Pain from Squatting

[NuKoN]

I just started lifting recently, so I'm not too experienced with it. After I do a set of squats, when I put the bar on the rack I get a pain in my back. For a little while after (for example, after I finished my squats and I went to cleans, and it hurt) it was sore. So my question is this, is my form wrong on the squats or is this for the most part normal?

[L i LaXbOy11]

if you form is wrong then it will kill.

for the first few days you will be sore. But dont give up, after a few days you wont get sore ever again.

[NuKoN]

Yeah, I'm 14 going into 9th grade, and I've never really lifted weights before. I squatted 210, and when I put it on the bar after a set of 5 my back killed for about a second or two, then it was just an achey ness.

[lVlike]

That is normal. My advice is to wear one of the wieghtlifters belts, it will provide you with back support.

[NuKoN]

That is normal. My advice is to wear one of the wieghtlifters belts, it will provide you with back support.


There's like 4 or 5 of them hanging on the wall.. I dont know why I didnt think to use it. Thanks.

Another question about the squat while I'm here, You know the bump (bone) on the back of your neck? Should the bar be above it (more towards my head) or below it (farther away from my head)?

EDIT: Just an opinion question, for someone in my situation, is 210 a good number to be doing? It requires a lot of effort on my part and I can only get 5 or 6 (I max out at 210, I do lower before that with 10 reps, 8 reps, 5 ). I weigh 152 ish and am not obese or chunky but not wiry.

[laxman 9990]

i dont think you are supposed to clean and squat on the same day,but make sure to wear a belt or keep your back straight

[NuKoN]

i dont think you are supposed to clean and squat on the same day,but make sure to wear a belt or keep your back straight

Whys that? I work out at my highschool with all the other football players.. it alternates, bench / military one day, squat / clean the next.. (like upper/lower i guess) whats bad about that?

[laxman 9990]

i dont know, i think it has to do with when you squat you use all legs and then when you clean you use your arms and back to lift to get it up.our trainer tells us not to( really dont know why)

[lVlike]

i dont think you are supposed to clean and squat on the same day,but make sure to wear a belt or keep your back straight
I clean and squat on the same days for football and it's fine.


Another question about the squat while I'm here, You know the bump (bone) on the back of your neck? Should the bar be above it (more towards my head) or below it (farther away from my head)?

EDIT: Just an opinion question, for someone in my situation, is 210 a good number to be doing? It requires a lot of effort on my part and I can only get 5 or 6 (I max out at 210, I do lower before that with 10 reps, 8 reps, 5 ). I weigh 152 ish and am not obese or chunky but not wiry.
I'm pretty sure it should be farther down rather than closer to your head. I think 210 is a good number to be doing, but I'm not 100% sure.

[ByrdDpole]

...............

[Hackstall]

You are 14, never lifted weights before, and squatted 210? Clearly you have no idea what you are doing. Are you even going close to having your legs parallel to the floor? Where on your back are you hurting?

I am 6' 1" 200lbs, have been lifting for over 2 years and I squat about 155. I see people doing it wrong ALL the time. I would hurt my back too if I tried to lift that much.

[ByrdDpole]

.....................

[Hackstall]

3 sets of 3? I usually do 5 sets of 10.

Well whatever. You can't seem to tell people that it is not the amount of weight but the quality of the exercise. Doing 9 reps of squats isn't going to help you at all. If you don't want to get stronger than keep doing it all wrong. It doesn't bother me one bit.

[ByrdDpole]

................

[viking goalie]

i dont think you are supposed to clean and squat on the same day,but make sure to wear a belt or keep your back straight
there's a lift called a clean squat press. its pretty self explainitory, you clean, then squat it, then military press it. and yes, you should always wear a belt when cleaning or squating.

[franks2089]

You don't need a belt. If your core is strong enough and you have good form there is no need. Plenty of kids squat 400+ without the need of a belt or knee wraps.

210 is great for someone your age if your actually going to parallel. Many beginniners when they squat hardly move and jump up and brag that they do 200 pound squats their very first day training. Move a bench behind you and sit on the bench each rep to make sure your going all the way down.

[Diesel4958]

3 sets of 3? I usually do 5 sets of 10.

Well whatever. You can't seem to tell people that it is not the amount of weight but the quality of the exercise. Doing 9 reps of squats isn't going to help you at all. If you don't want to get stronger than keep doing it all wrong. It doesn't bother me one bit.

Sorry but this was really just an ignorant post. Reps have been and still are debated commonly among lifters some say go heavy low reps for mass/strength and less weight higher reps to "shape the the muscle". Now this is my opinion I say experiment to see what works best for you because everyone reacts differntly to differnt kinds of stimuli. My reccomendation for strength and what works best for me is something like a 5 x 5 this means 5 reps but heavy really heavy. 5 sets of 10 I call that over training Hackstall but I do agree with you form is most important but one is not going to get bigger/stronger if they aren't lifting any weight. Lets say you do your 5 x 10 with 200 lbs with a amazing form and you don't struggle at all, and I do a 3 x 5 or 5 x 5 with 275 lbs and adding 5 lbs. each set with perfect form whos going to get stronger? Progressive overload along with form is most important in my opinion. Add weight each set even if you do not hit the desired number, then next week go for 1 rep more so each week theoretically you would gain. But Hackstall it is the amount of weight, form, sets, reps, and rest time that have to do with it not just simply form. The reason you can not squat nearly as much as he is because you do not weigh much, and are tall, most taller people have trouble with the three main lifts.

