There are a lot of different squat variations. Each one offers a different benefit, and each one is different mechanically. A common problem I see with the low bar back squat is what people do with their hips in the descent, the hole, and right out of the hole. Additionally there seems to be some confusion on the acceptable amount of forward lean, or angle of the back.

When the bar is positioned on the spine of the scapula and the stance is moderate to wide many people have a tendency to come forward in the squat. It may be that they are quad dominant, or that they have mobility issues somewhere in the chain (ankles, hips, upper back / shoulder girdle). However, I think that many times the lift is mis-coached and or misunderstood.

One thing you need to come to grips with right away is the difference between obtaining a lot of hip flexion and therefore “leaning” forward, and dumping forward because of a lack of thoracic extension or improper placement of the weight back on the heel to mid foot.

In reality when the back squat is performed correctly it does seem as though you are leaning quite a bit, the back angle is about 45 degrees or more. Check out this picture:

Notice that the chest is virtually in the lap of the girl pictured above. Although you hear all the time that back angle should equal shin angle, that really isn’t true. The Olympic style high bar squat would be the closest variation to achieving equal angles. In the “lower” bar back squat the back angle will generally be greater than the shin angle. Opposite let’s say to the front squat, where the shin angle generally exceeds the back angle. The bottom line is that the bar needs to be over the mid foot / heel to keep the resistance over the mid-line of the body.

Here’s the often seen drawing of the front squat and high bar back squat which you can use in comparison to the picture above:

In the lower bar position you are able to effectively leverage against the weight and recruit the muscles which are largely responsible for extending the hips (ie hamstrings and glutes). Yes the quads are working hard, but hardly working alone in this squat pattern. The hips become a much bigger player in this squat than other variations. Are the spinal erectors working hard, yes they are, so what. If everything is in line (technique and health wise) then you are building a stronger back, and I see no issue with this.

I find a lot of the people I work with have misinterpreted cues from other coaches, received poor instruction and / or don’t understand the leverages in the low bar back squat. They associate cues such as “keep the chest up” or “get tall” to mean keep an upright as possible upper body position. When you couple this with hearing cues to “sit back” or “push the butt out” the two begin to work against each other. As they push the hips back and begin to flex the hips and extend the low back as much as possible the pelvis moves into a forwardly tilted position. As the pelvis tilts forward the angle of the torso will also change relative to the position of the pelvis. As the squatter resists the urge to achieve a safe amount of forward lean the hips are unable to flex and inorder to reach depth they must shift the weight forward, and inevitably this make the knees the predominant lever; the quads begin to take over.

The upright torso position is not what we are after. Similar to the deadlift, what we want instead is to maintain extension in the lumbar and thoracic spine while the angle of the torso increases keeping the weight over the mid-line of the body. When the bar is positioned lower on the back this equates to a more predominate forward lean, let it happen. I find that a lot of descent issues can be cleared up by having people arch the lower back hard, opening the hips, and flaring out the glute meds (outward pressure on the feet) all before starting the descent. Some people try to do all of that and initiate the descent at the same time and end up throwing themselves forward or never achieving enough lumbar extension.

Many times people will do an adequate job of getting to the hole correctly and this shift in weight won’t occur until the concentric (upward) portion of the lift. I think Rippetoe talks about this in Starting Strength when he uses the image of a string attached to the tailbone. He wants people to imagine someone pulling straight up on the string as the tailbone essentially comes straight up out of the hole, not forward.

Often times I will actively push my fist into someones lower back and tell them to push against my hand as they come out of the hole. If they stay tight in the back as they push my hand this will teach them what it feels like to have the hips and shoulders move up simultaneously as opposed to the shoulders moving up first (causing the knees to come forward). When I first understood this concept, and many of the people I train have agreed, it almost feels as though you are pushing the hips back out of the hole. This is because you are initiating the lift out of the hole from the hips, not the legs (knees). For someone like myself who was introduced to low bar back squatting after years of front squatting this can be a tough concept. When you / they have that AH HA moment the low bar back squat begins to feel better, make a lot more sense, and dare I say get easier. Here is a video of Jim Wendler using the cue I am talking about at a seminar held at Total Performance Sports.

I think the low bar back squat is a great exercise when done correctly. All to often the confusion comes from how much lean of the torso is appropriate. This squat variation turns the squat into a much more equal movement in terms of the hips and knees sharing the load. It is a great option for those who can safely perform it, especially people (and there are a lot of them) who are quad dominant. I hope this clears up some confusion on the technique. I’ll leave you with this video of Wendler taking 505 for a triple. Watch for everything we just talked about. Pause at 0:19 to see where his hips are right out of the hole.

