Is Your Squat Stuck? It's Not Why You Think.
/
Do you have an odd sticking point in your squat? Let’s fix it right now.
Odd sticking point? What do you mean?
On your descent, you reached back with your hips, you pointed your chest at the floor, and you shoved your knees apart. You’ve gotten a bounce out of the bottom of the squat, you’ve started your ascent, and you’re driving your hips upward as you do so.
You’ve maintained that nice, leaned over back angle, and then, when you’re past what is the typical sticking point of a heavy squat - around one third to one half of the way up - right when things should start getting a bit easier, suddenly, your squat is still extremely difficult. In fact, it might even get harder and actually slow down.
If you want to see a demonstration of this, watch the video below - specifically the squat that starts at the 0:43 mark.
What did I do wrong?
You maintained your back angle and drove your hips up out of the hole initially, but because the barbell feels awfully heavy and you’re worried about missing the rep, your brain reverts to “Oh-my-goodness-I-need-to-stand-up-right-now,” and you start raising your chest too soon.
This kills your hips drive, the bar speed dies, and the squat gets much harder than it should be at this point in the ascent.
The Fix
There are a couple of different cues to help you solve this problem:
Keep driving the hips.
Stay in your hips.
Stay leaned over.
Stay in your lean. (my personal favorite, and the idea is to stay in that leaned over position longer than you think you should)
Tyler does an excellent job staying in his hips, - staying leaned over - on his ascent.
When panic sets in - when you really want to raise your chest and try to get your torso vertical (which will make your squat miserably hard) - stay in that lean just a bit longer . . . and you’ll reach the top without making the squat any harder than it needs to be.
To see this “staying in your lean” executed well, go back to the video above and watch the squat at the 0:56 mark.
Stay in your hips, stay in your lean - and you’ll be just fine.
As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.
-Phil
PS: Whenever you want even more Testify in your life, here are some free resources:
Book a free intro and strategy session with us HERE.
Pick up a free copy of Testify’s Squat Guide: 12 Tips to Improve Your Squat Now HERE.
Get our free weekly email - containing useful videos, articles, and training tips - HERE.
Follow Testify on Instagram HERE.
Subscribe to Testify’s YouTube channel HERE.
(Some links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, Testify earns from qualifying purchases.)