I just can't squat

[MrMatt]

Anyone here have an exercise that they just don't do well?

I'm just awful at squatting. The weight feels awkward on my shoulders, when I'm descending I feel like the weight's going to topple me forward. My knees snap out, or in sometimes, when I'm trying to press back up. They shake like tree limbs in a violent storm. My legs are tilted when I come back up, kinda like this: / /, although sometimes they're tilted the other way: \ \ . My hips aren't even, and my waist juts out at the top. They even make my stomach hurt, even 135 lbs. Plus they hurt my lower back and I feel like it's almost like doing a good morning when i lock out at the top. Plus when I get to parallel or below I just don't feel like I have any power coming out of the hole, i feel like it's all knee ligament and spine doing the work. I watched some videos on hip drive, but the techniques didn't help one bit. I can deadlift 430 lbs, bench 285, and I can barely squat 275. I can actually bench 225 around 15 times, but can squat it only 6 lol. The thing is, I get all of those problems I just described even with 185 lbs, which is below my bodyweight of about 190 at 5 10

It's weird, because my ass & hamstrings are hugely disproportional due to the deadlifting. My lower back feels like it's made out of iron the muscles are so dense there...yet my squat is abominable.

What's your kryptonite exercise, if you have one?

 

[brikis98]

Buy this book. Read the 60 page chapter on squatting. Try again. Post a form check video if you are having trouble. If you are a healthy male, there is no reason you shouldn't be able to do a proper squat.

My own kryptonite? I have a few. Running is definitely one, a combination of crappy bio-mechanics and some sort of mental block. The snatch is another: one day I'll put up 195 with ease, the next day I won't be able to hit 165. Finally, the jerk: I have a very solid OH press and push press, but I absolutely suck at the jerk.

 

[Xcobra]

Same here, I am having trouble getting the proper form for squatting een at 135!! It's so frustrating. : (

 

[VulgarDisplay]

Just like brikis my kryptonite is running. Years ago back when I played baseball in high school my name nickname was "Lightning." I can assure you that this was not because I was extremely fast.

Now it's time for the bright side for you. You need to realize that you are complaining about how you can barely squat almost 1.5x your body weight. I would guess that around 75percent of the people in the world would fold up like a house of cards trying to squat 1.5x their body weight with good form. It may not be a lot for people who squat regularly to build overall strength, but it's still not a terrible thing.

Now I would buy Starting Strength, and read up. Then throw all the weight out the window and start building your squat form using an empty barbell, and work your way up.

I myself thought the squat was my kryptonite until I finished reading starting strength. I I started Stronglifts 5x5 about 1.5 months ago, and I'm about to get to bodyweight squats 5x5 at 230lbs, and I actually think that the workouts are getting easier. The more I squat the more I become comfortable being under the weight.

So don't get discouraged and stop doing squats because that definitely will not make you better at that particular lift.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

It's unlikely that you can't squat, but I understand the form dilemmas. How much time have you spent on alleviating your form issues through tons of stretching (PNF stretching even), watching many form videos, and working the squat with lighter weights? I'm sure you've spent some time, but definitely not enough to fix it. Spend some legitimate time working on it and I promise you it will get better.

For me, my kryptonite is deadlifting. For some reason, I cannot get my hips in the right position to save my life. I'm trying to fix this through a lot of stretching, but I definitely haven't been doing enough deadlifting. That's the only thing I'll admit to being bad at because if I tell myself I'm bad at movements, I won't want to do them anymore.

 

[MyThirdEye]

Going parallel on squats. My hip/knees won't let me for some reason, no matter how light i go.

 

[eits]

Buy this book. Read the 60 page chapter on squatting. Try again. Post a form check video if you are having trouble. If you are a healthy male, there is no reason you shouldn't be able to do a proper squat.

