Official Squat Appreciation Thread

[fudgegruck]

i was at a metal show last night with some friends and the pit was getting pretty rowdy. people kept pushing into me and stuff. eventually it got a bit excessive so i turned around and bulldozed like 20 rows of people to the back of the venue and then headed back to my spot at the front. it was alllll squat power. you guys should try doing them if you're not already.

[KG_Styles]

*appreciates*

squats are very necessary for putting on muscle mass

dips are the sh!t too :yes:

[fudgegruck]

*appreciates*

squats are very necessary for putting on muscle mass

dips are the sh!t too :yes:

when do you do dips? chest day or tri day and before or after lifting weights?

[Big H]

My favorite mass builder. Nothing taxes the body more than Squatting and I love it. I can remember the six times I've thrown-up from squatting and boy did I love it haha. On a real note though, squatting has been shown to provoke huge surges of GH during the recover phase and R.E.M. Sleep. I haven't done all my homework on this, Squats force more growth than any other workout period. Its considered an overall mass-builder because of the secondary effects it has on the rest of your body during the recovery phase.

Back in high school we used to have competitions for the inner-city and one of the events that was sorta blacklisted was the 20-rep squat test. I trained for three weeks trying to condition my legs for it and it payed off man. The day of the competition we warmed up with 225 and then dudes was feelin ballsy so we said f*ck it, 315 for 20 reps non-stop. Most of the cats lost steam after 12 or 15, the chosen few that made it to 20 reps (including myself :king: ) either passed out or threw-up after we were done.

[Fendi_Mane]

Well, I can't appreciate the damn things. I hate leg day period. Squatting is like a chore rather than something I enjoy such as weighted dips or something. Also, I don't see the overall growth results with them. I'm working legs so that's what grows. I didn't start squatting then recovering faster, my chest didn't get bigger, and my abs didn't get more cut. It's an exercise just like anything else.

BUT THUMBS UP TO SQUATS AND ALL EXERCISES

[khalid a.k.a Genocide]

Squats, when preformed properly is THE best full body mass builder. Period. And it has been proven, over and over and over by countless hardcore liftes and amatures alike through repetitiveness.

Alot people don't like squatting because they don't know how to squat. Their lacking in technique. Guess what, it takes practice to get the form straighten out. So you have to Squat, Squat and Squat some more. unless you want to look like mister big upper body with chicken legs.

Anyway, I love squats. Leg days along with back days are my favorites. Since I get to Squat and deadlift, YEP STACK IT, ATTACK AND RACK IT!!!!!!!!:yes:

(shoulder day comes a close third behind those two, I also love BB overhead presses)

[KG_Styles]

when do you do dips? chest day or tri day and before or after lifting weights?
i usually do my dips on chest day after lifting weights...3 weighted sets till failure

[sippinandippin]

front squats are my piff i got up to doin 275 since i couldnt back squat for a while but now im back to back squatting again but im still gonna incorporate my front squats cuz those are the sh!t

[Julius Hodge]

I can say for a fact that I noticed the most gains in strength and mass, after I started doing squats. For example, I weighed about 190 before I started squats and could max at about 235 for my bench. That was in September. I now weigh 201 pounds, and I saw what my max was on Friday night, I was able to get 285 pounds. Like Big H said, the GH that is released makes you much stronger/bigger. Haven't you noticed the biggest cats at the gym always incorporate squats into their workout?


Question about squats for Big H or Khalid: I've noticed that when I do deep squats, though my knees never go past my toes and I keep my back straight, I tend to have a sore back that evening. I know I am doing something wrong. Is there a website that shows an illustration on how to do a correct squat? Maybe Im just too tall for the Smith machine.

[Big H]

I can say for a fact that I noticed the most gains in strength and mass, after I started doing squats. For example, I weighed about 190 before I started squats and could max at about 235 for my bench. That was in September. I now weigh 201 pounds, and I saw what my max was on Friday night, I was able to get 285 pounds. Like Big H said, the GH that is released makes you much stronger/bigger. Haven't you noticed the biggest cats at the gym always incorporate squats into their workout?


Question about squats for Big H or Khalid: I've noticed that when I do deep squats, though my knees never go past my toes and I keep my back straight, I tend to have a sore back that evening. I know I am doing something wrong. Is there a website that shows an illustration on how to do a correct squat? Maybe Im just too tall for the Smith machine.

Definitely step it up from the Smith Machine. I feel too restricted and forced in the Smith machine. You don't get the same range of motion and use of secondary muscles like you would on free weight with a rack. I'm a tall cat too, 6'4" and change, and I couldn't imagine squatting full-time in a Smith machine. Find a spotter or get a rack that has the safety bars in case you gotta bail and dump the weight.

As for the back, You want to keep it straight and locked. Your back should never bend inwards or outwards with when you Squat. Keep it locked and steady. It can also be a sign of weak abdominals/trunk. While your body should get accustomed to heavy Squatting soon, putting in extra work on your trunk and abs will help strengthen your core in conjunction with the Squats.

