Alright, I just started workin out last week. I really hadn't worked out this hard since High School (I'm 24). Anyways, there was a trainer in the gym at my place and I found out that he's the complimentary trainer. I asked him if he'd show me how to do a proper squat. He put a bench under me and told me that I shouldn't go any lower than that, just sticking my hips out on the way down. I read about you guys doing deep squats, I'm wondering how much weight you're doing. He said something about not doing deep squats at all or if you do, do them with little weight as you could injure your knees. Any thoughts???

BTW: I'm only squating 200 lb's. 2 sets of 12 reps.

-Landon

well you wont find one power lifter or even a competition bodybuilder tell you not to go deeper than parallel... every pic ive seen of HUGE mofos are all practically, if not totally, ass to ankles on squats. they also use knee wraps for a reason when goin heavy. But getting big by going heavy will take a toll on your joints over time. just work on technique and get as deep as you can working toward gettin your ass on the floor. http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif ,, btw, have you seen the old pic of Oldgixxer. his fukkin quads are huge, and he goes ass to ankles..

OG is going to tell you different and he really knows his shit, a lot more then I do http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/punk.gif but...

I use to go all the way down years ago ... My ex girlfriend became a physiotherapist and she told me that it is really hard on the knees to go all the way down during squats. The pressure and strain on the knee is too much for athlete's to put on themselves. She also said, the 1/2 squats(what I call them) are still giving your legs a complete workout.
If you do a 1/2 squat, the height should be like your sitting in a chair that has your knee bent at 90 degrees. The bench is a little low for me ... If you are worried about your knees, or you play sports, or you have bad knees, I reccommend 1/2 squats http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif

I guess I'm doin about 3/4 squats. I was just wondering if I'd really be setting myself up for injury by doin deep squats.

Thanks guys for the info!

-Landon

And yes, I have seen pics of OldGix, he's huge all around!

but they're not for everyone. Even though I've always had rather skinny legs I've outsquated some much bigger guys. My problem is coping with the weight across my shoulders.
Also, squats aren't for everyone. My best buddy simply couldn't do squats in anything close to proper form. It was scary to watch. His legs were freaky skinny.....picture legs of Kenyan marathoners here . Years later on advice from a former national level bodybuilder he gave up squatting, concentrating instead on leg presses. The guy simply told him that "squats aren't for everyone, and you're one of 'em".
In a years time I'd guess he'd put something like 6" on each thigh, minimum.

don't go deep and don't lock out at the top.it's a good idea to put a bench under you and squat until your bottom hits it and come up.don't go past parallel.keep your head up,look at some thing at the celing.this keeps you from bending over and jackin your back up.and if you feel like your ghoing to fall backward,put a 2x4 under your heels.

Grab yourself some knee wraps as you start getting heavier. I worry about my back more than my knees(since wrapped), the compression on my spine. I really wont go any heavier than 315-335. I just wotk on going deeper.

I always do leg presses afterwards. But I will do 3 sets of 20's.

Going deeper with less weight is the way to go. I hear many talk about how bad it is on the knees. Those people havn't ever done deep squats. The stop at the bottom of the rep because of the body not letting you go futher is far less stressfull than stopping midway with a shit load of weight on the bar. Talk about putting stress on the knees. Deep squats also promote a very full development of the quad.

STRAFINGIXXER said:
don't go deep and don't lock out at the top.it's a good idea to put a bench under you and squat until your bottom hits it and come up.don't go past parallel.keep your head up,look at some thing at the celing.this keeps you from bending over and jackin your back up.and if you feel like your ghoing to fall backward,put a 2x4 under your heels.



I would not recommend following any of this advice Xanadu.
You put a bech under your ass,and you'll tend to "unload" the quads as your ass touches the bench and may develop a habit of bouncing ever so slightly off the bench to help get the weight up.Put a 2X4 under your heels and 9 out of 10 times a beginner will fall forwards.Looking at the ceiling will totally throw your balance off,you dont walk around looking up in the air do you?So why would you squat like that?Squatting is a natural movement we all do several times a day within our normal daily activities.Keep your eyes focused straight ahead(99% of the time there is a mirror in front of the squat rack)and watch yourself go up and back down.Not locking out at the top is good advice,however once you start going heavy,you will have to in order to pause briefly before going back down.

If you start off real light and practice for a few weeks,a month even and concentrate on getting your form 110% then you will have no future problems down the road with the issue's addressed above.

Knee wraps are highly recommended when going heavy,but your not there yet,so don't think you need them from the get go in order to squat correctly.

Arclight is correct with his post,but try them and if you feel they're not doing you any good,focus on another movement like presses.

And above all,if you do squat,and your fine with the movement,your absolutely wasting energy and floor space by not going deep.Who cares if you load up 500lbs. on the rack and go down 6 inches and back up again?Nobody.You look ,like a jackass and a wanna-be.....

oldgixxer said:
and above all,if you do squat,and your fine with the movement,your absolutely wasting energy and floor space by not going deep.Who cares if you load up 500lbs. on the rack and go down 6 inches and back up again?Nobody.You look ,like a jackass and a wanna-be.....




Do you still Suggest going deep with someone who has a bum knee? Perhaps Wrapping (even If I am Staying light) would help with the knee?

I have been staying away from Squats, mainly because I don't want to Jack my knee up more than it is http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

Moss said:

oldgixxer said:
and above all,if you do squat,and your fine with the movement,your absolutely wasting energy and floor space by not going deep.Who cares if you load up 500lbs. on the rack and go down 6 inches and back up again?Nobody.You look ,like a jackass and a wanna-be.....




Do you still Suggest going deep with someone who has a bum knee? Perhaps Wrapping (even If I am Staying light) would help with the knee?

