Form check please

[RandomWords]

I meant to ask for awhile, figured while I am building back up slowly after surgery would be a good time to work on any form issues. I'm self taught so I'll be honest, I'm kind of nervous you'll be saying it's completely wrong...

Https://youtu.be/BXU0scUI_9A

 

[edro]

Looks good to me.

yogapants

 

[RandomWords]

Looks good to me.

yogapants

Thanks! You just made my day.

And even better than yogapants - FREE yogapants. 😊

 

[repoman0]

Better than 99% of people I see at the gym.. your back is straight and thighs well below parallel. You might want to lose the bar pad if you intend to increase the weight because it just adds unnecessary squishiness that you eventually won't want. Also, try to keep your neck straight relative to your back (look down toward the floor in front of you)

Good luck!

 

[moonbogg]

I'm still learning form myself, but from what my untrained eye can tell, your form looks great. Also, the way you are moving so perfectly smooth and slowly makes it look like a high FPS, slow motion video. It tricked my eyes at first. I swear I thought it was a slow motion video. That's not bad for your workout or anything I'm just saying it was trippy to watch at first.

 

[Pantlegz]

Looks decent. It would be easier to see the bar path from 90*. The one thing to look for there is that the bar travels basically perpendicular to the floor at all times, any angle on the bar is going to require more effort and as the weight increases make it more difficult. As others have said, lose the foam pad it might be uncomfortable for a while but in the end it will pay off doing it right from a light weight rather than having to re-learn and decrease the weight further down the line.

 

[RandomWords]

Thanks for all your replies. I'll try to lose the pad and the neck should be easy to correct.

 

[KIAman]

Looks good, the only thing to watch out for is hyper-extending your back. I'm not sure from the angle if you are or not but notice at the very bottom how the creases of your shirt straighten out a little as your hips get more aligned with your back. It doesn't look like butt-wink but it does look like initial downward movement started with hyper-extended back.

 

[RandomWords]

Looks good, the only thing to watch out for is hyper-extending your back. I'm not sure from the angle if you are or not but notice at the very bottom how the creases of your shirt straighten out a little as your hips get more aligned with your back. It doesn't look like butt-wink but it does look like initial downward movement started with hyper-extended back.

Yes. Ive noticed this too.

edit: the only way that seems to correct that in any form is to track my knees out past my toes but I always thought that was a no no.

 

[FalconHorse]

Looks very good. Lose the tampon though (that's what meatheads like myself call the bar pad ). I don't think you are too extended, you want some back extension at the start. But that means you are getting slight wink at the bottom. Try some RDL training to lengthen your hammys. Also, experiment with adding a bit of external rotation to your thighs and driving the knees out more. But those are just things to play with, form looks very good (albeit with essentially no weight on your back). What surgery did you have? Video from the front and side would be helpful. And yes, excellent choice of attire. :thumbsup:

Edit: Not to be a creeper, but the back extension issue could be observed a lot more easily if you can post a vid while you are wearing a sports bra or something that exposes the lumbar region at least. The wrinkles in the shirt make it hard to evaluate you actual back position/tightness.

 

[Pantlegz]

Yes. Ive noticed this too.

edit: the only way that seems to correct that in any form is to track my knees out past my toes but I always thought that was a no no.

Knees going past your toes are fine as long as your knees are tracking your toes. More simply put, as long as your knees are pointing in the same direction as your toes you're fine going past them. If they're not at the same angle you'll end up needing new knees.

 

[RandomWords]

Knees going past your toes are fine as long as your knees are tracking your toes. More simply put, as long as your knees are pointing in the same direction as your toes you're fine going past them. If they're not at the same angle you'll end up needing new knees.

Alright - thanks. The amount of conflicting advice is ridiculous.

 

[RandomWords]

Edit: Not to be a creeper, but the back extension issue could be observed a lot more easily if you can post a vid while you are wearing a sports bra or something that exposes the lumbar region at least. The wrinkles in the shirt make it hard to evaluate you actual back position/tightness.

Eh - i was considering doing just that just havent gotten around to it -requires me moving some furniture around or constructing something for a better angle.

