***Gym Exercise Guide, and Form Discussion/Feedback***
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You need to really drill your "hip hinge". The movement you're doing looks like a lazy leg press, then you stand up as an after thought.
What Som said is bang on. You need to keep your knees back. Not only will this stop you banging them, but it will mean that you are prioritising your spine neutrality and hamstring loading.
Watch Kelly Starrett's video on deadlift load ordering (I think it's in the OP).
What Som said is bang on. You need to keep your knees back. Not only will this stop you banging them, but it will mean that you are prioritising your spine neutrality and hamstring loading.
Watch Kelly Starrett's video on deadlift load ordering (I think it's in the OP).
Collars on everything.
To slightly contradict the advice above (<3), he might not need any mobility work at all. While most people have all kinds of mobility issues, if they were to chase them all down at the beginning then they wouldn't be doing much lifting for a few months. We need to establish the minimum effective dose, which we will only know when Scott tries to correct his squat.
What I see in that squat is sloppy positions and poor motor control, but from those videos you can't tell if he's missing range in any of the important joints.
Step one would be to learn what the top and bottom of a squat should look like (there are MANY videos in this thread that show this, not least the ones recently posted), and then you need to learn how to correctly transition between the two with the correct sequence of muscle activation.
Core control is definitely a big missing piece, but again the priority should be learning what to do with your core during the movement. Most people sorely need more core work, but correct core activation is a skill that needs to be learned not only to perform the big lifts, but also to actually be able to do useful core exercises.
Some cues:
- Bar position. Doesn't look completely comfortable, but this might be caused by the general movement errors.
- More stiffness everywhere. Core and upper back need to be contracting hard.
- Spine neutrality. From head to tail bone you need your spine to be in a straight line. I know you'll see conflicting advice about head position, perhaps even from seemingly respectable sources, but anything but neutral is wrong.
- Knees out. With your current stance they need to be at least 6" wider.
- Engage your glutes. At the moment they are quite passive, but you need to fix the above before you can properly address this.
Also, high bar is awesome. Don't feel that you need to do low bar because most people do it. The reality is that most people's low bar is so bad that they will be getting minimal useful training effect from it anyway.
Or, learn how to do both.
What I see in that squat is sloppy positions and poor motor control, but from those videos you can't tell if he's missing range in any of the important joints.
Step one would be to learn what the top and bottom of a squat should look like (there are MANY videos in this thread that show this, not least the ones recently posted), and then you need to learn how to correctly transition between the two with the correct sequence of muscle activation.
Core control is definitely a big missing piece, but again the priority should be learning what to do with your core during the movement. Most people sorely need more core work, but correct core activation is a skill that needs to be learned not only to perform the big lifts, but also to actually be able to do useful core exercises.
Some cues:
- Bar position. Doesn't look completely comfortable, but this might be caused by the general movement errors.
- More stiffness everywhere. Core and upper back need to be contracting hard.
- Spine neutrality. From head to tail bone you need your spine to be in a straight line. I know you'll see conflicting advice about head position, perhaps even from seemingly respectable sources, but anything but neutral is wrong.
- Knees out. With your current stance they need to be at least 6" wider.
- Engage your glutes. At the moment they are quite passive, but you need to fix the above before you can properly address this.
Also, high bar is awesome. Don't feel that you need to do low bar because most people do it. The reality is that most people's low bar is so bad that they will be getting minimal useful training effect from it anyway.
Or, learn how to do both.
I'm not sure that you read my post thoroughly
Test to see if you can squat correctly, noting any restrictions you experience. Then look into mobility.
It's possible to increase strength without increasing muscle cross section, which is what becomes difficult in a caloric deficit.
Core training is covered in the OP, but to be fair I need to expand it.
Also, you should be deadlifting too.
There is nothing wrong with the leg press, but the benefits of being able to squat properly are huge and extend to life outside of the gym and aesthetics.
Bar lower, more knees out, slightly more sit back (slightly less forward knee movement) and you've cracked it.
Don't be so harsh on yourself. This is the first session you've had trying to correct some of these finer points. Even when I'm coaching people in person it is relatively rare to see a "good enough" squat after one session.
Don't be so harsh on yourself. This is the first session you've had trying to correct some of these finer points. Even when I'm coaching people in person it is relatively rare to see a "good enough" squat after one session.
Freelance gynaecologist.
Your best bet is going to be mastering the basics of movement from the hip. This is going to be primarily anything that uses a hip hinge, and will rely heavily on you bracing using the entirety of your core from pelvis floor to diaphragm.
Mirin ankle flexibility on the squat.
Deads will be fine when you sort out your positions. Your hips are too high and shoulders too far forward of the bar. This gets worse when your hips rise faster than your shoulders when you pull. Good general activation though.
