Perhaps the better article i ever read about squating. From the phantastic
http://ditillo2.blogspot.com/search?Also is the long article about squat I will ever read!
The Squat: Form & Technique
by Brooks Kubik
Many trainers forego squatting entirely, often because they have hurt themselves by doing the exercise in an incorrect way. Or, they squat, but perform the movement in an ineffective and potentially dangerous manner because they do not know how to perform it properly.
This is hardly surprising, because most books and magazines that deal with exercise technique teach squatting variations that are dangerous, ineffective and nonproductive. As a result, most coaches, trainers, instructors and lifters have learned to do the squat in an improper manner. It is a sad but inescapable fact that the vast majority of weight trainees DO NOT KNOW HOW TO SQUAT. This is the reason why some people hurt themselves, aggravate previous injuries, or get little or no results from their squatting. It is not the squat that is to blame in such cases, but rather, the style of performance used by the lifter.
Proper squatting is not a difficult athletic feat. Almost anyone can learn how to squat productively and safely. (Those who cannot learn to squat are the rare individuals who have injuries or unusual body structures that make squatting impossible.) All that is required is patience, motivation and tenacity. Proper form WILL NOT come to you overnight. You cannot learn how to squat properly in a single workout. Not with any substantial weight. It doesn’t work that way. For many of you, particularly those who have been using improper form for a long time, it may take several months of careful, concentrated effort to learn squatting technique.
Let me give you an example of how a “long and lanky” trainee can learn to squat safely and effectively. Three years ago, a scrawny beanpole named Bruce Bullock joined the gym I then trained at, and after a couple of weeks asked me to teach him how to squat. Bruce was 6’3” and weighed around 195, with long arms and legs and a body that was as tight and inflexible as a telephone pole. He couldn’t squat with a broomstick because he was too tight in the lower back, the hamstrings and the Achilles tendons. I worked with him for 45 minutes or so, and told him he would have to train his flexibility for 6 weeks before he could begin to squat. I gave him some free copies of articles by Mike Thompson that stressed the importance of developing flexibility in order to learn how to squat.
Bruce devoured the information. The next time I met him he had practically memorized Thompson’s articles. He stretched diligently before and after every workout, and did more stretching at home. he gradually became looser and more limber, and was able to squat to parallel without leaning so far forward that his forehead touched the floor, and without having to elevate his heels to keep his balance.
At that point, we started Bruce on the squat as an exercise. He used 95 pounds for 3 sets of 6 reps and it almost killed him. He was so sore he could hardly walk the next day. But he came back, and stayed with it, and he added weight gradually. Today, three years later, he trains with me in my basement gym, weighs 260 and does a bottom position rack squat - with no wraps or power suit – with 420 pounds. His form is impeccable. His body position is perfect. He hits the exact power groove on every rep he does.
I have another training partner, Ted Solinger, who had the same sort of problems when he started squatting two years ago. Ted was so tight he could only do a quarter squat unless he put his heels on a board. We worked on his flexibility and his technique, and then, after those were in order, started to work on his poundage. I personally spotted him doing 95 pounds for 3 sets of 5 reps that were painful to watch – the weight almost killed him. He begged me to let him wrap a towel around the bar or use a foam pad to keep the bar from cutting into his back. (I didn’t, and I’ll explain why later.) I doubted he’d ever try squats again. But, like Bruce, he came back for more punishment, and kept at it week after week and month after month. Two years later, Ted is doing a bottom position rack squat with 365 pounds – no wraps or suit – and his weight has gone from 145 at 6’ to 190.
Here’s the squatting system I taught to Bruce and Ted. It worked wonders for them, and it can work wonders for you. All it takes is time, patience, toil and sweat. And guts.
1.) Do Flexibility Work.
As described with reference to Bruce and Ted, many hard gainers have ectomorphic physiques that are tight and inflexible. It is impossible to squat properly if your lower back, hamstrings and heels are so tight that they pull you forward as you bend your legs. For many, the key to successful squatting lies in 6-12 weeks of concentrated flexibility work. STRETCHING, by Bob Anderson, is an excellent reference book. If you have trouble squatting and have never given flexibility work a try, start a stretching program today and keep at it religiously. Improved flexibility will do wonders for your squatting.
