Yup. Good point. Bar is 6.5 feet, so probably cutting it a bit close. So I guess I need to see what the landlord says about taking out the stuff to lift in the basement.
Way late to the game here but just checked out your most recent squat video. Your back angle is really not an issue and there’s nothing wrong with having a really posterior-dominant squat. Also nothing wrong with you using paused front squats to still develop your quads too.
Still leaking power from your upper back though - evidence is the way your head rolls forward as you start the ascent. I still think a lower bar position will help this because I have the same problem if I let it creep up on my neck. Paused front squats will help as well, and so will chest-supported rows.
Thanks for checking it out. Low bar doesn’t feel as “natural” to me as high bar placement, but I feel I can get my upper back a bit tighter on the former, so I think it could work out in the long run. Though it’s kind of funny because I feel like my upper and lower back do a lot of work on front squats and that’s why my front and back squats are close to each other
Landlord said the lifting in the basement was good to go, so I’m stoked about that ![]()
C1W2D4
3x3 tuck jumps
Deadlift
135x5
150x3
170x3
190x12!!!
Front Squat
95x5x5
100 band pull aparts
50 lateral raises
Huge PR on deadlifts today!! So unexpected since I had another 20k step day yesterday and didn’t sleep well. I think this is my best rep PR this year. Several months ago I pulled 195x9, so clearly progress has been made. I’m going to believe really hard that I can pull 225x1 by the end of the year.
But now the ugly part – the front squats.
A bit rusty because I haven’t done these in many months, but surely these are some of the cheatiest front squats anyone has ever seen. The weight doesn’t feel heavy to my upper back, but I just can’t stay upright on the ascent. I did some paused sets too, and those looked even worse. On the plus side, I can feel my quads work more when I do fronts. I don’t know.
I might get shot down for this by the stronger guys, but my thoughts are that your back goes down before your butt goes back. My thoughts are that your butt shooting back is a result of a lack of core stability rather than an imbalance in the quads/hamstrings. The speed you can move the weight is telling me your legs are plenty strong enough for that weight, you’re just finding it difficult to transfer that strength into the bar.
Also: fantastic PR.
Could be right. Might need to focus more on core outside of squatting too. I realize that one movement isn’t the be-all and end-all, but I feel like I shouldn’t have to progress to standing ab wheel reps just to stay upright on not super heavy front squats. It’s frustrating, and I should probably just pay someone to help me out somehow. I appreciate the words!
Awesome deadlift set well done. I agree with @dagill2 regarding the front squats when I was watching I kept thinking that your brace wasn’t there. I don’t do front squats often but find the chest up cue works for me. As you come out of the hole think chest up and don’t let the elbows drop.
Hard to judge. Front squats didn’t look that hard bit yeah too much posterior chain. You’re long legged, so it’s normal to some extent. I think you have plenty of strength, but perhaps not expressed in the best fashion. Try some pause squats, and drive through your back above all like Simo said.
Don’t be afraid to use your knees and break at them. I don’t think your core is weak at all. Perhaps not used as much it should be.
Anyway great work!
@simo74 @aldebaran Thanks both. I always think I’m keeping my chest up, but then I go back to watch the video and… clearly not the case. ![]()
I don’t think you’re far off the mark. Think it might be a sign that overall tensioning including the core, slack out the bar, tension through the posterior chain and force into the ground etc. is off by a bit so the start position is a bit inconsistent and inefficient.
C1W3D1
50 pullups
Press
35x6
45x3
50x5
55x3
62.5x5
50x13
60 dips
BB curl 50x10,8,9,8
50 ab wheel rollouts
Felt weak on everything today except dips. Looking forward to deloading soon, but part of me feels like I should wait since life will give me a deload early October.
Early October is over a month away. Do both, push hard in between.
I might be in the minority, and I’m not following along with enough attention to know if this was an isolated event however to me this sentiment
Reads as if it’s not just a today kind of thing. However, I view tiredness that warrants a remark as a signifier that it’d be prudent to pull on the reigns for a smidge so one can get back to galloping.
Tired → expect decreased performance
Moderately recovered → expect similar performance
Highly energetic → expect improved performance.
I’m not going to run away to crack the spine of it so someone might correct me but I’m certain the 7th week protocol (deload week) can be used whenever one feels a need. The week itself will not cause a regression but continuing to push when overtaxed however will possibly set you back.
@dagill2 @Voxel I don’t think it’s super chronic, but having done almost 3 weeks of BtM before this adds some fatigue. Think I also overexerted myself yesterday and didn’t sleep well. But yeah I probably shouldn’t try pushing it longer. I’ve never tried deloading on the 4th week before because I don’t feel like I move enough weight to warrant it, but it could be interesting to try out soon.
Had the dumb idea to try a 1 mile time trial today on dead legs and awful shoes. I don’t remember the last time I ran over a half mile. Know I could have pushed < 7:30 if I tried a tad harder
In the end, you’ll do you. By continuing to push you’ll also “learn” when you and can’t do that (hopefully).
People that go as far as log here, routinely, rarely have the problem of pushing too little too rarely. And your body only knows fatigue, it doesn’t know it hasn’t “earned” a brake because you don’t believe the weights are adequate.
Also, you evidently have other stressors going on simultaneously.
And moving on top of that.
Edit: FWIW, I’m myself super bad at this but trying to improve!
First, nice PR.
Second, I am inclined to agree with @dagill2 - it looks to me that your core is failing to brace entirely, because your legs have no problem moving the weight. Curious if you own a belt? People will have different opinions about using them, but it seems like a way you can make a muscle-mind connection with your core area.

