Technique Questions

[tank]

Maybe i missed it, but i didn't see a similar thread. If there is one, redirect me please and delete this bad boy..


2 questions from tonights session:

squat:

i continually read from the guys at elitefts to squat as wide as possible (your feet) and keep your toes pointed forward, but slightly out, to create tension in the hips at the bottom.

i can almost touch my rear to the floor with my feet just outside shoulder width. with a wide stance, i can barely get to parallel no matter how i point my toes. is this a flexibility issue that i should work on or is the stance (like sumo or conventional deadlifts) something that will always be lifter's preference through all levels of advancement?

bench:

how the h*ll do you anchor yourself to the bench AND drive through your feet?! so far, i feel most comfortable with my feet as far back as i can get them toward the bar. tonight i experimented with the alternate position of anchoring yourself and placing your feet flat, to see if i could use the leg drive to my advantage. when i did, i realized anchoring myself AND placing my feet flat/driving through them was something i would only read about today.


thanks guys!

[Fazc]

With anything you read on the internet just be mindful of the perspective of the person who is offering their advice. It's rare that people will flat out lie, but it is a common occurrence that advice can be given/shared which is inappropriate or non-applicable.

Originally Posted by tank

squat:

i continually read from the guys at elitefts to squat as wide as possible (your feet) and keep your toes pointed forward, but slightly out, to create tension in the hips at the bottom.

Fantastic advice... for a geared lifter.

Even when I squatted raw I always squatted wider than shoulder width, this was due to long legs. However now that I use gear I Squat even wider still. The gear allows and almost necessitates that you go wider. This isn't the same for raw lifting.

bench:

how the h*ll do you anchor yourself to the bench AND drive through your feet?! so far, i feel most comfortable with my feet as far back as i can get them toward the bar. tonight i experimented with the alternate position of anchoring yourself and placing your feet flat, to see if i could use the leg drive to my advantage. when i did, i realized anchoring myself AND placing my feet flat/driving through them was something i would only read about today.

Ok now this one is not just exclusive to equipped guys. The basic premise here is that your body is supported on your upper back and your legs. Those are the two main contact points from your body to the floor. Therefore you drive upward from your feet through your legs to increase the stability in your body as you press.

The proviso here is always that as you're doing all of the above, you must maintain a tight arch and your glutes touching the bench.

[tank]

thanks for clarifying.

what of the nonsense "squeeze your legs together to anchor yourself to the bench"? it seems to me that if you are driving from your feet you cannot also squeeze your legs around the bench. to me, it feels like trying to push your hands against the wall but squeeze your elbows together; one effort is going to lack force, and i would argue force in one may become nearly absent.

[Fazc]

No idea mate, never heard that one before.

[tank]

Originally Posted by Fazc

No idea mate, never heard that one before.

lol. that's not good. let me find this and quote it. it's from EFS Basic Training.

ah ha... a little closer look and now i understand.

it doesnt say use the drive through the floor combined with squeezing the bench with your legs, it says to use the feet back method (the one i use) and squeeze the bench for an anchor.


the guy across from me in the gym must have wondered what the hell i was doing trying to push through my feet AND squeeze the bench with my legs... lol.

[BendtheBar]

Originally Posted by tank

squat:

i continually read from the guys at elitefts to squat as wide as possible (your feet) and keep your toes pointed forward, but slightly out, to create tension in the hips at the bottom.

This is not for raw lifters.

Take a natural stance, as if you were about to jump. Generally in this position your toes should be somewhere around 30 degrees, but the angle doesn't matter. Stay natural. Do not point toes forward. It's ok to widen this stance a bit, but real wide isn't need.

I see too many raw squatters trying to squat wide. Always start with a natural feel.

[J_Byrd]

Forget what that article said about the squat, its a more equipped style squat. Find a natural position to squat in, and stay with it for some time. Nothing wrong with hitting a few lighter sets wide from time to time to work those hip flexors and things though.

[tank]

thanks guys.

that "natural stanced" squat looks like the stance i see used in olympic lifting. so, what are the main differences between the oly squat and the "power squat"?

does it only really change once gear is added?

[J_Byrd]

Originally Posted by tank

thanks guys.

that "natural stanced" squat looks like the stance i see used in olympic lifting. so, what are the main differences between the oly squat and the "power squat"?

does it only really change once gear is added?

Thats a can of worms to open haha! Its easier to get deeper in a narrower stance (Olympic), than a typical powerlifting stance (wide). My stance has not really changed, but I am in single ply squat gear still.

[J_Byrd]

Here is a squat from my last meet. Pretty narrow compared to most powerlifters.