 

[edro]

Keep using the pad if you want; it's no problem.
I never use the pad, but tried it the other day on a whim.
Damn! It felt nice... I might keep using it.

 

[RandomWords]

Keep using the pad if you want; it's no problem.
I never use the pad, but tried it the other day on a whim.
Damn! It felt nice... I might keep using it.

☺ yes it does. I'm not a fan of how metal feels in general though. I usually wear gloves too so I don't have to touch the damn thing... but for workout purposes I thought I would give the no pad thing a shot... though I'm still unsure why I won't want it with heavier weights.

 

[FalconHorse]

☺ yes it does. I'm not a fan of how metal feels in general though. I usually wear gloves too so I don't have to touch the damn thing... but for workout purposes I thought I would give the no pad thing a shot... though I'm still unsure why I won't want it with heavier weights.

I think the canonical reason is that the pad prevents you from positioning the bar correctly on your back. And at heavy enough weights, the pad gets squashed. So as you progress through a workout, the bar will feel different as heavier sets deform the pad. But unless you are working with 225 or more, I wouldn't worry about it honestly. Try with and without the pad.

One thing to note: don't let the pad be a crutch for getting around proper upper back tightness. The bar will hurt if it is resting on your spine, but you should be able to create a muscle platform with your rhomboids and scapular elevators. That tightness is important to the lift with heavy enough weight on your back. So, pad or not, make sure you cultivate it.

 

[RandomWords]

So I’ve been tweaking form to accommodate the changes which makes it difficult to know which of the sets to post for a side view as requested – I feel the ‘butt wink’ has been reduced to a reasonable amount, but it varies during a set – TBH my SI joints don’t seem to like this reduction.
Sidesquats-
https://youtu.be/y-HtQWLDruw - sorry for the long pause before starting.
https://youtu.be/laqYpwOyleU
https://youtu.be/w5rQBYZhKlw

Back View
https://youtu.be/1dAQCE-yrbQ

 

[FalconHorse]

I think everything looks great TBH. Only thing I would check is if you are maintaining a braced core throughout the lift. Also, are you going all the way down? Are you stopping yourself artificially or are you hitting the end of some range of motion (knees/hips/hamstrings/quads/etc) at that depth?

I really like that rug!

 

[RandomWords]

I think everything looks great TBH. Only thing I would check is if you are maintaining a braced core throughout the lift. Also, are you going all the way down? Are you stopping yourself artificially or are you hitting the end of some range of motion (knees/hips/hamstrings/quads/etc) at that depth?

I really like that rug!

My core stays braced I believe. I focus on that a lot.

Since I'm focusing on not having a butt wink - I'm stopping myself - it gets worse the lower i go - naturally since thats the line the hips follow. I have the range to touch my glutes to my calves and go about an inch further if I just hang out without weight.

Edit: it could very well be a structural limitation if I have deep hip sockets which would mean i shouldnt squat deep at all. Possible with my Scottish ancestry.

 

[FalconHorse]

Bracing like you are going to take a punch in the gut? Braced like your obliques are sore the next day after a squat workout?

Do you have any discomfort in the hips or lower back when/after you squat? Your wink is perfectly fine, btw.

 

[RandomWords]

Bracing like you are going to take a punch in the gut? Braced like your obliques are sore the next day after a squat workout?

Do you have any discomfort in the hips or lower back when/after you squat? Your wink is perfectly fine, btw.

Braced like a punch in the gut I would say.

And no, not before starting to work on reducing the butt wink and prevent my lumbar from coming out of neutral a couple days ago (it's better on the recent videos - reduced by 25-40% I think). Otherwise - my low back and hips haven't ever had pain from squats.
I'm coming to the conclusion that I should leave it or not squat deep.

 

[Pantlegz]

butt wink isn't a big deal, go deep and let it wink away.

 

[KIAman]

Honestly, your form looks amazing. I don't even think you have a wink, it looks like the glute muscles are just being stretched at the bottom but your lower back doesn't move.

This slow-motion thing is awesome and I don't know why I've never thought of doing it when trying to check my form. Thanks for the idea!

 

[FalconHorse]

Go full depth and see how your SI joints/knees/hips/back feel during/after.