WHERE Should I Put the Bar for the Squat?

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

How do you find the best position for the barbell when squatting? Starting Strength Coach Phil Meggers shows you in less than 2 minutes with some help from Coach Mike as well.

(A Blast from the Past video originally published on 12/17/22)

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The Mindset That Changed His Squat IMMEDIATELY

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

Want to squat effortlessly?

Not without effort, mind you - we are working to get stronger, of course - but actually with less effort. Instead of squatting 225 lb inefficiently - and thus with a lot of unnecessary effort - what if you could squat 225 lb more efficiently and thus with less effort? In turn, this efficiency means we can flat out squat more weight and get stronger, which is the goal.

rob knows the 4 tactics and uses them here to squat 445 lb for sets of 5.

Here are 4 tactics that will help you do exactly this. These are the basics of squatting, which shouldn’t be surprising because getting good at a task usually means becoming extraordinarily consistent at executing the basics.

Tactic #1: Stance and Knees
Start by taking a stance with your heels roughly shoulder width apart and point your toes out about 30 degrees.

As you descend, shove your knees out (i.e., apart from one another). Technically, your knees will travel forward and out, but focus on the “out” aspect as you descend. In other words, your knees should travel in the direction of your toes, and in this sense, your toes function as arrows for your knees.

Tactic #2: Reach Back with Your Hips
In addition to shoving your knees apart as you start to descend, you will also reach backward with your hips.

To keep the mechanics of this as simple and straightforward as possible, note that, in any squat, your knees will travel a certain distance forward as you descend, and your hips will travel a certain distance backward (watch yourself from the side on video to see this in action). The farther your knees travel forward, the more load they are responsible for, and conversely, the more your hips travel backward, the more load they are responsible for.

reach back with your hips like mike - even if you’re not squatting in your halloween costume.

We want to train the muscle mass surrounding both joints, and since the hips are the larger joint and are surrounded by more muscle mass, you’re going to ask them to do their fair share of the work (i.e., a larger share than the knees), so you cue yourself to reach back hard with your hips.

Tactic #3: The Lean
As you reach back with your hips when descending, point your chest at the floor.

Yes - lean over.

You will not fall over, and in fact, you need to do this to avoid falling over. Your hips reach back, so you lean over, and these two movements counterbalance each other.

Your back will still be straight and rigid because you properly performed a Valsalva maneuver and braced hard before starting the descent (if you’re not sure how to do this, watch the video below) - it just won’t always be vertical. You start at the top with a vertical back angle, and your finish at the end with a vertical back angle, but your back will move through a range of angles as you squat.

Remember, also, that getting leaned over is how your back gets strong.

With all this in mind, get leaned over on the descent and stay leaned over as you drive your hips up out of the hole. Stay leaned over longer than you think - you want your hips and chest to raise at roughly the same rate for about the first half of the ascent.

Raising your chest early makes for a harder, less inefficient, and weaker squat, so get leaned over on the descent, and stay leaned over on the ascent.

Tactic #4: Focal Point
Before you start your first rep, pick a spot on the floor about 4-6 feet in front of you. Proceed to stare at that spot with the burning intensity of one thousand suns throughout your entire set - during reps, between reps, and even while you walk the bar back to the rack at the end of the set.

note brianne’s focal point - a few feet in front of her and on the floor.

Your torso tends to follow your eyes, so if you look up, you’ll tend to not lean over on the descent, raise your chest too soon on the ascent, or some hideous combination of both of those errors.

We want to get leaned over and stay that way, so find that focal point on the floor in front of you and never waver from it.

As always, we hope these tips help 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.)

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Interested in getting stronger, looking better, and having more energy?

The Squat, Reinvented.

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

What if squatting could feel easier . . . and work better? Starting Strength Coach Phil Meggers explains.

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.

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Interested in getting stronger, looking better, and having more energy?

Use THIS CUE to PR Your Lifts!

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

Try out this simple cue the next time you're going for a heavy single at the gym or in competition. It just might help you nail that PR you've been chasing. Starting Strength Coach Phil Meggers explains.

(A Blast from the Past video originally published on 12/05/22)

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.

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Interested in getting stronger, looking better, and having more energy?

The BEST Squat Accessory Ever: "This simple tool helps so much!"

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

How can one simple object fix your knees' forward position, your knees' lateral position, and even your hip position and back angle?! If you train on your own, the TUBOW can be a huge help to your squat. What's a TUBOW? Starting Strength Coach Phil Meggers explains as Becky demonstrates.

(A Blast from the Past video originally published on 12/03/22)

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.

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Interested in getting stronger, looking better, and having more energy?

People Believed this Lie about Squatting for YEARS

/ Testify Strength & Conditioning/

If you’ve lifted weights long enough - or been in a high school weight room or at a powerlifting meet for about five seconds - you’ve heard it . . .

“You’ve got to look up to go up!”

Let’s put this silly nonsense to bed real quick-like.

You don’t look up to go up when you stand up from your bed in the morning.

You don’t look up to go up when getting up from the couch.

You don’t look up to go up when getting up off of the toilet.

Look up to go up? ridiculous.

In fact, with the notable exception of rock climbing and ladders, you rarely look up to go up in life, and you certainly don’t need to look up to go up when squatting.

Keep it simple. Find a focal point that helps reinforce what you’re trying to do. You’re trying to reach back with your hips and point your chest at the floor on the descent, and you’re trying to stay in that leaned over position as you drive your hips up out of the hole on the ascent.

Looking up tends to yank the head up, and that, in turn, causes the chest to come up sooner than you want - making for a harder, more inefficient squat.

With this in mind, pick a spot 4-6 feet in front of you on the floor and stare at it the entire time. Before your first rep, during each rep, and between reps - keep the same focal point.

This focal point helps you achieve the correct back angle, drive your hips effectively, and makes for a more efficient squat.

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.)

At Testify, we offer small group training, private coaching (in-person or remotely via Zoom), online coaching, and form checks. Interested in getting stronger, looking better, and having more energy?