General Discussion Triathlon Talk » Dealing with neck pain/injury and squats -- help? Rss Feed  
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2013-05-15 10:26 AM

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2013-05-15 10:53 AM
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Edited by Teejaay 2013-05-15 10:54 AM
2013-05-15 11:06 AM
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2013-05-15 1:12 PM
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Subject: RE: Dealing with neck pain/injury and squats -- help?

Every one of those squat pictures is incorrect, btw.    Knee too far forward, upper body angle incorrect, and so on and so forth.  God I dislike Rippetoe.  In both two and three the upper body should be leaning further forward with the hips further back to keep the shins nearly upright (which may mean the stance will have to widen).  The biomechanics in all of those are terrible- the knee is under tremendous shear force.

 

Don't ever use a foam roll or towel!  It lessens your control over the bar and can result in weight shifts and injury.  

 

When you say "lowering the bar below your neck to no avail", what exactly have you tried?



2013-05-15 1:47 PM
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2013-05-18 4:31 PM
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23

Subject: RE: Dealing with neck pain/injury and squats -- help?
Originally posted by Teejaay

was using the the graphic to give her an idea about the bar placement.  Wasn't going for precise mechanics on the whole squat.   Just a visual for options where to place the bar.    

I was also just giving her suggestions for comfort as I do not know the extent of her injury.  I have never used a foam bar or towel because I like to feel the bar, but good to know why it's not a good idea..




Oh, I wasn't trying to ding you or anything. I just get frustrated with Rippetoe, particularly that graphic. For bar placement, it's a good descriptor, but it KILLS me that he basically illustrated bad squats. :)

SL- there ARE a lot of folks who swear by Rippetoe. Most of them tend to be pretty mediocre lifters, though. Not snobbery speaking, just observation. His programming is terrible, his biomechanics knowledge is sorely lacking, and as a coach he's produced a long line of strength athletes who've made tremendous gains... as soon as they stop working with him and find a real coach. Starting strength is a great intro book, but I'd REALLY recommend not taking what he says as gospel. I hate to say it, but he's a relic.

For low bar, here's one picture showing one method:

http://nicktumminello.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/cf-toronto-bac...

Here's another:


http://stronglifts.com/wp-content/uploads/squat-bar-position.jpg




Edited by AlexViada 2013-05-18 4:33 PM
2013-05-18 4:33 PM
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Subject: RE: Dealing with neck pain/injury and squats -- help?
See how far back his shoulders are?

Really, my position is high bar, but I do it like this: Stand under the bar as if you were about to unrack for squats. Now, take your hands and slide them out (from next to your shoulders) out to the plates and try to touch the top of the plates (arms are basically wrapped around the bar.). See the groove the bar's now in across your shoulders and neck? For most folks, this is the ideal spot.

You can SORTA see my own bar height here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sip5SEMQd4A

Another point on this- play with your arm width a bit. This can sometimes make more of a difference than the neck position. The closer together your hands are, the more your traps "bunch" up, and the more padding the bar can get.

Edited by AlexViada 2013-05-18 4:34 PM
2013-09-28 8:03 AM
in reply to: SL224


9

Subject: RE: Dealing with neck pain/injury and squats -- help?
Practising the front squat form would be the best, it takes a while to get used to but within a month or two of doing it consistently you should be able to load the front squat to 80-90% of your back squat. It would probably be easier if you found an olympic weightlifting coach to specifically teach you the correct form for front squats too.

If you cant do that and putting the bar lower down your back doesnt help then see if your gym has a safety bar squat this is a bar that has handles and an (optional but maybe useful in your case) pad and it can be used in the front squat position or back squat position and will make both lifts more comfortable.

Another option is to do weighted pistol squats or goblet squats, they're not as good for building strength but if you really have problems with your neck (and cervical herniations are harder to do and more serious when they do happen than lumbar herniations then they might be an option.

Last but not least doing deadlifts with a snatch grip or with a regular grip but from a deficit (standing on a box so the bar is lower to your feet) requires getting your hips lower and thus your quads more into the lift if you cannot squat at all.

Single leg pressing is ok too


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