Form check - Barbell back squats (Updated Link for preview) : fitness

[–] [email protected] 8 points 3 months ago (1 children)

There's always form improvements your can make, but I don't think that's the problem here. I see from your other comment that you're following GZCLP. The program prescribed a deload when you can no longer progress in weight. Have you done that? Are you sleeping and eating well?

As for form, there are a few things I'd try to work on if you want to optimize how much you can squat, but if you just care about getting a good workout, only the first point would matter imo.

Depth: Consistency is key, and the best way to achieve that is either going to parallel or as low as possible. You will have to decrease the weight if what we see in the video is the depth you're used to.
Unracking: you're basically doing a partial good-morning to unrack. That'll sap away the energy you have available for your squat, but it looks like you might not be able to change that with the rack you're currently using.
Walk-out: Get practice with taking exactly 2 or 3 steps. The more steps you take, the less energy you'll have for squatting.
Shoes: A more solid base means less energy waste. Your feet are visible wobbling around here.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (2 children)

Well ig i should take a deload, but this is only after an increase of around 10 pounds (from what i could do before) before i need to take a break, is this normal?

Edit: I m going parallel tho arent I?

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I took a screenshot at the bottom of one of your reps. Parallel means the hip crease going below the top of your knee. I've circled both here. It doesn't look parallel to me, but maybe that's just the camera angle.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 months ago

Hmm, I thought i was, i will try to next time

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

So if I understand correctly, between the first day you started the program until now, you've only gone up 10lbs on your squat?

I'll check the video again later, but I'm pretty sure you didn't reach parallel.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

No, i started with 85% of 5RM for 5x3 which was very low for me, previously i was squatting 55kg 2x3 arnd and i started with 45kg, now i m stalling at 60kg, also i m sorry idk why i m switching up my units lol

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Not ideal, but it's not bad either. You're making progress.

How does failure look like for you? Do you fail in the sense that you drop the bar on the safeties, or do you complete part of the set and rack when you think you can't do another?

How is your progress on T2 squats? If that's still going up, I wouldn't be too worried about T1 stalling.

I just checked, and the program also prescribes switching up the set/rep scheme when you fail. Have you done that?

You didn't say anything about your sleep and diet, but I want to reiterate that they're both very important. They have a huge effect on your recovery, and how well you recover is one of the main factors in determining how much stronger you get. Make sure you get enough quality sleep. Make sure you're getting enough protein. But of course, not all is lost if you can't improve here. It just means you'll have to live with slower gains at the gym. Slower progression, and more frequent deloads.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I drop the bar on the safeties, T2 too is going the same way

I do hv a suboptimal diet and sleep tho, I described it at another post but basically i do my best, i do still seem to be making decent progress on other lifts

Yes i tried switching up sets x reps, i failed immediately on 6x2

What are ur suggestions on widening the stance? I was thinking maybe my stance is way too narrow

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

There's no harm in experimenting with your stance. Different people will have different optimal stance widths. The best way to figure out what's good for you is to try it. You would have to decrease the weight and work your way back up, so it can double as a deload.

Yes i tried switching up sets x reps, i failed immediately on 6x2

How did you do on the 5x3 set before that? i.e. how many reps did you complete on each set? 6x2 should be easier in my experience. How long are you resting between sets? What about the 10x1 sets?

I follow a GZCL style program as well, and one thing I like to do is to only progress in weight when I can do at least 2 extra reps on the AMRAP set. For example, on the 5x3 sets, if I do 3/3/3/3/5, then I up the weight, but if I get 3/3/3/3/4, then I consider that a failure and I'll try the same weight again next session. It's one way to reduce the fatigue from each workout. That could be worth trying.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Thanks a lot for ur help! On my previous 5x3 i failed on the 2nd rep on the 5th set, when i tried 6x2 i failed on the very first rep lol, so I didn’t try 10x1

Ig my form might just be super inconsistent maybe? Anyway i will try lowering the weight and the widening the stance and practicing with it