But, some video instruction never hurt:
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2003/barbellfullsquat.wvx
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2003/barbellsquattobench.wvx

[Seven One Three]

im a weak ass dude, so im stuck squatting 95lbs X 25 reps :(

if I put more weight than 95 on the bar...I tend to lose balance...almost fell, and put a hole in my wall last night :smh:

and i cant get more than 125 up in the air, over my head in the first place

[swordsman123]

im a weak ass dude, so im stuck squatting 95lbs X 25 reps :(

if I put more weight than 95 on the bar...I tend to lose balance...almost fell, and put a hole in my wall last night :smh:

and i cant get more than 125 up in the air, over my head in the first place

sounds like too many reps. How many sets are you doing?

[khalid a.k.a Genocide]

Question about squats for Big H or Khalid: I've noticed that when I do deep squats, though my knees never go past my toes and I keep my back straight, I tend to have a sore back that evening. I know I am doing something wrong. Is there a website that shows an illustration on how to do a correct squat? Maybe Im just too tall for the Smith machine.

Your knees can go a bit(just a bit) in front of your toes, this happens the most when squatting really deep, "ass to ground(calves actually)", and its not a problem. Just don't go too far forward(will kill your balance and knees).While in the donward motion, your back should be locked, with abs tightened (like Big H pointed out). On the way up try and push more with your heels(keeping them firm on the ground), keeping your back locked and abs tight. If you saying that you're keeping your back straight while going down and coming, it doesn't sound like you're doing anything wrong as far as squat form is concerned. Could be a product of another body part lagging behind. Since the Squat really taxes your whole body. its mainly a leg(quad, hams), and glutes builder but it also builds overall body mass. Or just maybe you need more time squatting,.

I wouldn't be too concerned about it, just keep squatting and play around with squat routines in order to get a good hang of squatting and strengthening your stabilizers as well. Like you have noticed, Squats bring great benefits to ones physique. Tortures your legs and body, but brings great rewards.:)

Usually on my leg day, I do 8 to 10 sets of squats. I do about 4 warm up sets and 4 to 6 working sets. And I progressively keep lowering the number of reps as I increase the weight on the bar.

[whoa4]

My best and favorite workout. I feel bad because I know my squats have fallin off, I haven't squatted right in months. I didn't have the highest squat, but pretty well for my weight. In my prime, I would do 3-4 sets, starting at a warmup of 135, hop to 225, hop to 315, then hop to 365 x 15 before I went into machine leg workouts with alot heavier weight. On squat days without machines, I just did 135, 185, 225, 275, 315, 365 by however many...pyramiding. All at 185-195. It was lovely for the time. I never maxed, but if I could do 365 x 15 easily, I had a straight max for my size

[Shaolin Temple]

I do squats and actually enjoy the challenge and my legs are fairly strong, but I am not at the level of Big H and khalid. HAHA!

But to add to this thread, another alternative it to use squats to help with explosiveness. Go down slow during the negative, and boost upward. I would say start at 50% of you 1-rep max and move up so you can do 8 to 12. I love doing this and I have seen some gains and actually this has helped reached some of my goals. I have explosiveness and it shows when I play sports.

[swordsman123]

Are there any advantages or disadvantages to doing power squats over regular squats? I'm under the impression that power squats work out the inner thigh better, but dont work out the calf muscles at all.

[Big H]

Are there any advantages or disadvantages to doing power squats over regular squats? I'm under the impression that power squats work out the inner thigh better, but dont work out the calf muscles at all.

Power Squats are for lifters concerned with strength over mass gains. Its easier to Squat heavier weight using the Power style, but that doesn't mean its equally good in gaining mass. Power Squats are reserved mainly for advances lifters who don't have bulking or mass building as their priority.

Power Squats place more emphasis on the hips, but notice that placing the bar lower on the Traps means more stress on your back. The legs being more spaced out also allows you to Squat more weight than usual since the range of motion is cut considerably when compared to Olympic Squats.

Athletes and those who actually use their legs outside of Squatting typically stay away from Power Squats because they don't offer much benefit to the Olympic lifter. Power Squatters are just that... Power lifters and nothing more.

[U Don't Know Me]

I noticed the difference in every athletic thing I did after I started squats... man... I need to get back to working out man, I prolly can't do anything near 300lbs anymore

[whoa4]

Power Squats are for lifters concerned with strength over mass gains. Its easier to Squat heavier weight using the Power style, but that doesn't mean its equally good in gaining mass. Power Squats are reserved mainly for advances lifters who don't have bulking or mass building as their priority.
Power Squats place more emphasis on the hips, but notice that placing the bar lower on the Traps means more stress on your back. The legs being more spaced out also allows you to Squat more weight than usual since the range of motion is cut considerably when compared to Olympic Squats.
Athletes and those who actually use their legs outside of Squatting typically stay away from Power Squats because they don't offer much benefit to the Olympic lifter. Power Squatters are just that... Power lifters and nothing more.
Yea, i did alot of these to get my numbers up. i just basically kept a wide stance when squatting. Not TOO wide, but not shoulder width. I would rep up to 275 on olymipc squats, then 315+ in powersquat style


I miss weightlifting. I haven't lifted in almost 3 weeks, will I see significant strength loss the next time I lift?

[fudgegruck]

I haven't lifted in almost 3 weeks, will I see significant strength loss the next time I lift?

it depends how long you've been lifting. if you've been lifting for a while, you probably didn't slip much.

even if you did lose strength though, people have what's called "muscle memory" and you'll definitely regain your strength more quickly than you originally developed it.