My own kryptonite? I have a few. Running is definitely one, a combination of crappy bio-mechanics and some sort of mental block. The snatch is another: one day I'll put up 195 with ease, the next day I won't be able to hit 165. Finally, the jerk: I have a very solid OH press and push press, but I absolutely suck at the jerk.

yeah, man... you've got a pretty gross snatch D:

 

[eits]

my exercise kryptonite:

it's been a very long time since i've been in the gym, but i would have to say hamstring curls, historically, were my kryptonite. it's not just because i couldn't do higher weights with them... it's because no matter how light the weight was, it made me feel nauseous and very sick and i'd have to stop doing them after like 3 or 5 or else i knew i would throw up.

just a very weird neurological response. definitely my kryptonite.

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

Post a vid so we can see for ourselves what's going on. Simple issues I'm betting unless you got knees like a 60 y/o man.

 

[MJinZ]

Anyone here have an exercise that they just don't do well?

I'm just awful at squatting. The weight feels awkward on my shoulders, when I'm descending I feel like the weight's going to topple me forward. My knees snap out, or in sometimes, when I'm trying to press back up. They shake like tree limbs in a violent storm. My legs are tilted when I come back up, kinda like this: / /, although sometimes they're tilted the other way: \ \ . My hips aren't even, and my waist juts out at the top. They even make my stomach hurt, even 135 lbs. Plus they hurt my lower back and I feel like it's almost like doing a good morning when i lock out at the top. Plus when I get to parallel or below I just don't feel like I have any power coming out of the hole, i feel like it's all knee ligament and spine doing the work. I watched some videos on hip drive, but the techniques didn't help one bit. I can deadlift 430 lbs, bench 285, and I can barely squat 275. I can actually bench 225 around 15 times, but can squat it only 6 lol. The thing is, I get all of those problems I just described even with 185 lbs, which is below my bodyweight of about 190 at 5 10

It's weird, because my ass & hamstrings are hugely disproportional due to the deadlifting. My lower back feels like it's made out of iron the muscles are so dense there...yet my squat is abominable.

What's your kryptonite exercise, if you have one?

I don't squat either, only because squatting has caused my back to become uncomfortable.

No sense in back issues when my legs are already strong enough with other exercises.

 

[eits]

I don't squat either, only because squatting has caused my back to become uncomfortable.

No sense in back issues when my legs are already strong enough with other exercises.

you're doing it wrong.

 

[surfsatwerk]

you're doing it wrong.

I have crap knees and lower back and I squat 2 or 3 times a week. Now ask me to pick up a box and only bend at the waist and I'm going to have a problem.

 

[eits]

I have crap knees and lower back and I squat 2 or 3 times a week. Now ask me to pick up a box and only bend at the waist and I'm going to have a problem.

that's because you're supposed to lift with your knees

 

[brikis98]

you're doing it wrong.

Indeed.


BTW, here is an article on the "active hip" that covers 90% of the problems people run into when trying to learn to squat. It's quite dense & technical, but if you are going to put a heavy bar on your back and try to squat it, it is worth reading.

 

[MJinZ]

you're doing it wrong.

Maybe, it's just worth it for me.

 

[Pantlegz]

Deadlifting and running. I can't DL for shit because I have shitty grip. I can't run because I've got a ton of mass and these short legs.

 

[Xcobra]

Post a vid so we can see for ourselves what's going on. Simple issues I'm betting unless you got knees like a 60 y/o man.

Here is mine: I am worried about my knees going past my toes. This is at 150 lbs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFJJXny9Ngg

EDIT: also, my back hurts slightly so I am not sure what could be the cause of that, or if it's even normal.

 

[MJinZ]

Deadlifting and running. I can't DL for shit because I have shitty grip. I can't run because I've got a ton of mass and these short legs.

Wait, you have shitty grip and don't like forearms?

Haha, deadlift for working on your grip...

 

[MrMatt]

Here is mine: I am worried about my knees going past my toes. This is at 150 lbs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFJJXny9Ngg

EDIT: also, my back hurts slightly so I am not sure what could be the cause of that, or if it's even normal.

-That didn't look terrible actually

-I should buy the rippetoe book, it's good to have around, I keep reading excerpts from it that are posted online, I just need to buy the book already.

-I don't really do any stretching at all, ever. I do some foam rolling; I need to start doing it more though.

