Elbow Pain From Low Bar Position

Training Powerlifting
1

OK, I’ve searched and I have tried everything (for example, elbow wraps, wrist wraps, filming myself, wide grip, narrow grip, thumbless grip, grip without pinkies, squeezing the bar, pulling the bar down, elbows up, elbows down, upper back shrugged, the list can go on…) and I still get this horrible pain in my elbows, mid forearms and in between my biceps and triceps from the low bar position.

Is there any other way to prevent this? It started during my second week of Smolov and hasn’t stopped since.

Do I just stop the Smolov and favor something with less volume such as Westside? Or is something like a safety squat bar the answer I’m looking for?

2

I’m prone to tendonitis in my left arm from squatting too much.

You probably dont want to hear this, but my advice is to give low bar squats a break for a while and do something else like front squats, zercher, high bar squats.

I found that reverse curls seem to help me and making sure my arms are fully warmed up before I squat.

3

[quote]redroast wrote:
I’m prone to tendonitis in my left arm from squatting too much.

You probably dont want to hear this, but my advice is to give low bar squats a break for a while and do something else like front squats, zercher, high bar squats.

I found that reverse curls seem to help me and making sure my arms are fully warmed up before I squat.[/quote]

Thanks. I figured it was something along those lines.

Will a cambered bar help?

Something like:
http://www.flexcart.com/members/elitefts/default.asp?m=PD&cid=212&pid=259

4

A cambered bar would help…also it can help to rub in some Vagisil before and after training.

5

[quote]LSUPOWERDC wrote:
A cambered bar would help…also it can help to rub in some Vagisil before and after training.[/quote]

Good karma, eh?

6

I like the buffalo bar. Its easier on the shoulders/elbows but still a lot more like squatting with a standard bar compared to a big camber like the other one.

http://www6.mailordercentral.com/ironmind/prodinfo.asp?number=1270

7

Wider grip fixed the problem for me.
I was in the same exact situation as you are in now, and that arm pain sucks so bad. I’ve been squatting for a while, but after a few weeks of the almighty Smolov, my left shoulder and arm couldn’t take it anymore and began hurting immensely during and after squat sessions.

It got to the point where I wasn’t waiting for my legs to get ready for the next set, but I was waiting for my arm to feel better.
Like I said earlier, I widened my grip and the pain was not as bad, but it wasn’t until I finished Smolov until the pain completely stopped.
My only advice is to strech and ice.

8

[quote]OrangeBroccoli wrote:
Wider grip fixed the problem for me.
I was in the same exact situation as you are in now, and that arm pain sucks so bad. I’ve been squatting for a while, but after a few weeks of the almighty Smolov, my left shoulder and arm couldn’t take it anymore and began hurting immensely during and after squat sessions.

It got to the point where I wasn’t waiting for my legs to get ready for the next set, but I was waiting for my arm to feel better.
Like I said earlier, I widened my grip and the pain was not as bad, but it wasn’t until I finished Smolov until the pain completely stopped.
My only advice is to strech and ice.[/quote]

How wide are you gripping? Are you including your last two fingers in the grip or not?

Yes, I know the exact feeling. I was going 1:30 between sets of the 10x3 and then hit a wall. I couldn’t move my right arm because it hurt so much. I had to wait up to ten minutes for it to pass. After six sets, my arms were fried and it felt like my legs had just warmed up. I was done. It is some of the worse pain I’ve dealt with during training and I have had physical therapy for my lower back and knee.

9

Well I got the pain when I had a narrow grip, like bench press width, but then I went wider to about a snatch grip, a few inches from the collars. All of my fingers were in the grip as well. This didn’t eliminate the pain it just reduced it by a lot.

10

[quote]OrangeBroccoli wrote:
Well I got the pain when I had a narrow grip, like bench press width, but then I went wider to about a snatch grip, a few inches from the collars. All of my fingers were in the grip as well. This didn’t eliminate the pain it just reduced it by a lot. [/quote]

Thanks.

I tried that snatch grip yesterday and it still hurt like a mf. It looks like I’ll be giving Smolov a break.

11

Chewie I had this problem for a while, also got it when benching. What I did was a bunch of extension type movements with my hands(got he idea from a post on elite). I will usually take a 10 pound plate and do like a reverse forearm curl. It has gotten rid of all the pain. Maybe give it a try.

12

[quote]MikeyKBiatch wrote:
Chewie I had this problem for a while, also got it when benching. What I did was a bunch of extension type movements with my hands(got he idea from a post on elite). I will usually take a 10 pound plate and do like a reverse forearm curl. It has gotten rid of all the pain. Maybe give it a try.[/quote]

That is a good idea. I’ll give it a shot.

Thanks.

13

Yup- I’m in the same boat. Especially, if I squat twice a week. High bar on your lighter sessions helps.