I typically rest arnd 3 min for t1 lifts but sometimes upto five between the last couple of sets

And also ur approach on AMRAP makes sense, maybe i missed something when reading the material but yeah getting anything less than 4 on 3+ AMRAP set should be considered failure

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

If you were able to do 3 reps on one session and unable to do even a single rep with the same weight the next session, that's a sure sign of under-recovery. You need that deload.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Hmm ok ig i will do that, my guess is i should only do this for squat right?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Yes, only squats. As long as your other lifts are progressing well, there's no need to change them.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago

Okk, thanks a lot for ur help :)

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

I don't have an immediate suggestion, but some questions to gather context so that others can make suggestions.

What is your current program, as in: which days are back squats? How many sets and reps? What is your current objective (eg hypertrophy, functional strength, etc)?
How much weight is on the bar now and when did it last increase for back squats?
Which part of the motion fatigues you the most afterwards?
Do you have access to other equipment to isolate legs? Eg: leg press, hack squat
Are fractional or change plates available, and in what weights?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

Current Program - GZCLP (3/3.5 days per week (4 full body workouts))

Sets and reps - 5x3 on day 1, 3x10 on day 2

Weight - 50kgs, got up to 60kg but when i tried it today i failed lol, i thought i would rather focus on form first

Fatigue - Idk about which part ‘fatigues’ me the most hehe, but I always fail at the bottom part of the movement

-> Yes I do have other equipment, but i don’t primarily train for hypertrophy but rather health and movement (I used to be very fat lol) i do think muscles are cool lol don’t get me wrong, but I really do wanna keep free weights as the bread and butter

-> The program calls for 5kg increase in each session on squats (on one rep scheme independently), i do have 1kg ankle weights which i use for bench and OHP so i can use smaller increments

Edit : added missing info :)

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Form looks fine. Sure, it could be more stable, but it's stable enough.

I couldn't take the routine as bible. IDK, I'm no expert so I don't want to trash it, but I think just a simple 3 working sets (not including warm-ups) of 10 reps 3 times a week for squats specifically would be better.

I'm questioning where your idea that you're lacking progress is coming from. Are you able to do 3x10 of a weight, but if you add 5kg more, you're only able to do 8 during your last set? That's fine, keep at it, even if you drop to 5 reps by the end. Only when you add weight and can only do like 3 of the reps by the end would I suggest backing off.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago

Lacking progress as in very inconsistent progression, 10 days ago like i said i hit 5x3 with 60kgs, (getting 3 on the AMRAP set) that’s already a very quick plateau considering i started my program with 45kgs (which was 85% of my 5RM) similarly on my higher rep squats, i m failing after adding similar weight, and very quickly too, i lose 2 reps as soon as i add 5kgs (when the are supposed to stay same)

And most importantly, i failed my very first rep on 60kg today haha

As for the program its doing me good on the other three lifts, so i dont really feel like changing it hehe, i made a pretty long rant post 2 months ago about how i m not progressing on any lift, I finally am and dont want to disturb anything

Squats have always been quite problematic for me tho tbh, idk why

I was thinking maybe my stance is too narrow replaying the clip

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Just wanted to comment that I don't know how many people are willing to download that app or your video file to review. The link says the preview is unavailable and can't be played on the browser. I'm on mobile if that helps.

I hope you get the feedback you're looking for!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

Yeah right idk whats causing this, it seems like it plays on some browsers and not others, i will try compressing it maybe that will help

Edit: I think i gotta make a post asking good services to upload files and share 🤷

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

For videos, I would recommend a PeerTube instance -- since this is the Fediverse after all -- but I don't know of any that are taking users.

Also, the video did play for me in Firefox on Android.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago

Thank you, i hv provided a different link which is temp but i hope i get a feedback by then

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Is that a direct link? It seems to redirect to a login page.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

Fixed, mega is giving me problems lol Edit: it seems to hv been causing more problems :/

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

The link seems to work now. Is it still being problematic somehow?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago

Hmm it wasnt showing a preview in safari, it opens fine in app though

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