2.) Use a Rack With Safety Pins
Never squat without using a power rack and safety pins, or a sturdy set of safety-catch devices. You cannot rely on spotters, and you cannot rely on being able to get the bar back into the squat stands on your own. ALWAYS use a power rack of safety-catch devices. If you do not, sooner or later there will be a bad accident.
When you use safety pins, set them an inch or two below your bottom position. Do not actually touch the pins on each rep. If you do, you probably will throw yourself out of the groove. You also run a risk of hurting a finger if you bounce off of the safety pins. Set the pins low enough that you do not actually touch them, but high enough that you only have to lower your body an inch or two to rest the bar on the pins if you get stuck at the bottom.
I always squat in a rack, with TWO sets of safety pins. I use two top sets so there is still protection if a top pin lets me down, as impossible as that may seem. My basement gym features a free-standing York power rack that has pins/rods with a self-locking mechanism. Always use something to lock your pins into position. Have a hole drilled through the end of the pin and run a nail through to keep each pin in place. Or use a regular barbell collar to hold the pin in position (attach the collar to the part of the pin that extends through the back or your rack). Don’t take chances on needless injury caused by short cuts in equipment, or by failing to take the 10-15 seconds that are required to secure your safety pins.
3.) Position the Bar Properly
Squat technique begins with the proper placement of the bar. Most trainees place the bar too high. Many place it on the seventh cervical vertebra, i.e., on the spot where the neck joins the top of the back. If you place a barbell directly on top of the seventh cervical vertebra, you are inviting orthopedic problems. You are also risking injury to the low back because you have positioned the bar too high, which changes the geometry of the movement in the bottom position.
Picture holding a barbell at arms’ length overhead and try to do a squat. Picture the overhead squat. Even an empty bar provides a challenge to the inexperienced. Why? Because the bar is much higher than a usual squat and the result is that you are fighting an extreme amount of leverage in the bottom position of the movement. If you position the bar on your seventh cervical vertebra, you increase the distance from the hips to the bar by two or more inches compared to a more proper bar placement. This significantly increases the leverage that works against you.
Some of you will think, “The harder an exercise is, the better, so I’ll position the bar too high on purpose and this will make things harder and I’ll get bigger and stronger as a result.” WRONG! What you’ll get is a chronic back problem.
Where do you position the bar? It varies from person to person and from squat style to style. The basic rule is that the bar should be an inch or two below the top of the shoulders (i.e. the highest point of the deltoid muscle – NOT the traps – when viewed from the front). The higher position is more suited to high-rep squats than the lower one.
There is a natural ridge of muscle that forms when you raise your arms, hold the squat bar and simultaneously FLEX the muscles of the upper back. The bar should rest on this ridge of muscle. It should not rest on the neck, the seventh cervical vertebra, or the scapula. We don’t want the bar laying on top of bone; we want it laying on top of a ridge of muscle. Remember, when you squat, EVERY muscle in your upper back is flexed hard and tight through the entire set. You cannot squat properly if your upper back is not tensed and tight for the entire set.
Skinny people will not have much muscle in the upper back, and they will complain that the bar cuts into their back. They are right. The bar DOES cut into their backs – at least for the first couple of training sessions before you get the bar placement right, your muscles toughen up, and the bar doesn’t feel like it’s cutting you in two. Just gut it out for a few sessions and the problem will go away. I have trained 115-pound women who learned to tolerate the discomfort o a bar on the upper back in about three training sessions.
Whatever you do, do NOT succumb to the urge to use some sort of padding to keep the bar from “cutting into” your upper back. Why? Because a padded bar cannot be positioned and held in the proper position. It will slide down as you try to squat. The only way to keep a padded bar from sliding down is to position the bar on the very top of the shoulders, i.e., right across the neck. This places the bar way too high, alters the geometry of the movement, and causes low back problems.
