Teaching the SQUAT by Jim Wendler.
Teaching the Squat
By Jim Wendler
For EliteFTS
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I have been going to Force Training Seminars, either to help Dave or to do them on my own, for almost 3 years and one of the hardest things to do is get someone to squat correctly. Every city has a different set of challenges. For example, the mid-west is famous for the “The Advanced Hip Thrusters” while those in the southern United States fall victim to the “Sit WAYYY Too Far Back” syndrome. While each seminar poses a different set of problems, some of the simplest things in squatting are often overlooked. Too many times people will read an article and get confused at some of the terms or they will overemphasize one small detail. I will try to break the squat down to help those that are having problems or are having difficulty coaching their athletes.
1. Get into an athletic stance: For most people this is very easy. Most have played a sport and almost every sport position is the same. If you played volleyball, get into a position as if you were ready to receive a serve. If you played baseball or softball, get into the same stance as you would as a shortstop. If you played football, the stance of a middle linebacker will suffice. All of these positions are the same; butt and hips are pushed slightly back, knees are bent, lower back is arched, head is up, weight is evenly distributed on the feet, upper back is pulled together, toes are slightly pointed out and the mid-section is tight. Notice that each of these positions are slightly wider than shoulder width; if you are any narrower in any of these sports than you will compromise lateral speed and will be pushed over. Also, I hope that I played against you as were surely on your ass and back most of the game.
2. From this position, place your weight on your toes, pivot on them and move your heels out. After this, redistribute your weight on your heels, pivot on your heels and turn your toes back to the original angle. If you have any rhythm at all then this will look similar to a dance move. This will take your stance a bit wider than normal and put you into an ideal squat position. With some experimentation, you will find that you may have to go back to the original stance or even go wider; whatever the case begin with this and experiment. Everyone will have a slightly different stance.
3. Place your hands on your thighs and side them down to just above your knees. This position should be the same as if you were taking a breather between wind-sprints or something similar. This is a very basic position. No one takes a breather between sprints or in a basketball game with their weight on their toes. They will grab their shorts, push their glutes back, rest their upper body on their hands and drop their head. Sound familiar? If you have any trouble picturing this position then take a look at football players in a huddle or a basketball player during free-throws. They look almost the same. From this position, simply raise your head, arch your upper and lower back and place your hands as if they were on a barbell. This is the exact position you want to be in when you perform a squat.
4. At this point, your hips and glutes should be pushed back, your lower and upper back is arched, head straight ahead, bodyweight on your heels and your mid-section is held tight. If you are not in this position, repeat the first 3 steps and make sure you are in this position.
5. Begin your squat descent by leading your body down with your hips and glutes. Maintain the arch in your lower and upper back. If you are having a problem sitting back into the squat, you may have to lean your forward. This is not dangerous as long as you keep your upper and lower back arched. About 60-70% of the weight should be distributed on your heels.
6. When you are about half way down, begin pushing your knees out and opening up your groin. This is what has been called “spreading the floor” but I have found that the term “open your groin” or “show your groin” or “open the knees” to be better terms when teaching people how to squat. Also, by pushing your knees out and opening your groin, you will have an easier time reaching parallel and will reach it quicker. Now the weight will be shifted to your heels and the sides of your feet.
7. For many people, once they sit back into the squat and open the hips, at this point they can simply squat down. Once your body is in perfect position, opening the hips will allow them to hit parallel without pushing back. This may be difficult to see when you read this, but try it out on a box with someone watching your knees. If you do it correctly then your knees will not move (they will remain over your ankles) when you squat down. The key is learning how and when to open you groin. This will take practice and some more practice; this is something that you will not get correct after a few tries, so be patient.
8. Hip flexibility and mobility is one key in squatting correctly, so this may be your limiting factor. If you are having problems with hip flexibility and mobility I highly recommend getting the Parisi Warm up Method on DVD or VHS. This video highlights many of the hip mobility and flexibility exercises that will prepare you for squatting correctly. Also, it is a great for conditioning and overall body preparation. This video/DVD can be found at EliteFTS.com.
Now let’s say that even these 8 steps are too confusing for your athletes or too much to consider. What I have found is that there are three definitive things that will help your squat. If you concentrate on these three things, or emphasize them over and over again to your athletes, I guarantee that they will become better squatters. If you are a coach do not make things more complicated than they have to be. Simplify everything and you will be surprised at how much better your athletes will lift. Have the athlete get into whatever stance they are comfortable in. Unless they are much too wide or their heels are touching, don’t fight it. Just let them be comfortable.
1. Squeeze the bar. While you are sitting at your computer, drop your hands down at your sides and squeeze them into a fist. Squeeze as hard as you possibly can. What happened to your entire body? It got tight! This is one of the hardest things for an athlete to realize when he lifts and squeezing the bar takes care of it. This simple maneuver is one of the easiest ways to combat a difficult problem. This is one of the first things I ever learned when I began lifting and can’t believe that coaches leave this out. Squeezing the bar/dumbbell should happen on every set of every lift. If you are a coach and are not emphasizing this, I highly recommend you begin.
