Looking Down in the Squat
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A Blast from the Past article originally posted on 11/20/18)
When we teach the squat, we teach people to look at a point on the floor about 3-6 feet in front of them. In other words, we look down (and forward, but I digress). But why?
Loren looks down . . . to go up.
Let's chat . . .
If you lifted in high school, you probably heard some “coach” tell you to look up when squatting. “You gotta look up to go up!” is the loud refrain heard throughout high school weight rooms and powerlifting meets ‘round the world. Rarely is any type of rationale given for this advice, but if pressed for a reason, people might offer something like “ . . . your body follows your head, so to stand up, you should look up.”
This might sound reasonable at first, but let’s think about it. Do you look at the ceiling when you get up out of bed in the morning? What about when you get up out of a chair? I’m going to guess your answer is no. Considering this, we can see that the body doesn’t necessarily follow the head, but it is true that your chest typically does.
Therein lies the major problem with lifting the head while squatting - lifting the head typically causes the lifter to lift the chest. When the chest comes up (i.e., the torso becomes more vertical), the knees shift forward. When the knees shift forward, so do the hips (since the hips and knees are connected by the femurs), and in this “knees forward/hips forward” position, we have now asked the knees to do more and the hips to do less, which is rather silly of us since the hips are the larger of the two joints and are surrounded by more muscle mass than the knees. Without diving too deeply into the physics and anatomy of the situation, we use both the hips and the knees when squatting, and since we want to use them to drive the barbell upward in the most efficient manner possible, that means asking the larger joint (i.e., the hips) to do its fair share of the work.
With this in mind, you look down when you squat since it’s an effective way to keep your hips (and knees) right where they are supposed to be, and this allows you drive upward efficiently with your hips.
As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.
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STOP Bench Pressing VERTICALLY! How to Bench Press Correctly
/Are you bench pressing in a nice, straight, vertical line? Well . . . don't do that. Phil covers how and why to bench correctly.
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Testify This Week - February 5, 2024
/THIS WEEK'S SUBMISSION
From our video The TRUTH About Lifting (What No One Tells You!) (click the title to watch):
BravoRebel1776
I am in my 60s, and been at it for 2+ years solid. The strength training is not only life-changing, and life-enhancing, it is literally life-saving.
Phil
Agreed, and way to keep at it!
ARTICLES & VIDEOS
(3 MISTAKES) When Pressing with Your HIPS
There are 3 mistakes you might be making with your hips when you press - let's fix all 3 in under 3 minutes. Click here to watch.
Are You Setting Your Back WRONG in the Deadlift?
It's easy to set the back incorrectly by confusing shoulder retraction with back extension. Let's fix this issue fast. Click here to read.
Blast from the Past: How to Close Grip Bench Press for Maximum Strength!
Want a bigger bench press? Of course you do. Phil helps you learn how to correctly perform the close grip bench press. Click here to watch.
Blast from the Past: Squat Tip: Hips Back AND Chest Down
We give you two simple and effective tips to improve your squat. Click here to read.
NEW TESTIFY HOODIES ARE AVAILABLE!
Looking to train in style and comfort this winter? Get yourself a Testify hoodie - in practically any color! Get yours today and represent your favorite gym.
Click here to head to the Testify Store.
WHAT'S COMING UP
Below are a few of our upcoming events, and you can find out what else is on the calendar by heading to our events page at www.testifysc.com/events.
Free Intro to Deadlift Session
February 10, 2024
Are you interested in getting stronger? Book your free "Intro to Deadlift" session and learn to deadlift, meet some of our coaches, and see the gym! All ages and abilities are welcome.
Click here to book your session.
Testify Strengthlifting Challenge
April 6, 2024
The annual Testify Strengthlifting Challenge is back, and we invite you to be a part of it! This is a strengthlifting meet, which means the contested lifts will be the squat, press, and deadlift.
Click here to register or for more information.
