View Full Version : Awesome read on deep squatting
jsv22
16-12-2009, 09:10 PM
i stumbled across this article on deep squatting, very interesting. Talks about the research behind it. If you squat its' worth a read.
http://www.apec-s.com/Deep%20Squats.pdf
-jsv
O-Train
16-12-2009, 09:26 PM
i stumbled across this article on deep squatting, very interesting. Talks about the research behind it. If you squat its' worth a read.
http://www.apec-s.com/Deep%20Squats.pdf
-jsv
What he means is everyone better read it because everyone should be squating.
waderow
16-12-2009, 09:34 PM
^^^ lol "if" you squat... I caught that too.
ta-kid
16-12-2009, 09:53 PM
I always have squat'd deep ,30 years of deep squats,not that I have done some heavy partials at different times.
I have always been a poponent of full movements in all exercises,which i see when i look around the Gym is old school I guess.Most new Gym rats are into this partial pump movements a lot.Nothin wrong with that if thats what works for you,but my thought has always been if I am going to exert my energy for a set, why just do half a rep.
jsv22
16-12-2009, 10:26 PM
What he means is everyone better read it because everyone should be squating.
lol agreed...
Quick question about this.
I keep my feet just outside of shoulder width apart (prob an inch or 2). With very strict form (knees never out of alignment with my feet) i have trouble going past parallel. I used to squat very deep, but noticed that my knees were moving way too forward thus not aligned with my feet. As soon as i corrected this, squatting past parallel has been tough. As soon as i hit parallel or just beyond, its like my chest is about to hit my knees.
Thoughts?
JacktheThriller
17-12-2009, 11:44 AM
hams too tight, back too inflexible one of those
I guess what i was asking indirectly was, is there a compromise between your form and how deep you can squat? Everytime i see a vid of someone squatting deep, they inevitably move their knees forward.
jsv22
17-12-2009, 01:45 PM
Quick question about this.
I keep my feet just outside of shoulder width apart (prob an inch or 2). With very strict form (knees never out of alignment with my feet) i have trouble going past parallel. I used to squat very deep, but noticed that my knees were moving way too forward thus not aligned with my feet. As soon as i corrected this, squatting past parallel has been tough. As soon as i hit parallel or just beyond, its like my chest is about to hit my knees.
Thoughts?
it's hard to tell without seeing you, what's the position of the bar on your back?
i find high bar squatting (Olympic squat i guess) easiest when going really deep since it keeps my back a big more upright (less pitch forward)...when i low bar squat the same way i find i do something similar to what you are saying..
are you rounding your back before you bottom out? if so it could be hammies as was said before..
also, unless you have flexibility issues or a knee problem don't worry about your knees over your toes so much.
I guess what i was asking indirectly was, is there a compromise between your form and how deep you can squat? Everytime i see a vid of someone squatting deep, they inevitably move their knees forward. move your feet out further.....easier to hit depth imo
I squatted very deep for years.It will definitely give you more mass than just going to parallel.A rather experienced trainer convinced me that the forces exerted upon the knee going deep are not worth it.I did start to develop some instability at one point going deep.Wide stance.Every 5 days.There could be many reasons but he claimed deep squatting had caused a lot of people problems.A graph of the forces exerted going past parallel would be handy.
O-Train
17-12-2009, 08:22 PM
I squatted very deep for years.It will definitely give you more mass than just going to parallel.A rather experienced trainer convinced me that the forces exerted upon the knee going deep are not worth it.I did start to develop some instability at one point going deep.Wide stance.Every 5 days.There could be many reasons but he claimed deep squatting had caused a lot of people problems.A graph of the forces exerted going past parallel would be handy.
You would only get knee problems from deep squating if you arn't doing the exercise properly. 99% of people you see in the gym don't squat properly. Experience doesn't always mean anything, people do stuff wrong for years if not decades.
The hip joint should be taking most of the load, regardless of depth. People run into problems because of poor technique and because they arn't flexible enough to squat properly.
tiramisu
17-12-2009, 08:41 PM
Squatting is such a basic human movement that I have a hard time imagining a somewhat normal human incapable of doing so. Note this is how we are designed to poop. Toilets are a rather odd invention that those new to them tend to climb up and squat on.