To origional poster I would only use a belt if you are doing 5 or fewer reps on your last set (meaning hardest) because this takes away a lot from the benefits of the squat. I do not recomend you max I know an ego killer when everyone else is, but its not good training wise. Also 210 is a good number but its even better when you are going higher. I recommend your first set be a warm up second be somethingyu can get with not much problem, third stack on an extra 10 or 20 and go for it (this set would be with belt if needed). If you are doing 5 sets lengthen the process acoordingly anyways in short each week you should try to at least go up by 5 lbs on your last set. The squat is a great exercise, when I was doing them more regularly I gained fairly quickly. Remember look up solid stance, knees behind toes at all times, sit back, go to parallel (or a little lower), squeeze your hams glutes and stand erect, lastly don't pass out. Good luck...

[PWlaxkyle5]

im 14 and squat 200. i dont think hes exagerating

[franks2089]

im 14 and squat 200. i dont think hes exagerating
But you probably workout regularly. When you are a beginner 9 times out of 10 you arent gonna squat 210 you first couple of weeks unless you are doing it with bad form.

Right now for me I can do 225 full squats(where *** touches calfs). When I do squats just to parallel I can do much more.

[NuKoN]

I had a coach watch me do it, my form was fine. My legs went paralell to the ground. It took all my energy and strength to do the reps, and I made sure I did them right.
And I have been lifting for about a week, week and a half, its not as though it was my first time squatting, sorry if I was misleading in my wordings. I dont start at 210, it was my max to finish out my sets. I started on 145 or something like that with 10 reps, then add some weight and do 8 reps, then add weight and do five, or something similar to that. I didnt just throw 210 pounds on a bar and see if I could squat it.
From now on, I will be wearing the belt for when I do the heavier squats. The pain is in my spine, although it seems fine now. Thanks for all the input, positive and less positive.

Evan

[franks2089]

I had a coach watch me do it, my form was fine. My legs went paralell to the ground. It took all my energy and strength to do the reps, and I made sure I did them right.
And I have been lifting for about a week, week and a half, its not as though it was my first time squatting, sorry if I was misleading in my wordings. I dont start at 210, it was my max to finish out my sets. I started on 145 or something like that with 10 reps, then add some weight and do 8 reps, then add weight and do five, or something similar to that. I didnt just throw 210 pounds on a bar and see if I could squat it.
From now on, I will be wearing the belt for when I do the heavier squats. The pain is in my spine, although it seems fine now. Thanks for all the input, positive and less positive.

Evan
Unless you have naturally strong legs its doubtful that you could do this after a week and half. I could easily see it however if you naturally had a good build to squat.

[NuKoN]

Unless you have naturally strong legs its doubtful that you could do this after a week and half. I could easily see it however if you naturally had a good build to squat.


I am a running back for football, and fast. I have always had strong legs, if that answers your question (..did you ask a question? Oh well). I maybe can get a vid of me doing this (I dont know how to get it off my cell phone to the comp.. I can send it in a vid message but I dont know how to share) if people really doubt it.. I can also take a picture of my weightroom card that shows how many times I've been there.
This thread is getting sort of off topic, yes 210 is heavy for me but I liked the feeling like I have to work. The rising sophmore I was lifting with (I'm a rising frosh) couldnt do as many reps as me and he isn't weak compared with the rest of his class, so I guess it is heavy.

[NuKoN]

Here's some pictures to give you an idea of my build. This is from the beginning of this season when I played some mid (I'm normally a pole)
http://img119.imageshack.us/img119/2464/ivmn7.th.jpg (http://img119.imageshack.us/my.php?image=ivmn7.jpg)

Pic from fall before I had ever lifted

http://img428.imageshack.us/img428/4107/282bi7.th.png (http://img428.imageshack.us/my.php?image=282bi7.png)

I'm about 5'8, 5'9, and weigh in the area of 150

[mattlax743]

didnt read all the replys but make sure you keep your back as straight as possible when squating. and wear a weight belt to save your back as well. also i like to have my feet pointed outward at an angle to help my form when squating

[PBlax]

Use lower weight.

Make sure you always make your "butt bigger" Like over enfisize sticking it out when you go down so you get lower

[shiftylax]

This may sound too simplistic, but i would stretch first, then switch to doing cleans first; squats second. Make sure your bakc is straight for the squats and your butt is out. It may be a form problem, but no one can be sure from your vague descriptions. Amke sure the weight and reps coirrespond, too. In fact, get someone in the gym that knows what they're doign to critique both your form and your stretching before you work out. Most trainers are pretty nice abotu little stuff like that - I know I do it everyday with no hassle.

[uvalax572]

too much weight maybe

[LaXDaVe]

If your back is curved at all when squatting that is why your spine hurts. if your with your coach dont ask us, ask your coach, or even a trainer, they will definately know the correct form so you dont mess up your back before you even get to play a season of football or lacrosse in highschool.

[gonzo]

correct form in squats

feet shoulder width apart bar resting on traps(right above shoulder blades) pick a spot on the ceiling and keep looking at that spot go down to where your hamstrings are paralell to the ground and come up still looking at the same spot on the ceiling

iv been lifting for years my squat max is 365 and im a sophmore

power cleans isnt an exorsice for lacrosse cause it works on explosion its mainly focases on football if ur working out for lacrosse do walking lunges with heave weight instead of cleans

and always lift every OTHER day