Here’s another tip – always wear a long sleeved shirt of sweatshirt when you squat, not a tank-top or sleeveless shirt. Why? Because the bar rests across the rear of your shoulders and your upper arms when you position it properly, and when you are sweating the bar gets slick and slides out of position. The sweatshirt will probably hold the bar better if you wear it inside out. The knurling bites into the cotton and the effect is sort of like Velcro.
That leads to a related point – always use a bar with knurling when you squat. A smooth bar will roll on you no matter what you do. In addition, chalk the bar in the center, and the part of your shirt where the bar will rest. This will help the bar stay in place.
Many of you will find that a cambered bar is the tool of choice for your squats because it stays in position better than a regular bar. You also may find that it is easier on your shoulders because you don’t have to stretch backwards so far to get your arms into the proper position to hold the bar in place. This is particularly true for unusually large or thickly-muscled men.
4.) Learn the Proper Grip
If you position the bar 1-2” below the top of your deltoids, you must use a fairly wide grip. For many of you, a full collar-to-collar grip will be necessary. (At the bottom of the squat, be careful not to trap your fingers between the bar and the rack pins.) Some of you will be tempted to drape your arms over the bar. PLEASE don’t do that. Draping the arms over the bar is inevitably going to cause you to lose the bar some day, and if it slides down on you the most likely result will be a dislocated shoulder.
Some trainees say they need wrist wraps to help keep their wrists straight when they are handling heavy poundages in the squat. Throw your wrist wraps in the trash can and build your forearms and wrists with serious grip training.
If you use a cambered bar you will find it is easier on your wrists than a straight bar.
5.) Learn the Elbow Position
When the bar is positioned properly, you need to raise your elbows to help hold it in place correctly. Trainees who place the bar too high can keep their elbows low and the bar won’t move. When you position the bar properly, you need to raise your elbows and try to keep your forearms parallel to the floor. This also helps reduce wrist strain. A cambered bar makes it easier to maintain proper elbow position.
6.) Learn to Unrack the Bar
The only way to unrack a bar properly is to begin with the bar at the proper height. If the bar is too high, you have to position it too high on your upper back. If the bar is too low, you have to lean forward to unrack it. The bar should be positioned so that you get under the weight and straighten your legs 1-2” to unrack the bar. You should be able to unrack the bar by moving straight up with it. If you have to lean forward too much to unrack the bar, you are using low-back strength that could be put too much better use during the actual performance of the exercise.
Always face the weight saddles when you unrack the bar, and move backwards to get into starting position after unracking it. If you face away from the weight saddles when you unrack the bar, you will have to re-rack the bar by walking backwards when you are tired – which is a good way to hurt yourself. Also, you are more likely to pinch your fingers when you re-rack the bar while facing away from the saddles. That can be a painful injury at best, and a serious one at worst (think about lifting with a crushed finger).
After you unrack the bar, take only ONE step backwards. Move at a slow, controlled speed. SLIDE your feet, don’t lift them. Make it a “one-two” movement: unrack the bar, stand straight, slide the right foot back and into position (“one”), then slide the left foot back and into position (“two”). Keep your head up and look straight ahead. Do not look down at the floor or at your feet when you are stepping back into the starting position. Why? Because you round the upper back when you look down, and this means you have unflexed your upper back muscles. Thus you will no longer have a cushion of muscle on which to rest the bar.
You will probably need to practice many times before you can automatically place your feet in the right position to squat without having to fiddle around to get the positioning right. See the next section for precisely where you place your feet.
Be very careful to move slowly and deliberately when you step back with the bar. Too many people get under the bar and rip it up and out of the weight saddles, and simultaneously move backwards in one motion. This is dangerous because you can stumble and fall, or lose control of the bar. It also creates enough momentum to cause the bar to “whip” up and down, which means you have to stand and wait for it to stop moving before beginning your squat.
7.) Learn the Proper Stance
You can’t squat properly without a proper stance. A proper stance sets you up so that your legs, hips and back can work as an integrated unit to perform the exercise. An improper stance forces you to do the exercise in a manner that overstresses the lower back, places the knees at risk, or leads to chronic hip problems. The proper stance lets you handle the heaviest poundage you are capable of handling, and lets you do so in relative safety. An improper stance forces you to use less weight but places your joints at much greater risk.
End of part one
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