Ass to the Grass?

[Darkhorse]

How to Oly Squat By MadCow1

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Ok, its becoming blatantly obvious that precious few of you know how to "olympic" style squat.

There are basically two kinds of back-squat. What we like to refer to as the power-squat, or the powerlifter style squat, or the low bar squat. This is what COMPETITIVE powerlifters and strength athletes should be concerned with. I'll save that for another thread.

Its FAR more important that most of you learn to Olympic style squat first. Most every weight-trainer should know how to do this, whether you're a competitive olympic weightlifter, powerlifter, strongman, highland games athlete, or even if you're just a recreational, non-competitive bodybuilder like most people in this forum...

There is no faster way to get big and strong ALL over your entire body, and the reason that many of you guys do tons of gear and are still big pussies is because you can't Oly squat for shit.

I know most of you are really only concerned with your arms, and might care a little bit about your legs at the end of the day. But your body has to be able to support 20" arms, and it can't support those with a weak ass back and spindly stick-legs.

ALSO, I know that most of you THINK you know how to squat. Well, I'll tell you all that most of you don't.

If you post that you can squat 50 pounds more than you can deadlift, and you're neither a "little person" nor a superheavyweight powerlifter, than you are squatting no where even CLOSE to parallel, much less ass-to-grass like you need to be.

Here is how you properly "oly" squat:
1.) Take a medium-narrow stance. This varies a lot between athletes. Its not really important which stance you prefer, so long as you pick the one that lets you get the DEEPEST. Do NOT pick the one you are strongest at, pick the one that gives you the BIGGEST range of motion. For some athletes, this might even be a slightly wide stance.

2.) Wear the bar as high as possible. Do not wear it low on your back. It should be near your neck or the top of your traps.

3.) Do them raw. This means NO equipment. No tight ass knee wraps, and unless you're a competitive athlete, NO belt. If you're doing them right, knee wraps will just prevent you from getting as deep as possible. Instead, wear neoprene knee sleeves or ace-bandage wraps that can be purchased for very little money at any local pharmacy. Remember, oly squats are FAR better for your knees than quarter squats done with knee wraps on, so stop crying like a 10 year old girl and LEARN how to do it. It might take a week or two.

4.) Footwear is very important. THAT DOES NOT NECESSARILY MEAN EXPENSIVE. Now, I won't lie to you, the BEST footwear is custom made olympic lifting shoes. These can be purchased from a variety of sources, which I may get into later. HOWEVER, if you're too cheap, broke, or lazy to purchase another pair of shoes (though its pretty much a one-time purchase) DO WHAT THE OLDSCHOOL LIFTERS DID! Squat barefoot. No, you won't be able to get QUITE as deep without oly shoes on. But you WILL get pretty DAMN close. Everyone I've ever met or trained with could get ass-to-grass barefoot, and one of my training partners could actually touch the floor with his ass while oly squatting barefoot.

5.) Stop being a fucking pussy about it. I am so sick and damn tired of the excuses for not oly squatting. JS has personally coached literally hundreds of athletes, and has trained with or watched thousands of others. ALL were capable of learning to Oly squat with a few or so weeks practice. My old training partner has pronounced scoliosis and still went on to oly squat 2x bodyweight. If you are hurting your knees, 99.9% of the time its not your genetics, YOU'RE JUST DOING THEM WRONG.

As for me, I now go ass to the grass. I cut my squat weight almost in half to do it. But, my legs are twice as sore even with half the weight. I suppose it'll take time, but it's worth it IMO. :cool:

[joeyboy777]

I go Parellel or a inch or 2 below. I use boxes, so, thats where I stop. Going down too far can put added stress on the knees, cause lumbar strain and they cause Hip joint problems.

Check out some of the pics of low ass too the floor squats. Olympic squatters
http://users.pandora.be/tom.goegebuer/Gallery_gen.htm

I doubt many people here can go that low.

I squat barefoot cause Im at my house, many squatters and WSB recomend chucks for foot gear. Ill be picking up a pair soon, they are being discontinued.

[BG5150]

I try to do ATF (Ass to Feet or Ass to Floor) as close as possible. I feel if I'm gonna do a squat,I'm gonna do it right, with the fullest ROM I can. I guess my form (with medium weight, at least) is closest to the second picture in that link above.

And what the hell kind of squat was that chick doing with her arms extended behind her head? That would rip my shoulders to shreds!

[hrdgain81]

I'm a big pussy and use a smith machine to squat. But I say fuck it, with the lower back problems i've had i'd rather be safe and not have to take a month off cause i fucked up my back again.

[Darkhorse]

Originally Posted by joeyboy777

I go Parellel or a inch or 2 below. I use boxes, so, thats where I stop. Going down too far can put added stress on the knees, cause lumbar strain and they cause Hip joint problems.

Check out some of the pics of low ass too the floor squats. Olympic squatters
http://users.pandora.be/tom.goegebuer/Gallery_gen.htm

I doubt many people here can go that low.

I squat barefoot cause Im at my house, many squatters and WSB recomend chucks for foot gear. Ill be picking up a pair soon, they are being discontinued.

That's why you drop the weight to get your form down. Stopping halfway down actually puts more stress on your knees than riding the squat all the way down. I had a torn meniscus when I was doing alot of kung-fu and kickboxing and had major surgery to put the cartilage back. I never had a problem with squats since. And trust me, my knee was locked 90 degrees and I never want that to happen again. Honestly, going almost parallel I can squat 365 lbs with knee wraps, but I can only do 245-265 (yesterday) ass down.

[joeyboy777]

Originally Posted by 0311

That's why you drop the weight to get your form down. Stopping halfway down actually puts more stress on your knees than riding the squat all the way down. I had a torn meniscus when I was doing alot of kung-fu and kickboxing and had major surgery to put the cartilage back. I never had a problem with squats since. And trust me, my knee was locked 90 degrees and I never want that to happen again. Honestly, going almost parallel I can squat 365 lbs with knee wraps, but I can only do 245-265 (yesterday) ass down.

Ive never had a knee issue. My brother, on the other hand, had knee surgery a few years ago from playing football. He never really did squats or geg work other than running, light lunges and calf raises. I started him on box squats, and he has been increasing in the weight, and his knee isnt hurting. I like the WSB training, below is one instance of box squats, Squatting from Head to Toe ... I have also watched some of the WSB videos, and the weights are crazy heavy.

When I squat regular, not on the box, I sit back further, and go a little below parallel, My stance does not alow me to go much lower. I myself go as far as I can, but I am not able to get that low.

[Dr X]

I've always believed in ass to grass and that's the way I've always done it. My friends told me I would just end up with a big ass. The only side effect was big quads. I don't seem to move as low anymore because I just don't bend quite as well unless I lighten up but your right, it works great.

[Darkhorse]

Originally Posted by Dr X

I've always believed in ass to grass and that's the way I've always done it. My friends told me I would just end up with a big ass. The only side effect was big quads. I don't seem to move as low anymore because I just don't bend quite as well unless I lighten up but your right, it works great.

Ha, then they aren't very informed. The body will grow all within proportion.

[Boxing Raven]

I always go ATG, unless I'm recovering from an injury of some sort, then I'll use a machine of some sort or get a spotter to help me through. (I tend to pull hamstrings and calf muscles a lot from all the running I did when I competed in boxing).

Nice post 0311, couldn't agree more!

Raven

[hrdgain81]

oh oh, i do go ass to the ground when i do my sissy squats on carb depleation workouts, does that count????