Weak as piss Front Squat. A common problem?

[donny43]

My front squat is weak as piss as I have allways just back squated.
I am currently in the 2nd week of my 1st 5x5 DF.
I decided to sub front squat in instead of backsquats on the wednesday light squat day.
I thought I could just use the lighter weights at %15 less than my monday squat session.
But I had no chance at all.
On the Monday I did 112 kg 5x5
Last night I tried 100kg 5x5 front squat.
My form was terrible, I kept leaning forward and really struggled to get the weight up.
I had to lower the weight to 80kg to complete the 5x5
I also noticed my abs more particuarly my obliques really straining when doing the front squat.
Today I have sore abs from the front squat. I also have a good mid back muscular soreness from these excercises.
I reguarly train my abs with various movments.
This was my second time last night doing front squats.
Does a strong front squat carry over to a strong front squat?

Has anyone else been suprised at how piss weak they are with front squats?

 

[Guinness5.0]

Has anyone else been suprised at how piss weak they are with front squats?

THey aren't exactly the most comfortable movement. Give 'em some time and they'll get better.

And as far as abs go, training 'em with crunches and stuff is not sthe same as making 'em support several hundred pounds isometrically. So maybe your abs are strong in one way and weak in another.

Either way, start light, do 'em right and they'll get better for sure.

 

[36drew]

I front squat almost as much as I backsquat. Pretty strange eh? I think it has to do with how my body is built and structured. It also probably doesn't help that I front squat 4-5 times for everytime I backsquat.

I suspect you just need to be accustomed to doing front squats. It is my understanding that most peoples front squats are about 65-75% of their back squats.
I would expect that the amount of weight you front squat will rise pretty fast as you become accustomed to the lift.

Also, front squats rock.

 

[DZLS]

it's repetition that will increase your front squat...

i can only do about 60% of my back squat, doing a front...

 

[coolcolj]

you must be training your abs incorrectly

 

[harhar]

Its easier to cheat in the back squat as you can lean forward a bit recruiting more of your lower back. You try that with front squats and the bar comes crashing down.

 

[mekannik]

What are your stats? 80kg for your first try on fronts is actually pretty good (roughly 176#).

Have you done them before and expected different results this time around?

 

[stevius]

My front squat is weak as piss as I have allways just back squated.

My form was terrible, I kept leaning forward and really struggled to get the weight up.

Has anyone else been suprised at how piss weak they are with front squats?

When I first started the front squat my wrists were not flexible enough; that was enough pain to make me put the weight back down. I found there was a lot of strain over my whole back and abdomen; my shoulders hurt from the stress of having a loaded bar across them.

You will get better over time but it is a rough exercise in my opinion. The tough part is getting a 'high chest' by arching the upper back. Unfortunately I have to limit my depth because if I go too low my hips stray forward, due to inadequate flexibility. You may not suffer from the same problems as I, but it's something to bear in mind as a good back arch is key to stop you from leaning forward too much. So if you don't have tight form 'in the hole' that bar loves rolling right off your shoulders.

Since you've just started it might be a good idea to keep the weight down a bit so that you can get used to the unique feelings without having to concentrating too much on blasting out intense repetitions.