Deads will be fine when you sort out your positions. Your hips are too high and shoulders too far forward of the bar. This gets worse when your hips rise faster than your shoulders when you pull. Good general activation though.
Knees out more on the fronties. I bet you can get pretty much bolt upright.
Your hips come up far too quickly on your deadlifts. Your hips come up 6" without the bar moving at all, which is a waste of hip power. Another way of looking at it is that you only want your back to move towards being vertical. Keep your chest up!
You have a lovely hip hinge though, so I'm confident that when these minor issues are delt with you'll be moving very nicely and shifting big weights.
Your hips come up far too quickly on your deadlifts. Your hips come up 6" without the bar moving at all, which is a waste of hip power. Another way of looking at it is that you only want your back to move towards being vertical. Keep your chest up!
You have a lovely hip hinge though, so I'm confident that when these minor issues are delt with you'll be moving very nicely and shifting big weights.
Over extension --> neutral is basically as bad as neutral --> flexion
You're still getting horrible forces on your discs, and you have the added problem that you're resting on end range extension and creating stability with lovely vertebral bone on bone contact, which also turns off your core.
Positional problems aside (your most recent video is much better in this regard), you need to learn how to brace your core with a neutral spine. Have a skim of the core training material in the OP.
Also, whether you break at the knee or hip should not dictate what happens to your spine.
Guys, can we please stop referencing that TG article. Cressey is a genious, but Tony will always be the sidekick and thus is stuff is only sometimes good.
That particular squat test is an example of the not-so-good.
Are there no anterior compressive forces with a barbell on your back?
The principal way that the test falls down is that it shifts your centre of mass forwards, which changes far too much about the mechanics of the lift to learn anything useful.
The principal way that the test falls down is that it shifts your centre of mass forwards, which changes far too much about the mechanics of the lift to learn anything useful.
C'mon bru 
Think about what I said.
Yes, if you compare a bw squat to one with a plate held out in front of you it's likely you'll see less tuck with the latter. To draw the conclusion that the important lesson here is only core bracing is completely false.
If I'm feeling particularly tight in my hips or ankles, I can perform a bw squat with maximal core that still isn't pretty. Does this mean that I'm not using my core properly? Absolutely not, it means that I'm tight in my hips or ankles.
It's a bad test.
Think about what I said.Yes, if you compare a bw squat to one with a plate held out in front of you it's likely you'll see less tuck with the latter. To draw the conclusion that the important lesson here is only core bracing is completely false.
If I'm feeling particularly tight in my hips or ankles, I can perform a bw squat with maximal core that still isn't pretty. Does this mean that I'm not using my core properly? Absolutely not, it means that I'm tight in my hips or ankles.
It's a bad test.
I just think there are far better tests.It isn't a great test, no, but it highlights a specific problem in isolation. Considering it is somewhat irrelevant given Barks' problems is moot because his core isn't stable full stop.
However, it DOES (imho) show the person squatting one small but important facet of core bracing, particularly given no one of you is there to poke him where required.
The vast majority of people are going to be limited by some tightness somewhere, which is exactly what this test masks.
I'd say it's safe to say that most beginners need to learn how to use their core, so it ends up being quite redundant. Yes, I suppose you could use it as a proprioceptive teaching tool, but then you could also just practice bracing while hip hinging.
And no, I can't think about what you said because that first line was like WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH over my head
I'm basically saying that you can practice the same movements with a bar on your back.
Again, these really aren't bad.Some more deadlift practice for comment. I've put 4 sets up and I don't think my technique is constant from 1 set to the next! I'm aware my head isn't neutral on one of the sets.
I'm wearing even less clothes this week... next week will be speedos only.
Please tell me at least one decent rep somewhere in there! Should I be doing these technique sessions more frequently than once per week?
Deadlift set 1
Deadlift set 2
Deadlift set 3
Deadlift set 4
Try to look at your bar path on some of the videos. Where it isn't completely vertical, the rep is worse.
You need to lose your tendency having your hips rise faster than your shoulders.
Apart from that, you're basically good, although you could probably move those weights a lot faster.
Bro
I don't like slamming people because it takes balls to post up a video, but those weren't even deadlifts. Everything was wrong, and you're wearing gloves.
It has nothing to do with tightness in your glutes or achilles, it's just poor technical knowledge and execution. Which is fine, because that's what this thread is for.
Go and watch the video in the OP, and perhaps watch some good videos from members on here.
From the start start:
Wearing gloves
Back not straight
Arms not straight
Reps not locked out at the top
Minimal glute activation
Bar is not at rest on the ground in between reps
Good man, that attitude will serve you wellNo offence taken! Drawing board currently being returned to