squat descent: fast, slow or what?

If you can get "smooth down and DIG HARD" to work wide stance it'll be fantastic; I love squatting that way. You might just have the hip flexibility to make it work for you.

LOL!

Seriously though, when are you going to get to Adders for a session or two? I'm sure Alan could give you a few points which would help squat and dead pronto... you've had the least coaching out of everyone at Sugden really, so it would surely benefit?

Aye it would I reckon, given that you have all f**ked off there!

if you start off too fast i find the knees come forward ,so it make sure i stick my ass out to get a decent line and then steady down,not slow but not divebomb and a nice dip at the bottom, just to get under parallel and mabie a bit of bounce back up.

How do you guys think of all this s**t with the bar on your back? My technique goes something along the lines of "f**k this is heavy, got to get it back up."

Practice!

I would say im quite a slow descender. Probably at times too slow. I think for me 'controlled' is best, and when im squatting at or near my best I have a definate rhythm.

I know you're right. I was trying to remember so many things when I was benching with my "new" technique on Saturday that I seriously forgot to breathe - I'm not kidding!

This is why you need training partners who know what cues you need and can shout them at you at appropriate times. On the technical lifts it's very hard to keep everything in your head until the lifts are automatic (I hope this will happen one day!).

On squats I can usually remember to sit back, control the descent and push my knees out, but I need reminding to squeeze my upper back and dig at the bottom.

Pretty much works for me too mate. Hell of a lot of thinking going on here boys.Lifters lift. Coaches think. Find someone you trust and listen without question.

Just aswell Alexeyev didn't listen to that Andy!

I aint no Alexeyev though, he's got a bigger belly.

I'm very slow and have no dig to speak of. I also have a s**t squat.

Wonder if they'r linked?

Yeah, but some of the biggest squatters seem to descend under a controlled fashion with no dip.. (Ie, look at the guys that go wide)..

Wade Hooper
Ed Coan
Karowski
etc

Narrow squatters love to dive bomb, but remember, it's usually a tactic developed for squat suits etc.

Why? & how do you know he didnt? The guy was technically perfect. He didnt get that way by training alone

Andy, in terms of general training know how, you are a world above me.

That is why I am so glad to beat you on a point about OL!

http://www.elitefts.com/documents/science_of_winning.htm