thank you 
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no, the only experienced powerlifter i do know has a comp about a week before mine is. i could ask if they will be there for my comp but i’m not too close with them, i will try the next time i see them
Where is the meet from you?
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roughly 3 hours. i plan to get there the day before and stay at a hotel/ at a relatives for the night
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Your head is all over the place. It’s affecting the placement of the bar on your shoulders and your balance. Your upper back is really rounded as you’re first getting set up.
Why are you so slumped over with your head so drooped when you unrack? Are you looking at your feet, or trying to keep your hair from getting caught under the barbell?
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This is typical position for lowbar squat that i see. It kind of puts you in a downward facing postiion. Best not to fight it as it is a que to keep your back horizontal which keeps power in hips
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Somebody is telling the youth to lift barbells out of the rack with their heads down?
Coaching malpractice!
Not even Ripplestilstkin would try to get away with that.
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Lol. Dont you hate on the Rip!
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i do it to keep track of where my feet go while taking steps back. i make sure my feet are aligned before starting the rep
The only way you bomb out is by not putting a good lift on the board.
Go in light. If you miss your opener you can’t go any lighter. Your first squat should be a no doubter.
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how much roughly do you think i should open with? i know i’m supposed to estimate it from how i feel but i also do want to get a second opinion as i’ve seen some people say to open with a lwu or something you can do for a triple and it gets a bit confusing honestly
Stop doing that. You need your upper back tight to stay stable. When you round over, you lose that tightness and rock forward. That’s why you’re having to step forward and catch yourself.
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What @FlatsFarmer said. First thing I noticed is that you started neutral and your head immediately drops once you break at your hips. It’s going to pull you forward.
You could experiment by bringing the grip in close, not too close if you have poor mobility. Use a talon grip (thumbs over the bar instead of under) if you struggle with it. Closer you are the better stacked you’ll be.
Your feet are playing dance dance revolution and you even lose your footing. This could be because of poor mobility, I suggest if this is the case, angle your toes out more. It’ll open your hips up and it does put more emphasis on your adductors but it’ll feel much more comfortable and easier for you. You should still experiment with that regardless if you haven’t.
A cue I use is two things, Big Air into the belly. And a second cue I use before I break at my hips (NOT the knees), is to flex my quads. Try it.
Walkout should be effecient. Straight up. Not dipped forward or back. And two, three steps if you can. Ed Coan explains this pretty well I’ll try to find the video when I can. Take it slow and take your time on the setup
Edit:
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So you want to get stronger in the squat, without sacrificing form? I see many people here have shared proper advice on execution, which to me is an ongoing process over time.
Re getting stronger in the squat, I’ve made my most progress applying the points below. NOT a typical powerlifter’s approach, as I can’t spend 5-6 days/week at the gym. But these strategies moved my squat well over 440 lbs. Not bad for a person who never squatted well.
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Adding PROPER dynamic warmup 5-10 mins before warming up with the bar. Made the lifts for the day move smoother without any stiffness.
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Getting time under the bar, perfecting form/technique, by using submaximal weights implementing 2-3-5 x 3 ladders (Dan John) for a month or two. Search articles here on Tnation for more info.
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Always emphasizing the negatives, holding against the weight on the way down, allowing it to take 3-4 secs - on every rep. Really helped out in establishing control over heavier weights, and makes bracing come naturally.
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Gradually reaching for strength through the 1-6 method, which really made a difference to me.
https://thibarmy.com/the-1-6-loading-scheme-for-strength-and-size/
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Listen in the lifter meeting. I did my first meet recently and found out that the spotters would rack the bar if you hold at top.
The lead spotter still said rack once full control was established but all I needed to do was wait and the other spotters would grab the bar and rack it.
Easy way to have one less thing to worry about.
Your federation might be different, but worth an ask.
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My primary objective of posting to OP in this thread is to give him information that he won’t be surprised anytime during the meet.
You will be competing in a totally strange environment with possibly equipment that will feel odd. Be prepared for the worst possible conditions. Are you accustomed to AC? There might not be AC at the meet. Are you a little shy? A lot of people will be looking only at you.
This is your first meet. Becoming comfortable is likely your greatest challenge. Picking opening lifts needs to be extremely conservative. If you can do a triple consistently, that would be a nice conservative squat opener. As has been mentioned previously, if you miss your opener because it is too difficult, you cannot try less weight on your second attempt. Never forget that.
You haven’t mentioned anything about your bench press. It is typically less of a problem than the squat. But if your bench press strength is in the lockout, the pause at the bottom needs to be considered. Here the height and width of the bench can be problematic. You won’t know that until you do your opener in the bench press. Being capable of a triple is a conservative opener in the bench press.
The deadlift is fairly simple. If you do touch and go, is the second rep a lot easier than the first rep? This will cause your deadlift to be a disappointment. Make your opener no more than you can easily do a double on a bad day.
A “perfect meet” is completing all nine of your attempts. That would be a nice goal to make.
Once you complete your first meet you will have “meet PR’s” on all three lifts. That is the target to improve on the next meet.
Be as friendly as you can, powerlifters are some of the most helpful competitors that you will ever encounter. They want you to attain your goals.
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Lots of good comments here. I havn’t read through it all as yet, but it was looking good and I’m fairly agreeable with most of it.
I watched all the videos posted a few times. The best set was the 92.5x5. That was awesome, and confident.
Confidence. Let’s talk about that. You’re very apprehensive on those heavier weights. I get it, that’s literally me right now too after having so many injury issues this past few years ha.
I think that apprehension is causing things to fall apart as soon as you break at the hips.
There isn’t a HEAP wrong with how your trying to squat. I suggest adding some tempo paused work in as a variation. 2-3 seconds decent, 1-2 second pause. They are brutal, but they entrain the need to stay tight at all times very well.
If I was to be nit picky, and I do like to be nit picky 
, I don’t like your grip on the bar. See your wrists? All bent back etc. That’s gunna suck one day. Can I suggest looking to change that grip to a thumb less? Ala Starting Strength style, your squat in that later video just above looks like it might work well in that style anyway.
And stop moving your head. Pick a position, I don’t care much which, and STICK with it for the duration of a rep and a set. A lot of coaches will tell you to look forward, but personally, I think go with that feels the most natural and can be the most consistent to begin with. A 5-6 feet out in front of you on the floor might be a good compromise here.
Overall, I like the way you are able to move. Flexibility, range of motion, all looks good on that lighter work. The reduction in ROM with those heavier squats is most certainly a mental hangup, that apprehension I spoke of earlier.
Ill have more. But for now, I leave it here.
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I love ed coan. Legend
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I agree with everything @FlatsFarmer said. I don’t know what’s going on with your head. Definitely need the work on bracing.
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Re your openers, I suggest 90% to 92% of your one rep max under meet conditions. In your case, 90% is the better choice since this is your first meet. Do not be afraid to lower this even further if for any reason your warmups feel bad. Second attempts around 95% and thirds between 98% and 102% depending on how the seconds felt. The key to all of this though is being HONEST with yourself about what your 1RM is since you haven’t actually done a meet before. When in doubt, err on the side of going lighter and remember that since this is your first meet, each and every lift is a PR since you’re a powerlifter now and as a powerlifter the only PRs that count are the ones you do in a meet.
Typing that up reminds me how much I miss powerlifting. You’re going to find a great supportive environment at the meets you do. Soak it up and enjoy the experience.
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