Resting with Bar on Back During Squats

Training
21

Okay, yeah…

[quote]DamianWalker wrote:
I’ve got into a habit of resting with the bar still on my back when trying to hit my 3x10, I feel like I’m cheating by resting[/quote]
^ This

Is not the same as ^ this. (And 10 seconds is a pretty long freaking time to be standing with the bar on your back. That’s, what, like 4 or 5 deep breaths between reps?)

So it turns out that you are, intentionally or not, using rest-pause to extend your set. As originally said, the weight you’re using is too much and you’d be much better off sticking with something you can manage for 10 non-stop reps.

As I mentioned to Jarvan, other than within the specific 20-rep squat routine, you’ll find few lifters or coaches recommending rest-pausing squats, especially with a heavier (5RM-ish) weight. Rest-pause can definitely be a useful bodybuilding technique but, A - It’s best used with “safe” exercises that allow for unexpected muscular failure (leg press is a great example), and B - You need to be aware that you’re using the “rest-pause technique” when you begin the set.

Pushing squats past fatigue/failure drastically increases the demand on smaller support muscles (especially the low back) before the legs themselves get hit with enough work.

[quote]warm up
acclimation reps
110kg x 10
115kg x 10
120kg x F[/quote]
What’s the difference between “warm up” and “acclimation reps”? Are the acclimation reps just heavier (110-115kg) done for 1 or 2 reps per set? If so, I wouldn’t say they’re necessary or particularly beneficial in a bodybuilding-focused routine.

22

[quote]Chris Colucci wrote:

What’s the difference between “warm up” and “acclimation reps”? Are the acclimation reps just heavier (110-115kg) done for 1 or 2 reps per set? If so, I wouldn’t say they’re necessary or particularly beneficial in a bodybuilding-focused routine.[/quote]

So, are you saying you don’t need to warm up on a hypertrophy routine?

23

[quote]1 Man Island wrote:

[quote]Chris Colucci wrote:

What’s the difference between “warm up” and “acclimation reps”? Are the acclimation reps just heavier (110-115kg) done for 1 or 2 reps per set? If so, I wouldn’t say they’re necessary or particularly beneficial in a bodybuilding-focused routine.[/quote]
So, are you saying you don’t need to warm up on a hypertrophy routine?[/quote]
Nope, totally not what I’m trying to say.

Working off the presumption that “acclimation reps” means, as I understand them, several sets of singles or doubles working up to weights equal to or greater than the working sets. First of all, it’s a blurry line depending on what the warm up work looks like. I don’t generally like very high-rep warm up work, like “traditional” bodybuilding stuff, a few set of 15-20. For working sets of 10, I might do 1 or 2 super-easy sets of 10 (very brief rest between them), a heavier set or two of 5, and then the main work.

So it depends a good bit on what the “warm up” is and what the “acclimation reps” are. Odds are, though, they’re just creating fatigue without significantly benefitting the performance of the main work sets.

Warm up sets and acclimation sets can easily be overkill, just like simply doing too many warm up sets can be overkill, especially when the overall training program isn’t designed for maximal strength. We know that we generally need a more thorough warm-up leading up to heavy sets of 3-5 than we do for sets of 10-12.

And again, it turned out that the dude was basically doing rest-pause without realizing it, so, no offense to the OP, but I’m not sure he’s in a position to be doing (or needing) acclimation work leading up to sets of 10. A few “basic” warm up sets transitioning right into the work sets should serve him just fine.

If OP is doing one of the “Do This Routine Instead of That Dumb One” plans, it looks like KingBeef suggested what he calls “acclimation sets” instead of warm up sets, and that’s only when using different exercises for the same bodypart in a given session.

24

i might be doing acclimation sets wrong then this is what i do on my leg day before my squat working sets

bike 5 mins get heart rate up (after 20 minute walk to the gym)

lying legs curls

37.5kg x 20
50kg x 6
62.5kg x 8
75kg x 8
87 x 5kg x 8
100kg x 7

some cossack squats and bulgarian split squats, just bodyweight for stretching hips and groin for squats

squats

bar x 10
50kg x 10
60kg x 8
80kg x 5
90kg x 3
100kg x 2
110kg x 10
115kg x 10
120kg x 6

the bar to 80kg is what i would class as warm up and the 90-100kg the acclimation sets. maybe i misunderstood, wouldn’t say it has negatively impacted my squats.

i will lower the weight though and do straight working sets, i was unintentionally doing rest pause.

thanks for the help