Squat Form

[Jmalins23]

i did search for this but i didnt find all the info i needed on the proper squat form. My highschool coach gave me and some other kids a workout plan to do and one of the excerisizes is squats, so we have been doing them using the smith machine (which i read is bad) so i was wondering like what the proper form is for squats, i know that your legs should be a little bit farther apart then shoulder width and that your knees should never go over your toes but i dont know like what your back and your butt should be like,

and if you also could have pictures or something that would be good too cause i probably wouldnt understand from just words

[Trilax03]

basically back straight...u can lean slightly forward but not backward, and butt down...get it down as far as u can go until u feel it in ur legs then go back up...here's a picture of cartoon squat i guess u could say...
http://img500.imageshack.us/img500/1425/thighsheelselevatedfreehandsqu.th.gif (http://img500.imageshack.us/my.php?image=thighsheelselevatedfreehandsqu.gif)

[HRLAXER]

is the smith machine the only apparatus you have for squats? becuase free weights are much better than machines.

form:
*very important to keep your back straight DO NOT BEND FORWARD! if you lean too much forward you are lifting with your back and it will hurt you.
*keep feet paralell to each other, no pigeon toes or feet at angles.
*feet little more than shoulder length apart.
* go down till your thighs are paralell with the floor. if you dont go down all the way you will only be working you thighs and not your hamstrings.
*put the bar on your "upper back" if you scrunch your shoulders back there should be a muscle protruding and that is where you put the bar. its right under that bump that it your neck bone/spinal cord.
*always have a spotter and use light weight until you have good form down

[Jmalins23]

well i cant get my back straight without going up on my toes which is wrong... so the smith machine i can lean against helps me with that.... and i could use free weight but i want to learn the form first

[Cburylax]

In my experience, athletes that can't perform a good bodyweight squat or a squat with only the bar need to address their flexibility before adding significant weight. Squatting, or performaning any exercise with a limited range of motion will only exaggerate the postural deviations and lead to imbalance and injuries. A good squat should include the following:

1. Feet shoulder width or slighly larger
2. Knees should stay behind the toes but track over the 2nd and 3rd toes (the toes can point outward and probably will since most people have tight external rotators - obturators, glemellus, and piriformis)
3. The low back should maintain a lordodic curve (if it rounds out there are some very tight muscles that need to be addressed
4. The bar should rest on your traps, not your neck
5. There should be simulataneous triple flexion on the way down and simultaneous triple extension on the way up
6. No bouncing
7. Thighs should be parallel or close to it

Its late, did I leave anything out?

[Diesel4958]

A great way to practice, is try sitting down onto a bench with perfect form in front of a mirror at your gym. I have always been praised for perfect form on squats and deadlifts. Always keep back straight, cbury you never cease to amaze me.

[upstatelax]

the lower down you go the more productive this workout is for your legs

[xSURFERx]

scince ur on the smith machine, rest the bar on ur traps(NOT UR NECK) ttake a step out, push ur butt back, and go down to a 90 degree angle

[Diesel4958]

Or learn the form and forget smith machine squats all together, that is my advice, practice makes perfect.

[Jmalins23]

okay thanks guys

[TitanLax]

[QUOTE=Cburylax] A good squat should include the following:


3. The low back should maintain a lordodic curve (if it rounds out there are some very tight muscles that need to be addressed
5. There should be simulataneous triple flexion on the way down and simultaneous triple extension on the way up
6. No bouncing
QUOTE]
explain please

[LaxBoy92]

my dad's a powerlifter, and the most he can squat is 500 pounds, but i warn you dont squat too much because my dad recently got a DOUBLE hernia from squatting 405. yeah, thats right. a hernia on both sides. he just got surgery.

[Cburylax]

A good squat should include the following:


3. The low back should maintain a lordodic curve (if it rounds out there are some very tight muscles that need to be addressed
5. There should be simulataneous triple flexion on the way down and simultaneous triple extension on the way up
6. No bouncing

explain please

The lordodic curve I'm referring to is the normal curve of the lower back. If you're lower back becomes flat or rounds out, the stability of the spine is decreased and chances of slipping or herniating a disc is high.

Triple flexion is the flexion of the ankle, knee, and hip. Triple extension is the extension of these joints.

Performing a squat should be a controlled motion without any bouncing at the bottom or top of the movement.

[Jmalins23]

yeah im not gonna do too much... and i just switched from the smith machine to freeweight!

[marflax33]

basically back straight...u can lean slightly forward but not backward, and butt down...get it down as far as u can go until u feel it in ur legs then go back up...here's a picture of cartoon squat i guess u could say...
http://img500.imageshack.us/img500/1425/thighsheelselevatedfreehandsqu.th.gif (http://img500.imageshack.us/my.php?image=thighsheelselevatedfreehandsqu.gif)
Ahh expertise speaking lol. Follow that little diagram there. Thatll do it.