Hello guys i would like to ask you to evaluate my squat form. These are front goblet dumbell squats. Im using a very light weight because i need to get my form correct The videos im about to post are the last 2 videos out of the 5 or so i took, because the other 5 were not very good but the last two were much better. Ignore the music. Videos are about a week and a half old. [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dp9z0h2CdDI"]VID 20120320 200952 - YouTube[/ame] Thats the 4th video and 4th set. [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwMPfliJXdQ"]VID 20120320 202357 - YouTube[/ame] and thats the 5th video, 5th set, i think it was worse than the 4th set. My butt wink, or pelvic tuck, had dramatically decreased since the first few videos. But im still having trouble with it. It still tucks and i cant go below parallel, or ass to grass without having a pelvic tuck. Any ideas on what to do here? You may also realise that on that first video i posted, i tend to sway back and forth a lot. The reason im doing this is because, after evaluating my posture in my older videos, i was leaning really far forward, so my chest were very near to my knees and this caused my pelvic to tuck, and when i kept my chest up and out my pelvic tuck decreased. Here is the problems 1) When i was doing these squats, on the second video i posted, on the second to last rep i felt this pain in the knees... I have no idea what it was but it wasn't good. Pain was felt near the top of the shins where the shin connects to the knee. No idea what it was, its gone now, but im worried it was related to my squat form. 2) I find it quite hard to keep my chest up during a goblet squat. All the weight goes on my heels, and if i go back too much i end up falling backwards. If i go too forwards i get a pelvic tuck. What should i do? I think its called keeping a thorasic extention. 3) How do i keep a lumbar extention? I am really tensing and flexing my hip flexors in the squat when im about to break parallel, and i try to keep my butt up, but its so difficult! What things can i do? I am even looking up, but it doesnt help much! I cant really think of much to say, just generally how do i keep my chest up and out, without falling backwards, and keep a lumbar extention.
Don't go to low. It looked like you was having to put far to much effort to get up from the lowest point. Do not go past 90 degrees until you have good form and some basic strength. If you have seen me squat past 90 degrees it is because I have good knees and balance. I know I have said look up, but you are over egging the omlette. It looks as though you are forcing the head back. The head and neck should be aligned with the spine. One other thing. Big props for posting a video on MAP. Not many are so brave.
Im not sure if we are speaking on the same lines, but if you think that i was having effort getting up from the lowest point as seen on the first video posted at 0:46 seconds, it wasn't that i didnt have the strength, but i thought i was leaning to far forward, so i went back down to where i was before to correct that (to keep chest up and out), but i didn't manage correct it (chest was still very far forward) :/ I feel i do have the strength as i was able to previously do Pistol Squats ass to grass no assistance for about 8 reps i think, but i couldn't maintain a lumbar extention with a pistol squat, but since there was no external load i felt it didnt matter as much. After all people like Jim from beast skills had a pelvic tuck during the pistol squat. But with a loaded exercise lumbar extention is more important.
I can't tell if you are trying to sit back, like a low bar squat, or go down straight, like an Olympic squat. Your body will bend further forward if the goal is to "sit back in a chair" vs "squat down straight". There is nothing wrong with that. The issue that can arise when doing goblet squats that while you may be practicing form for the barbell squat, the goblet squat closely mimics the front squat, which should be very upright, as opposed the "sit back in a chair" squat. edit: In addition, your knees never travel past the toes. There is a misconception that knees can never travel even past an exact perpendicular angle to the ground. If you stay on your heels and allow natural movement of the knees (making sure they track in the same direction the feet are pointed), you will be fine. It seems like you are sitting back, but then since its a front squat your bodyu is going forward, and you are kind of catching yourself and hesitating.
try this (harder than it looks, makes me sweat a bit, if I do 20 or so) [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1jC1sWTUFc"]How to Quickly Improve Your Squat. Hip mobility. Nick Tumminello - YouTube[/ame]
looks good. you don't actualy have any buttwink, but you're bending at the mid-back (what would be thoracic flexion, or rotating your ribcage, where buttink is lumbar flexion, or rotating your pelvis). try to keep your back completely tight. using a heavier weight as a counterbalance might help you. do note that weighted squat form, even ATG is not "as far down as physically possible", but rather "as far down below parallel as you can go without significant lumbar flexion". to go lower, you HAVE to flex the lumbar spine (and in fact it's part of a correct bodyweight squat), so don't worry about stressing depth too much just yet (you already go below parallel with a straight lower back, anyway. re: flexing at the thoracic spine: the reason i suggest using a heavier weight, is that with any kind of front squat (clean grip, goblet, cross-arm grip, etc), having the weight in front of you means that you must lean back to center it over your feet (whereas with back and overhead squats you lean forwards since it's behind you). the posture of a front squat is generally unsustainable if you don't have a heavy enough weight in front of you, because you essentially unbalance yourself, and your body bends forwards to compensate. if you increase the weight, keeping the upper back extended becomes a necessity in order to get that backwards lean, automatically fixing the issue. how much weight are you using, and how much do you weight, yourself?