14

[quote]Chewie wrote:
Thanks.

I tried that snatch grip yesterday and it still hurt like a mf. It looks like I’ll be giving Smolov a break. [/quote]

Do not quit! Smolov is very rewarding only if you fight through it! It you are already weeks into it, just finish it up! No pain, no gain!

/Motivational speech.

15

[quote]OrangeBroccoli wrote:
Chewie wrote:
Thanks.

I tried that snatch grip yesterday and it still hurt like a mf. It looks like I’ll be giving Smolov a break.

Do not quit! Smolov is very rewarding only if you fight through it! It you are already weeks into it, just finish it up! No pain, no gain!

/Motivational speech.[/quote]

Next week is the last week of my base mesocycle. I will see how my elbows feel after the first set of 9.

This is my second time to do a Smolov Cycle. The first time was for the front squat. I added 75 lbs because of the cycle.

Thanks for the encouraging words.

16

How’s your shoulder mobility? If you have poor external rotation you’ll torque the shit out of your elbows.

17

[quote]Chewie wrote:
OK, I’ve searched and I have tried everything (for example, elbow wraps, wrist wraps, filming myself, wide grip, narrow grip, thumbless grip, grip without pinkies, squeezing the bar, pulling the bar down, elbows up, elbows down, upper back shrugged, the list can go on…) and I still get this horrible pain in my elbows, mid forearms and in between my biceps and triceps from the low bar position.

Is there any other way to prevent this? It started during my second week of Smolov and hasn’t stopped since.

Do I just stop the Smolov and favor something with less volume such as Westside? Or is something like a safety squat bar the answer I’m looking for? [/quote]

Dear squatter,

I’ve done the Smolov program several times, and I started out as you with a low bar position. I got the same pains that you describe. I just kept at it, altough it was very painful. You can get through it as long as you don’t get injuried. But it is a gamble. After you complete the base meso cycle, you have one week of rest, and you’ll heal up a little, then comes the switching phase with a reduced volume, and you should feel better. Then comes the intense phase witch is very cruel, and you have to endure pain again.

However, what I did was to change to a high bar position, I had to lower the pundages for a while, but you will quickly work back up, and you will be stronger this way. With a high bar position, I NEVER have a problem with my elbows.

I am on week two of the smolov base meso cycle now, and I have absolutely no pain in my elbows, shoulders or hands.

Here is the style I am using:

Paused, Narrow stance, wide grip, high bar. The wide grip makes for less tension in upper body, and makes the squat harder. When I will test a 1RM after the base meso cycle, I will do this with a narrow grip, with a lot of upper body tension.

Just my two cents.

– stallion

18

[quote]ninearms wrote:
How’s your shoulder mobility? If you have poor external rotation you’ll torque the shit out of your elbows. [/quote]

The shoulder mobility isn’t that bad. I have had no issues with snatches or overhead squats. I know low bar squats are a different animal, though.

19

[quote]stallion wrote:
Chewie wrote:
OK, I’ve searched and I have tried everything (for example, elbow wraps, wrist wraps, filming myself, wide grip, narrow grip, thumbless grip, grip without pinkies, squeezing the bar, pulling the bar down, elbows up, elbows down, upper back shrugged, the list can go on…) and I still get this horrible pain in my elbows, mid forearms and in between my biceps and triceps from the low bar position.

Is there any other way to prevent this? It started during my second week of Smolov and hasn’t stopped since.

Do I just stop the Smolov and favor something with less volume such as Westside? Or is something like a safety squat bar the answer I’m looking for?

Dear squatter,

I’ve done the Smolov program several times, and I started out as you with a low bar position. I got the same pains that you describe. I just kept at it, altough it was very painful. You can get through it as long as you don’t get injuried. But it is a gamble. After you complete the base meso cycle, you have one week of rest, and you’ll heal up a little, then comes the switching phase with a reduced volume, and you should feel better. Then comes the intense phase witch is very cruel, and you have to endure pain again.

However, what I did was to change to a high bar position, I had to lower the pundages for a while, but you will quickly work back up, and you will be stronger this way. With a high bar position, I NEVER have a problem with my elbows.

I am on week two of the smolov base meso cycle now, and I have absolutely no pain in my elbows, shoulders or hands.

Here is the style I am using:

Paused, Narrow stance, wide grip, high bar. The wide grip makes for less tension in upper body, and makes the squat harder. When I will test a 1RM after the base meso cycle, I will do this with a narrow grip, with a lot of upper body tension.

Just my two cents.

– stallion

[/quote]
I have traditionally done squats as you do in the video, but I took a chance to work on my low bar PL style back squat for a while. You are 100% correct in what you said about oly style squats.

It seems that the pain is something I will just have to deal with if I want to make it through the remainder of the cycle. BTW, your Smolov thread is what made me decide to do the first Smolov Front Squat cycle.