2. Arch your upper back. If you arch your upper back, and I mean as hard as you can, you will put your head, your low back and glutes in the proper position. This starting position is so important and by simply pulling your upper back together and arching you are taking care of a difficult problem very easily. Again, this will apply to most every lift and not just the squat.
3. Get your ass down: Nothing is worse than walking into a Division I weight room and seeing a bunch of great athletes quarter squatting. The bar weight is too heavy for the athletes mid-section, their knees begin to buckle in and the potential for injury is a high as the coaches IQ is low. What a disgrace to the profession and how embarrassing for the administration and the coaches. How could they ever be so reckless and hire this strength coach? Also, it’s a shame for the athletes that they are being exposed to such non-sense. Now you can argue with me about sitting back and spreading the floor…whatever, just get your ass down. The next question will be “Should I have my athletes squat to parallel or below?” If you are not box squatting, then have them go as low as possible because if you tell your athletes parallel then they will eventually start cutting their squats. Tell them to squat as low as possible and then come back up. It’s that simple.
---------- Post toegevoegd Tue 19 Jul 2011 om 09:05 ----------
Seminar Squats
By Big Bad Jim Wendler
EliteFTS.com
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After being part of the Force Training Seminars for almost 2 years, Dave Tate and I have seen a wide variety of squat technique. Some of these techniques, and I am being polite here, are intriguing and always have us scratching our heads. There are several technical faults that are common to every seminar. Below is a list of these faults. If you cannot attend a seminar, I highly suggest that you purchase the Westside Seminar Videos, the Squat Workout Video or the Reactive Method Video. All three of these show proper squat form. After viewing these tapes, film yourself squatting and compare. You will quickly see what needs to be changed and what you are doing correctly. It wasn’t until I received the Squat Workout Video, more than 3 years ago, that I realized I was going about it the wrong way. Do yourself a favor and focus on technique; don’t get too wrapped up in band tension, percents, etc. Get your technique down and worry about the other things later. Developing bad squat form is easy. Correctly years of poor technique is one of the hardest things to do. That is why novices are so easy to teach; we don’t have to correct years of motor learning.
1. Stance is too close. It is always a shock to people at the seminar to see how wide of a stance Dave and I take when doing our dynamic squats. Remember that the stance that we use during meets is closer than the one we use in training. Still the wide stance does wonders in building up your hip strength. If you think you need to move your stance out, I suggest that you start slowly by moving your feet out an inch on both sides. Also, in order to keep from straining your hips, you may have to use a slightly higher box during your warm-ups to ensure that your hips are warmed up. Wearing groove briefs or a squat suit will also help keep your hips healthy. Performing some kind of stretching, whether it be dynamic or static, can also help you box squat with a wide stance. Bottom line; most people do not take a wide enough stance on dynamic day. Do yourself and your squat a favor and use a wide stance. Not only will your hips become stronger but your squat will take off.
2. Flexing off of the box with the quads, not the hips. The easiest way to remedy this problem is by pushing your knees out and keeping the pressure on the sides of your shoes. You should not be on your heels or toes. By pushing your knees out (spreading the floor) you are ensuring a shorter bar path and thus a more efficient squat. Picture yourself on a Smith Machine (please, no comments); this is how straight of a bar path that you want. If you are not wearing a flat soled shoe, then the spreading the floor will be close to impossible.
3. Not pushing out with your abs. This is not a technique that is used just for those with a thick waist. If this was the case then Chuck Vogelpohl, who is as lean as they come, could not do this. The trick is to push out with your obliques and push out on the sides of your belt. If you want to practice this, have someone put their fingers on the sides of your abs. Try some bodyweight box squats and practice pushing out on their fingers. Do not allow them to “puncture” your abs. This is the sensation that you want. Also, when you take a breath to fill your stomach, your shoulders should not rise. If they do, then you do not know how to breathe when you squat. Your stomach should expand; your shoulders should not rise.
4. Not keeping your arch. This is one of the keys to a big squat. Being able to hold a tight arch is essential in maintaining the proper position while squatting. This is a very uncomfortable position and it should be noted that squatting is not a comfortable exercise.
5. Weak posterior chain. This is something we all fall victim to. How strong is strong enough? I’ll let you know when I figure it out. Simply put, never stop training your low back, hamstrings, glutes, lats and upper back. Hit your posterior chain with a wide variety of effective exercises such as glute ham raises, Reverse Hyperextensions, back raises, pull throughs, Romanian deadlifts, Dimel deadlifts, good mornings (of all varieties), various lat and upper back exercises, sled dragging (of all varieties) and any other exercises that you think can build your squat.
6. Learning how to sit back and down.
Your squat form on a box should mirror your free squat form. While many people have a tough time sitting back during a squat we have also seen
many times people sit back too far on a box. This does not translate into a meet squat. These people need to learn to sit back and down.
7.
Keeping the elbows tucked. When lifters keep their elbows tucked, or at least attempt to keep them tucked, they will virtually eliminate the tendency to fall forward during a squat. By keeping the elbows tucked underneath the bar (or close to it) then they will also keep the bar in the correct path and ensure that their hips will be under them when they squat.
When I see a lifter’s elbows flared out and back, they will undoubtedly fall forward. Their butts will also come up first and thus lose hip power and place unneeded stress on their low backs. Believe me, this is what happened to me at my last meet.