Starting Strength Self-Sufficient Lifter Camp
May 18, 2024
Spend the day learning the Squat, Press, and Deadlift and how to self-evaluate your lifts while training in your garage or commercial gym without a coach.
Click here to register or for more information.
THIS WEEK’S CONDITIONING
Option 1
Sled
Outdoors:
10-20 x 25 yds EMOM at a weight of your choice
Every minute, push the sled 25 yards, i.e., if pushing the sled takes 20 seconds, then you have 40 seconds to rest. Perform 10-20 rounds.
Indoors:
10-20 x 100 ft EMOM at a weight of your choice
Every minute, push the sled 100 feet, i.e., if pushing the sled takes 20 seconds, then you have 40 seconds to rest. Perform 10-20 rounds.
Compare to 2023.12.04.
Option 2
Bike/row:
5 min on
4 min off
4 min on
3 min off
3 min on
2 min off
2 min on
1 min off
1 min on
Record distance for each interval and add for total distance.
Compare to 2023.11.13.
Option 3
Outdoors:
5-10 rounds:
50 yd sled push (25 yd down-back)
50 yd farmer carry (25 yd down-back)
Rest 1 min
Indoors:
5-10 rounds:
100 ft sled push (50 ft down-back)
100 ft farmer carry (50 ft down-back)
Rest 1 min
Compare to 2023.10.16.
Option 4
10 x 50 ft farmer carry
Each carry is 25 ft down and 25 ft back and is for time. Rest 1 minute between carries.
Women: 97# per handle (80# of plates)
Men: 137# per handle (120# of plates)
(Note: Each handle weighs 17#.)
Compare to 2023.10.16.
Are You Setting Your Back WRONG in the Deadlift?
/Stop making this mistake with your shoulders when you’re deadlifting.
The Mistake
What mistake, you say? We’re talking about the error of shoulder retraction when setting up for the deadlift. To be clear, we don’t want shoulder retraction at any point in the deadlift, but it’s only ever a problem in the setup (no one tries to do this once the bar is moving).
When you make this mistake, you make it in step 4 of the 5-step setup for the deadlift. Watch the included video for an introduction (or refresher) to the 5-step setup, but for now, here’s the quick version:
Stance: Shins 1” from the barbell
Grip: Bend over to grip the bar
Shins: Bend your knees to touch your shins to the bar
Chest: Squeeze your chest up to set your back
Pull: Drag the bar up your legs
Figure 1: Good heavens - don’t do this.
If you’re committing the error of shoulder retraction (Figure 1), then you are accidentally pulling your shoulder blades back while (or instead of) squeezing your chest up. Watch yourself on video, and you’ll notice that it looks like you’re getting closer to the barbell when you do this . . . because you actually are.
Why This is a Problem
Retracting the shoulder blades gives you functionally shorter arms when you set up to pull, and shorter arms are never an advantage in the deadlift.
Additionally, this is a weak position - you won’t be able to (nor do you need to) maintain retracted shoulders under anything approaching a challenging weight. You’ve now introduced unnecessary slack into the system, and you’ve also created additional variability in your setup position.
This error is often accompanied by bent wrists (i.e., bent backward in extension), and on video, you’ll often notice that it looks like you’re pushing downward on the bar (i.e., resting your weight on the bar), which you may in fact be doing.
Figure 2: This . . . is much better.
How to Fix It
Keep it simple. When setting your back during step 4, you can cue yourself to “squeeze your chest up,” you can cue yourself to “push your belly down between your thighs,” but leave your shoulders out of the picture entirely (Figure 2).
If that approach doesn’t solve the problem, remind yourself that your arms should be as long and as straight as possible (wrists too). Imagine trying to move up and away from the bar as far as possible while still being connected to the bar by your hands. If you watched Inspector Gadget as a kid, then the cue “Go-Go-Gadget-Arms!” actually works pretty well here.
As always, we hope this helps you get stronger and live better.
(Some links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, Testify earns from qualifying purchases.)