I have been staying away from Squats, mainly because I don't want to Jack my knee up more than it is http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif



Nooo,definitely not Moss.I tore my patella tendon on my left knee doing 20 plates on the hack squat,and I worked back into it slowly.If your knee is bad,there are alot of other things to stimulate hypertrophy in the quads.
You could do super-sets of leg presses,& leg extensions
You could pre-exhaust your quads by doing medium weight,high-rep(30+reps)leg extensions,then leg press until failure(you,not your knee http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif)
If you have a bum knee,I would concentrate on strict form,light to medium weight,and going for a super intense burn from high reps.You will know how to guage the weight better then I could tell you.

Just remember,if your not stumbling out of the gym after doing legs,barely able to walk and support your weight,well then you'll never acheive great quad development.I'm not directing this at Moss,just making a general statement.

My old lady likes to look in the mirror when she squats on it. She goes pretty deep to. She has no problem being on her knees despite going deep. It's probably just a myth.

fah-q-honda said:
My old lady likes to look in the mirror when she squats on it. She goes pretty deep to. She has no problem being on her knees despite going deep. It's probably just a myth.



bwhahhaa.... seems like all women when like to look in the mirror when the *squat deep* http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

I have a diffrent question about squats. I have never been a member of a big gym untill now. I always only used the rack. I have no idea what bennifits all the other squat mmachines have. one looks like a space shuttle seat http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/dunno.gif

Skibo said:
I have a diffrent question about squats. I have never been a member of a big gym untill now. I always only used the rack. I have no idea what bennifits all the other squat mmachines have. one looks like a space shuttle seat http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/dunno.gif



well the 2 most prominent ones are the leg press machine and hack machine. leg press where youre seated on a slight decline with the sled up and in front of you.. works you quads, glutes and some hams... then you got the hack machine, where you typically lay back on an incline with the sled resting on your shoulders, feet slightly out infront of you. hack are great for pounding you quads.

If you guys want a little change in routine try grabing some dumbells and do squats on the GEL PADS.. YOU WILL WORK MUSCLES YOU DIDNT KNOW EXSISTED!! its awsome and works on your balance as well!!!!

Fiddy_Ryder said:

Skibo said:
I have a diffrent question about squats. I have never been a member of a big gym untill now. I always only used the rack. I have no idea what bennifits all the other squat mmachines have. one looks like a space shuttle seat http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/dunno.gif



well the 2 most prominent ones are the leg press machine and hack machine. leg press where youre seated on a slight decline with the sled up and in front of you.. works you quads, glutes and some hams... then you got the hack machine, where you typically lay back on an incline with the sled resting on your shoulders, feet slightly out infront of you. hack are great for pounding you quads.



Yeah I think he's talking about the hack squat.

A family friend of mine and the president of ISSA, (personal training certification company) was known as "Dr. Squat" and held all kinda of world records. Hence when he would send me study material, and the material in his text book, he had an entire chapter devoted to just squats and the many variations and types there are.

There are so many little foot placements and variations that can change the squat. Start searching the net for some diagrams.

Kind of topic. But my sophmore year in high school. I was box squatting 455 and dropped it. The implications could have been horiffic. lucky for me I was ok. So If I were you I would not squat with anything, box or a bench etc, underneath you regardless of how much weight you are lifting. I'd find a power rack and set the spotters at a height that suits you.

SicShift said:

Fiddy_Ryder said:

Skibo said:
I have a diffrent question about squats. I have never been a member of a big gym untill now. I always only used the rack. I have no idea what bennifits all the other squat mmachines have. one looks like a space shuttle seat http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/dunno.gif



well the 2 most prominent ones are the leg press machine and hack machine. leg press where youre seated on a slight decline with the sled up and in front of you.. works you quads, glutes and some hams... then you got the hack machine, where you typically lay back on an incline with the sled resting on your shoulders, feet slightly out infront of you. hack are great for pounding you quads.



Yeah I think he's talking about the hack squat.

A family friend of mine and the president of ISSA, (personal training certification company) was known as "Dr. Squat" and held all kinda of world records. Hence when he would send me study material, and the material in his text book, he had an entire chapter devoted to just squats and the many variations and types there are.

There are so many little foot placements and variations that can change the squat. Start searching the net for some diagrams.




Ahhh,Dr Squat http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif....how is Mr.Hatfield these days??

oldgixxer said:

SicShift said:

Fiddy_Ryder said:

Skibo said:
I have a diffrent question about squats. I have never been a member of a big gym untill now. I always only used the rack. I have no idea what bennifits all the other squat mmachines have. one looks like a space shuttle seat http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/dunno.gif



well the 2 most prominent ones are the leg press machine and hack machine. leg press where youre seated on a slight decline with the sled up and in front of you.. works you quads, glutes and some hams... then you got the hack machine, where you typically lay back on an incline with the sled resting on your shoulders, feet slightly out infront of you. hack are great for pounding you quads.



Yeah I think he's talking about the hack squat.

A family friend of mine and the president of ISSA, (personal training certification company) was known as "Dr. Squat" and held all kinda of world records. Hence when he would send me study material, and the material in his text book, he had an entire chapter devoted to just squats and the many variations and types there are.

There are so many little foot placements and variations that can change the squat. Start searching the net for some diagrams.




Ahhh,Dr Squat http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif....how is Mr.Hatfield these days??



doing well. Business is doing great. My business partner is one of their head web designers at www.issaonline.com. (http://www.issaonline.com.)

They had a stumble for a while though. Get this, the CEO had a very, very rich good friend that owned many of the major bodybuilding and fitness magazines. ISSA was getting free ad space for years. Well, the guy sold his publications for a few hundred million and all of a sudden they had to start paying for advertising. So it went from 0.00 for mag ads to 35,000 per month. http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

They had to lay off some people and restructure, but they're bouncing back now.