-I need to post a video..unfortunately my camcorder was stolen and I somehow don't know a single person that has one. I may have to take shitty cell-phone camera vids

 

[MrMatt]

Deadlifting and running. I can't DL for shit because I have shitty grip. I can't run because I've got a ton of mass and these short legs.

use wrist wraps. Honestly, deadlifting is such a great exercise, that if the only thing holding you back is grip, then use wraps. I look at it like this: Deadlifting works about 30 different things, right? So why let 29 of them go untrained, because 1 of the things is holding you back.

 

[brikis98]

Here is mine: I am worried about my knees going past my toes. This is at 150 lbs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFJJXny9Ngg

EDIT: also, my back hurts slightly so I am not sure what could be the cause of that, or if it's even normal.

The squat doesn't look too bad, although it would be nice to have a 3/4 view as well (esp. to see what your knees are doing). The two things I can see that need some work:

1. Your back doesn't stay as tight as it could at the bottom of the squat. I've certainly seen worse, but if your back is already hurting (which is NOT normal), then that's what you need to work on. You should be keeping your back locked in full extension. To see what this feels like, do a set of 10-15 supermans and then do some light squats right after. The tightness/tension you feel in your back while doing supermans is exactly what you want to feel while doing squats.

2. Don't squat in flip flops. Go barefoot, wear chuck taylors or get some weightlifting shoes, but don't lift in squishy/unstable flip flops.

 

[brikis98]

use wrist wraps. Honestly, deadlifting is such a great exercise, that if the only thing holding you back is grip, then use wraps. I look at it like this: Deadlifting works about 30 different things, right? So why let 29 of them go untrained, because 1 of the things is holding you back.

Do you apply the same logic to other exercises? Would it be ok to do partial ROM bench press just because your weak triceps were "holding you back"? Or would you train your triceps until they weren't a limiting factor? IMO, grip strength is just as much a part of the deadlift as tricep strength is a part of the bench press. There are valid uses for straps in the deadlift - just like there are valid uses for partial ROM bench press - but getting around the inability to hold onto beginner weights is not one of them.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

-That didn't look terrible actually

-I should buy the rippetoe book, it's good to have around, I keep reading excerpts from it that are posted online, I just need to buy the book already.

-I don't really do any stretching at all, ever. I do some foam rolling; I need to start doing it more though.

-I need to post a video..unfortunately my camcorder was stolen and I somehow don't know a single person that has one. I may have to take shitty cell-phone camera vids

You really should fix the bolded statement. It's absolutely insane to be any kind of athlete and not stretch. Stretching allows you to strengthen proper ranges of motion and reduces your likelihood of injury. Weight lifters, especially for squatting, need to stretch the hips. Stretching is more effective than foam rolling per time invested so I'd suggest putting in some time there. Potential downsides of tight muscles include increased risk of capsule damage and connective tissue damage, leading to premature arthritis and other problems. Ten to fifteen minutes of stretching can fix that.

 

[MrMatt]

Do you apply the same logic to other exercises? Would it be ok to do partial ROM bench press just because your weak triceps were "holding you back"? Or would you train your triceps until they weren't a limiting factor? IMO, grip strength is just as much a part of the deadlift as tricep strength is a part of the bench press. There are valid uses for straps in the deadlift - just like there are valid uses for partial ROM bench press - but getting around the inability to hold onto beginner weights is not one of them.

Eh.....he could learn 85% of the deadlift using wraps, and then work on the grip after. I'm all for anything that gets someone deadlifting sooner rather than later

 

[MrMatt]

You really should fix the bolded statement. It's absolutely insane to be any kind of athlete and not stretch. Stretching allows you to strengthen proper ranges of motion and reduces your likelihood of injury. Weight lifters, especially for squatting, need to stretch the hips. Stretching is more effective than foam rolling per time invested so I'd suggest putting in some time there. Potential downsides of tight muscles include increased risk of capsule damage and connective tissue damage, leading to premature arthritis and other problems. Ten to fifteen minutes of stretching can fix that.

Hmmmm what're your favorite hip stretches?