You would only get knee problems from deep squating if you arn't doing the exercise properly. 99% of people you see in the gym don't squat properly. Experience doesn't always mean anything, people do stuff wrong for years if not decades.
The hip joint should be taking most of the load, regardless of depth. People run into problems because of poor technique and because they arn't flexible enough to squat properly.
I suppose that would depend on which gym you frequent.This was one of the oldest gyms in town(oldest I believe besides a YMCA if you count that),mostly older guys that had been lifting for years.Many were competitive lifters in their youth.That said it doesn't mean form was 100%,but close enough that it got no major criticism,besides depth.Micro tears build up over time.
O-Train
17-12-2009, 09:29 PM
I suppose that would depend on which gym you frequent.This was one of the oldest gyms in town(oldest I believe besides a YMCA if you count that),mostly older guys that had been lifting for years.Many were competitive lifters in their youth.That said it doesn't mean form was 100%,but close enough that it got no major criticism,besides depth.Micro tears build up over time.Who's the mechanical engineer here?
You are? I don't know why that matters, but ok.
O-Train
17-12-2009, 09:48 PM
I've worked in and worked out at a few gyms and literally spent 1000's of hours watching people lift. ALMOST EVERYONE DOESN'T SQUAT PROPERLY (me included). The one guy that had awesome technique was an olympic lifter. He went ass to calves and he spent as much time stretching every week as he did lifting. Although his technique was very different than a powerlifter. More like what Teramisu was saying...taking a dump lol. Oly lifters tend to go straight down and up, powerlifters sit back a lot more. If you squat like an olympic lifter than it does put a lot more emphasis on the quads and stress on the knee. So if you're worried about it, sit back more. It develops the posterior chain a lot better anyways.
I've worked in and worked out at a few gyms and literally spent 1000's of hours watching people lift. ALMOST EVERYONE DOESN'T SQUAT PROPERLY (me included). The one guy that had awesome technique was an olympic lifter. He went ass to calves and he spent as much time stretching every week as he did lifting. Although his technique was very different than a powerlifter. More like what Teramisu was saying...taking a dump lol. Oly lifters tend to go straight down and up, powerlifters sit back a lot more. If you squat like an olympic lifter than it does put a lot more emphasis on the quads and stress on the knee. So if you're worried about it, sit back more. It develops the posterior chain a lot better anyways.
No,I meant who on this board is an ME.lol.They could calculate the forces going past parallel.Apparently they get very much larger.Sorry for the slight misunderstanding.
O-Train
17-12-2009, 10:16 PM
No,I meant who on this board is an ME.lol.They could calculate the forces going past parallel.Apparently they get very much larger.Sorry for the slight misunderstanding.
Oh ok, I gotcha. Not sure who is. It would be a very complicated series of free body diagram and would differ from person to person. You would need anthropometric sp? data and it would only apply to the load you were considering. Probably would need a computer to figure it out. I'm sure there is similar data floating around on the internet somewhere. I think I used a program in a biomechanics/ergonomics course that could do something similar.
jsv22
17-12-2009, 10:59 PM
No,I meant who on this board is an ME.lol.They could calculate the forces going past parallel.Apparently they get very much larger.Sorry for the slight misunderstanding.
there is some data out there on this. It is true that forces can increase in the knee with a deep squat; however, just because there is increased force doesn't mean it will do any damage. But it will increased the risk of damage for sure! i think the key here is to keep form as strict as possible, especially when going deep.
JacktheThriller
17-12-2009, 11:46 PM
and wear proper shoes! add that misfortunate force into a deep squat and ur knee is begging for a knee problem
Drummer
18-12-2009, 01:37 AM
screwed my sacroiliac deep squatting.
~D
O-Train
18-12-2009, 09:54 PM
screwed my sacroiliac deep squatting.
~D
I think that may be due to flexibility. The SI joint is critical for proper pelvic tilt during a squat. You also need good flexibility in your hamstrings. With a deep squat the problem is made a lot worse.
Think of your pelvis like a bucket full of water. You want to dump the water out the front of the bucket.
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