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Originally Posted by Bad@ssCamaro
Ok, expert advice would be much appreciated. I'm 6'3 and weigh about 215 and I am 49. I would estimate my body fat around 18%. I look very lean, it's just that my stomach holds all the fat LOL. I've been training for the last 2 1/2 months and have seen some pretty decent gains. The last couple of weeks, I have noticed when I am doing squats, after finishing sets that the weight gets heavy (after 225 lbs.) I feel this compression pain in my lower back. Not sure if its muscular or skeletal.
Wednesday was legs and shoulder day. 20 minute cardio before start and about 5 min. of stretching.Leg press first, no problems through the 4 sets. Leg squats next. Here lies the problem, First set isn't so bad - 185warmup. Next set - 225 and 10 reps - feel slight pressure in lower back after set. It dissipates after 1/2 a minute. Next set - 255 and finish 6 reps and then start changing weights for partner and wham, sharp shooting pains coming from lower back, I'd say near the kidney area, waist.
My question(s) - do you think I might be pushing too hard not allowing my body to adjust to the heavy weight? Is that portion of my lower back not capable of withstanding that type of pressure anymore? Would doing decompression (inversion) exercises be helpful in strengthening that area? Are there exercises to help withstand the heavy pressure of putting 275 lbs and up on my shoulders?.
I'm considering contacting somebody in sports medicine if this progresses any worse. For now I'm just going to eliminate the squatting for now. I've never had back issues before in case you're wondering. Any advice would be appreciated.  |
Not all people are meant to squat. However, in order to find out you must do some experimentation. The way you are currently squatting may not be the best for your build. You anthropomorphic build is different than someone who is 5'08 so you won't necessarily squat with the same form as them.
Read the building your raw squat series at this link:
http://www.lift-run-bang.com/p/most-...nd-series.html
He explains how to experiment to find the method (stance width and bar placement) that best suits you.
You might also try front squatting as your upper body will typically be in a more vertical position than a back squat. Front squats will kill your abs unless you are used to doing them.
Inversion will not strengthen your back. Deadlifts, back raises and hyperextensions will unless you have a structural anomaly that causes pain. Do you know the difference between muscular pain and structural pain?
If you can video yourself squatting and post it, we can critique it. I advise anyone who lifts seriously to videotape their compound lifts and review them. I do it between sets. Also, please realize form will break down as you near your max. Most people don't realize this and when they don't have PERFECT form on the lift, they freak out. If you don't push yourself, you won't surpass where you are now. If you can squat 275 now with semi good form and keep at it, when you get to 315, that 275 will look darn good. Go watch some powerlifting competition videos and tell me how good their max effort attempts look.
Also, if you wear a belt to squat, you do not tighten it as much as you can. You tighten it to the point where it is snug to tight but when you flex your abs, it makes it tighter. You may have to experiment with this a bit to figure it out. However, a lot of people like it tight as hell for the deadlift. For the squat, you flex your abs into to make it tight. That flexing helps maintain your arch.