other lifts like rows.

It is good to know that I am on the right track and I will look into getting some weight lifting shoes.

BiggT you mentioned a pair from vs athletics, are these what you're talking about? They look like 1.5" heal.

http://www.vsathletics.com/product.php?xProd=617&xSec=1

salemlot, the squat rack isn't adjustable and I'm too short for it, when I go right down inside the squat rack the bar hits the stops before I am completely in the hole. It sucks but that's all I have for now.

Thanks for the complements on the cutting, is there really that much of a difference from the 2 vids? To me I look the same. I am down to 175lbs on the scale this morning. I have been taking pics since Feb, maybe I will take some now and post the progress. My stomach/gut is down to 36" from 40".

Thanks everyone for the replies again, hopefully my back will stop hurting so I can get back to deads and start aking some PR's with my squat again.

 

[djeclipse]

One question about the shoes, if I get them should I wear them for anything other then squatting and deads?

I would think they wouldn't be good for rows, cleans etc. ?

 

[mm107]

lmao @ horrible form, next time i gotta make sure u dont critique me, shit they looked really good from here =] lol good job bro!

 

[glennpendlay]

try the store available through the wfwclub.com site. weightlifting shoes that look cool and will last forever for $85. These have straps, which add a lot of stability, which the vs athletics shoes do not have.

 

[djeclipse]

try the store available through the wfwclub.com site. weightlifting shoes that look cool and will last forever for $85. These have straps, which add a lot of stability, which the vs athletics shoes do not have.

Glenn, can you give me a specific link to that website? I tried www.wfwclub.com and it didn't work.

I also googled wfw club and didn't see anything.

I went at lunch to a fitnss store near by and they would have to order in some lifting shoes and they were over $150cdn. That's a lot of cash right now.

When odrering form the net how to you know shoe size and if they will fit right?

 

[djeclipse]

Are these the shoes?

http://store.wfwclub.com/dowesh.html

 

[glennpendlay]

djeclipse, i dont know why wfwclub.com didnt work for you. i just typed it in and the site came up fine. but the link you provided is correct for one style of shoes, those are good shoes. the newer style is shown on the front page of the wfwclub.com site, they are not superior shoes except for the fact that they look a little cooler, cost more, and are only available for order over the phone because of limited availability.

if your just looking for the best value, just a good shoe to lift in, buy the one from the link you provided.

 

[djeclipse]

djeclipse, i dont know why wfwclub.com didnt work for you. i just typed it in and the site came up fine. but the link you provided is correct for one style of shoes, those are good shoes. the newer style is shown on the front page of the wfwclub.com site, they are not superior shoes except for the fact that they look a little cooler, cost more, and are only available for order over the phone because of limited availability.

if your just looking for the best value, just a good shoe to lift in, buy the one from the link you provided.

Thanks, it is strange, I tried the website agian and it works...