Writing a solid program is important. I find programming to be a hot topic, and for good reason – it’s interesting! As coaches it’s an obvious choice to write about because the options are plentiful. There are an overwhelming amount of exercises and a seemingly infinite amount of ways to organize someone’s training. When a coach writes a program they have a lot of variables to manage. This makes for great content and promotes a lot of discussion as to what the best way to go about basically the same task is.

I’d be lying if I said I didn’t put time into programming. I’d also be lying if I said that I don’t think the way I program is the best way to do it (I know of). I’m not saying there isn’t a better way – that’s why I’m always reading, learning, and most importantly doing. However, if you have:

• a reason for what you’re writing
• and that reason is the accumulation of all that you know about this stuff
• and you apply it to the person at hand’s needs

Writing a program is not as easy as just choosing some good exercises and having balance. After all, if you give an unbalanced person a balanced program they are still going to be unbalanced when it’s over. Or what if you take the time to develop the best program you can and they don’t do it? Additionally, what if they do the whole program without performing the majority of the movements correctly?

While the variables that go into writing a program are all important considerations, having a program itself is a variable on a much more important level. In reality the program is not the most important variable at all.

Here are some other factors that will have a much larger effect on the success of your client and your own training:

1. Assessing:

Let it be known I am not a woman. However, I do train / have trained A LOT of women. While the following post is not written by a woman I assure you it will help.

This post is based on a simple fact:

Women do not have the same amount of neuromuscular coordination as men.

What on earth does that mean?

“A coordinated cooperation between the muscles which are activated for the performance of one movement, so that their contractions occur at an expedient force and at the right time of the movement. Moreover, the antagonists are suitably relaxed so that they do not offer unnecessary resistance to the movement.”

As an example, even at a high level women’s sports are slower, playing fields are sometimes smaller and records are generally slower and / or shorter. This is not because these ladies aren’t incredible athletes. It isn’t even because they are smaller in some respects. Women lack the muscular coordination of men and therefore have a lower max power output.

With this in mind here are 5 things every woman can do to dominate the weight room:

1. Do more work between 80 – 100% of what you’re capable of. While men may work in this range for as little as 4 – 6 working sets (per major exercise) in a given 4 week training cycle women can stand to stay there quite a bit longer. It’s an important consideration because many programs are written following a common repetition continuum. For example 90%-95% intensity is largely understood to be a 3RM. Because women have less neuromuscular coordination their repetition continuum is different. A woman might be able to take 90- 95% for as many as 5 repetitions. Generally a 5RM is 87.5%. However, if you were to add 12.5% to the bar from 95% most women probably couldn’t even do one repetition. This displays the discrepancy in using the usual repetition continuum for female lifters.

2. Consider using techniques to work at above 100% of your capability. Doing so will help improve you neuromuscular coordination and teach your body to strain. Two examples are heavy eccentric work (spotter needed!) and involving exercises from a dead stop that allow you to concentrate and recruit maximally to apply force. For example: bottoms up squats, and pin presses.

3. Do extra technical or technique work. Working on your technique with submaximal weight and various drills can help you improve muscular coordination by perfecting your technique and timing. Like they say: Practice makes perfect. Taking the time to drill technique will have incredible transfer into your working sets. When things get real we revert back to our training.

4. Don’t change exercises so often. There are many ways to keep the body from adapting and exercise selection is only one of them. Often times the first thing we think to do when programming is change the exercise. Knowing that it will take female trainees longer to master a coordinated movement it makes more sense to use the following options to keep them from adapting: Intelligently vary loading, change the stimulus by using different bars, include slight variations on the exercise that increase and decrease range of motion and still keep the integrity of the movement. For example:

• Squat –> Safety Bar Squat, GCB Squats, Front Squats, Bottoms Up Squats, Pause Squats
• Deadlift –> Defecit Deadlift, Deadlift from Blocks, Rack Pulls, Even Trap Bar DL is a decent option
• Bench –> Floor Press, Pin Press, Swiss Bar Bench Press, Bench Press to Boards

5. Prime the CNS. Here’s an excerpt from an article I recently wrote commenting on this: Depending on the focus for that day’s training session, I always include an explosive movement to prime the nervous system. The central nervous system is responsible for sending the message to skeletal muscle to produce a desired movement. Jumps, throws and sprints will help to improve your neuromuscular coordination. Improved neuromuscular coordination means that you will be better able to produce a coordinated firing of the muscles involved in the lift. Here is an example of appropriate programming:

Squatting → Warm up with Squat Jump→ Box Jump Variations

Bench/Overhead Pressing → Warm up with Medicine Ball Chest-Pass Variations

Deadlifting→ Warm up with Broad Jump, Sprint Variations, Box Jump Variations

Doing Chin-ups → Warm up with Overhead Medicine Ball Slam

Here is a link to an article I wrote for the TPS Newsletter for February:

3 Considerations For a Better Warm – Up

Also, Check out Jamie Smith and I teaching how to perform a proper push up, how to modify the push up and how to load the push – up. I think this video turned out great and it’s worth a look:

Thanks to everyone who has been following my site the past year!

