Ok all, I rarely post here on technique problems, but I’m having a helluva time keeping my squat right. I need some advice on how to keep my chest up as I descend into the hole. Yes, my head is up, yes I’m looking out and up, yes I’m getting big air, and I’m sitting back. My good morning is ~ 90% of my squat, so it’s not the low back.
Any tips on techniques or maybe special exercises? I’m getting myself in a rut and I just can’t seem to “think right” right now as regards tech and methods… need some outside ideas.
If you had a video we could prob help more . But I would ask you if your elbows are pulled down and in or are they flared up like chicken wings when you squat ?
I wish I could put up a vid, but unfortunately I don’t own a videocam. And I just finished squatting before posting here :(. Elbows are down and in. Most definitely not flared back! I hate that habit.
It’s like I just cave over into a kyphotic posture.
Do they still have the safety squat bar? You can try using it and holding on to the yokes, that will just about force you to keep your chest up. Squatting with a high bar can have a similar effect.
How has your upper back training been?
Are you keeping your scapulae retracted?
I’m just trying to throw some ideas at you. I know what it is like when you get out of your groove, it can become real easy to overlook some of the basic things.
Great advice above as usual. Ill also add ab work have you been keeping up with it hard and heavy. If your lower back is getting ahead of your abdominal strength many times that will fold you over and you begin to lean on your stronger body part.
Just something else to think about. But where are you folding is it more at the hip or is your upper back rounding over??
I think this one is likely a function of heavy-ass weight. Yeah- little technique tweaks can help- correct bar placement, big air, elbows down, head up. But technique is almost never spot-on when the weight gets heavy. The weaker or over-levered parts in the chain give and the load gets transferred to stronger links in the chain. In your case the strong link is your back. As it happens, I have a similar squat tendency. The only thing I might suggest is that close stance, low bar squatters usually lean a lot. If this is your style, maybe try a wider stance and see if you can squat more.
I think this one is likely a function of heavy-ass weight. Yeah- little technique tweaks can help- correct bar placement, big air, elbows down, head up. But technique is almost never spot-on when the weight gets heavy. The weaker or over-levered parts in the chain give and the load gets transferred to stronger links in the chain. In your case the strong link is your back. As it happens, I have a similar squat tendency. The only thing I might suggest is that close stance, low bar squatters usually lean a lot. If this is your style, maybe try a wider stance and see if you can squat more.