Thanks for the reply guys! Yup you are absolutely correct. When i was trying to learn this goblet squat i was watching the "So you think you can squat" series on youtube where he said that the knees should not shoot out forward, and that you should be sitting back. I thought going straight up and down was bad. In that video he uses a box to imitate sitting back on a chair. And i was trying to sit back on a chair while also keeping my back completely straight like in a front squat, and found it quite hard. And about catching yourself, yes you are correct. I was watching this video of a front squat, and they do it with the back straight upright, chest up and out. But i kept leaning forward, and i was trying to sit back. So should i not sit back, but just simply go up and down? Thanks, i shall try this! Hopefully it helps alot How much weight: 11.5 KG. I wasnt going heavy because I wasnt confident in my squat form. I weight 65 KG So my mid back is rounding instead of arching, so im hunching forward? So i should try to arch back more? The max weight i can put on one dumbell alone is 25 - 26 Kg or so. I cannot have two dumbells with 25 kg, only one. With two dumbells i can have 20 kg on each. After i get my goblet squats done ill move onto dumbell front squats, where i clean two dumbells onto my chest and then squat. So what weight should i use as a starting weight then? And how should i improve my thoracic extention?
i do my goblet squats with a 16 kg kettlebell at approx. 56-57 kilos myself, so an equivalent for you should be around 20-25 kilos (or more if you feel up to it). the thing is that the weight has to be heavy enough to unbalance you if you don't extend the thoracic spine, so by centering the weight, the extension will happen by itself (ie it's the thoracic extension that "pulls back" the external weight so that your total weight is balanced over your feet). easy way to check: see the first video you posted, you'll notice that you bend at the mid-back at certain points (thoracic flexion). load up 20 kilos, film a few reps, review. if it's still there, increase the weight, rinse, repeat.
Haha i think all your advices worked guys! Here is the new video! [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_QDAsdfHB4"]VID_20120325_194217.mp4 - YouTube[/ame] That video is the last set i did, i did about 10 sets or so, and the final one was the best video i had! What i did new in this video 1) I worked up to 21KG like fish said 2) I went up and down, instead of trying to sit on a chair like cloystreng 3) I kept a thoracic extention like fish said, was harder said than done XD 4) I found, what i believe to be, one of the main problems, my feet were completely forward, this time around i kept my feet at 45 degree, you can see this around the start before i squat where im positioning my feet at 45 degree Also another thing i wasnt doing was i wasnt pushing out at my groin. So i watched this video, i think it was by elliot hulse, strengthcamp, and he said something about showing your penis, so opening up at the groins, and that really helped widen that squat out and it helped keep a lumbar extention! Now all i need is verification from you guys that my squat form, indeed, has improved!
Last vid looks good. One thing that I dunno if is really relevant but if your position isnt the in the hole I wouldn't bother messing about in down there or dropping back down, just be aware and fix it on your next rep. You don't want your nervous system learning to hang around in 'the hole' you want to building power out of there. When you try that with a bar on your back you may come into some trouble.
Ok cool thanks So no correcting my posture at the bottom of the squat, got it! Thanks, im really happy i got the squat correct. Finally i can start squatting properly, excited about my next workout session! Also this time around i found it so much more easier than last time. Trying to keep a thoracic extention with an upright body, while also sitting back was really hard. But it was just that i was doing it wrong!
Sorry to disappoint. Will be investing in a panda suit just for you @Fish, thanks man! Im really glad i got it right!
nice stuff. a goblet squat is similar technique to a front squat so even if you have a butt wink, it shouldnt even be visible in the goblet squat due to weight positioning. you just need to dropp your ass down between your feet, not back, keep your weight on your midfoot/heels. most importantly dont think about your position too hard while you're squatting.
Looks much better. The "so you think you can squat" videos are aimed at powerlifters, who squat differently. Were the bar on your back, it would be different - well...could be different. What you have now is a more natural squat. Sitting back is not a natural motion.