I must admit I don’t really go out of my way to generate content. I try to wait until something strikes me and then let it rip. Even with the inconsistency in posting I still managed to reach thousands of people in 2011 and I am very grateful for that.

Below are the most popular articles I wrote from 2011. Let me know which one you liked best, and what you want to hear about in 2012!

The Strongest Version of Yourself

Never Settle

Fired Up!

Training Clients for Strength

Rules I Always Break and Why Series:

2.5

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Q and A: I Want a Six Pack

Thanks again!

When I was 19 years old all I wanted for Christmas was to do 10 training sessions with a personal trainer at my local gym. I was about 2 years into my fitness kick and I wanted nothing more than to learn how to get JACKED. As it turns out what I learned from this trainer was very little.

I was put on a program that I wouldn’t wish upon my worst enemy. This included ending a back and bi’s day with 65lb deadlifts performed with a fixed weight barbell. Do I need to go into any more detail? The point is this:

What if at the ripe old age of 19 I had been put in the hands of me today? How would things have been different? I’d like to think that I’d be squatting 700lbs and shooting lightning bolts out of my eyes by now.

Although I was given a crap program, and learned nothing useful to help me in the future, those 10 hours were still 10 hours I REALLY looked forward to at the time. That trainer had the opportunity to seriously impact my life today. In the end the only positive take away from that time was a reminder that each and every time I work with someone I can give them what he gave me, or I can leave them with an experience, and knowledge, to last a lifetime.

To be honest, I wasn’t going to change my physique drastically in 10 hours anyway. Therefore, the best things I could have gained  from him weren’t physical, but mental results.

Don’t underestimate the impact you have on your clients lives. 

During my career as a coach I have received e-mails and letters from clients thanking me not only for the physical results they achieved but more importantly the mental ones: exercise cues, mental fortitude, and an appreciation for training as a refuge from the stresses of daily life.

I can’t think of anything more gratifying than receiving a testimonial that includes rave reviews about how much was learned during our time together. Better yet, receiving an email explaining to me how someone has overcome challenging times in his or her life through the training we did in the gym.

That stuff gets me fired up. That stuff has me jumping out of bed at 4:30a ready to help people get stronger physically and mentally.  That stuff helps me realize how truly lucky I am to do what I do.

I chose this as a career path because it’s my passion. Training has done more for me than I can begin to tell you. I live for it, I’ll probably die doing it in some capacity.

Over the past few years I have been fortunate to meet others along the way who feel the same. To those who don’t: I think you’re in the wrong profession. Furthermore, I am grateful to be working in a facility alongside people I trust because I know they share my passion.

You might think that coaching / training is just a way to make money. Worse even, you might think it’s a job where you get paid to look good and “workout.” If so, your grossly undervaluing the importance of your position.

The time you spend with clients are their favorite hours of the whole week. Your clients deserve the best and you need to give that to them, day in, day out.

You might not realize how much training with you means to them. You should approach each client assuming that it means everything. You don’t know what they’re going through. You don’t know the true impact of the lessons you impart on them.

That should motivate you to deliver the best possible product, to stay educated and to give each client the effort and detail they deserve.

My clients motivate the hell out of me. I’m humbled at the opportunity to play such a large role in their lives.

I used to be a person who constantly placed the blame for where I was in life and in my training on anyone or anything but myself.

“How did I get here?”  ”How did this happen?” “Why haven’t I hit any of my goals?”

Somewhere deep inside me I knew where the blame belonged. On me. 

Instead of taking personal responsibility for the consequences of my actions I continually ran from them. This manifested itself into anger for others and various destructive behaviors to create a distraction from the truth. In the end I was always left angry and disappointed in myself. I didn’t own my decisions and this led to feelings of depression and apathy towards everything.

Needless to say this was not a great place to be. My life, my relationships, and my training suffered.

I lived life passively. I operated as if I didn’t have any choice. When we make an active choice we take responsibility for that decision. When we settle we are saying that this is “good enough.” The consequences are not our fault, or within our control.

Maybe you don’t like your body, but instead of choosing to do what’s necessary to make a change, you settle for something more comfortable.

Maybe you don’t like your job, but instead doing what’s necessary to enjoy your career, you settle for it. The thought of having no income is scary.

Maybe you’re unhappy in your relationship, but instead of taking action to fix it, you settle for what you have. The thought of being alone is overwhelming.

We can’t have everything we want. But shouldn’t we be true to ourselves and try? I think so.

Everyday we make choices, and no choice is small. Every choice we make helps to form the path of our lives. Whether it’s how we train, what we eat, what we do for work, or whom we choose to be with.

So what do you want? What do you want to look like or accomplish in the gym? What do you want to do for work? What do you want from your relationships?

Now ask yourself what you need.

What you need will often get you what you want. But what you need to do isn’t always something you want to do.

If you want to look better you need to eat clean and train correctly. You might not want to order something healthy. You might not want to lift heavy shit or run hill sprints.

If you want to enjoy your job you need to quit the one that makes you unhappy. You might not want to sacrifice the security of a paycheck. You might not want to start from the bottom somewhere else.

If you’re unhappy in your relationship you need to make changes. You might not want to communicate how you feel. You might not want to make sacrifices for the other person. You might not want to end the relationship and be alone.

Make choices. When you do you will take responsibility for their outcomes. That outcome may be positive or negative, but when you make choices you take ownership of your life. Don’t settle for anything that makes you unhappy. Change is in your hands and facilitated by each choice you make.

Choose to eat correctly. Choose to train correctly. Choose to be with someone. Choose to follow your dreams.

Do what you need to do even if it scares you. Don’t settle for less than what you want out of life and training. In doing so you will continue to become the strongest version of yourself.

Today I have a guest post featured on The Personal Trainer Development Center’s website. The PTDC is proving to be an incredible resource. I feel very fortunate to have content there. Thank you Jon Goodman and The PTDC for the opportunity!

The absolute best thing I ever did to learn about training others as well as myself was to learn it first hand.

How do you do this? You go to seminars. You can read every book. You can watch every dvd. Nothing compares to being taught in person; nothing.

That being said a lot of seminars these days are PACKED. However, my friend John Gaglione of Gaglione Strength is conducting a seminar in January that I promise won’t disappoint. The spots are limited to ONLY 15 people, and I know they will go fast.

Why learn from John? John is a coach who has spent time under the bar. You can’t replace the knowledge someone has from years of their own training. John works with REAL people! Imagine that? A lot of coaches out there have great internet presences but spend little time actually in the trenches. John works with athletes every day. Lastly, John does everything he can to better himself and his clients. I have seen John at almost every seminar I have attended recently. Additionally, he has taken the time to visit the best facilities and learn from the best.

Let him help you out, you won’t be disappointed. For more info, click HERE

Appearance goals are too arbitrary. Set performance goals and you will be happier and more successful.

I spent forever concerned with how I looked, and no matter how lean or big I got it was never enough. Concern yourself with output related goals that can be achieved through a system based on reason and hard work.

I believe in getting STRONG. But what is strong? How do different measures of strength relate to your appearance related goals?

Below I have come up with some answers. The system isn’t perfect, but I believe taking the advice below will lead the majority of people closer to their goals than what they’re doing now. Understand that the training alone to reach these goals will yield most of the results from an appearance standpoint, hence why the goals themselves may seem to be a reach.

Mrs. “I want to lose 20lbs”:

Goal #1: Do your first unassisted, strict pull – up. If you believe you have 20lbs to lose and you can’t do a single pull-up you are weak, overweight or both. In order to achieve this goal you will need to build full body strength, clean up your diet and lose body fat. Continue to focus on the pull-up not the mirror or the scale. When you hit that first pull-up go check the mirror and if you must…the scale.

Mr. “I Want Abs”:

Goal #1: 15-20 consecutive pull-ups. Just as I explained in our first case, certain things need to fall in line for this to be possible. Namely, you need to be strong and you can’t be fat.

Goal #2: Either Squat 2x your  body weight, Deadlift 3 x your body weight or both. This isn’t a perfect ratio. It is closer to perfect when you couple it with Goal #1. I haven’t seen many 200lb men who can squat 400, pull 600 and knock out 15-20 consecutive pull ups who don’t have abs. Furthermore, if you can do the following and you aren’t happy with your physique I’d be REALLY surprised.

Mr. I Want To Be JACKED:

Goal #1: Overhead press your body weight and do 3 pull/chin ups at 190% of your body weight. If your 165lbs that’s 3 pull ups with roughly 145lbs attached to you. To achieve this you need to be lean, and plenty strong. I understand the chin up goal is lofty, but the training to achieve it will add mass in all the right places.

In ending, understand that the training alone to reach these goals will yield most of the results from an appearance standpoint, hence why the goals themselves may seem to be a reach. Focus on progressive overload, train smart and embrace the process. Stop setting subjective goals. Start setting objective goals and you will find success in the gym and the mirror.