Squat Technique 101

By Dave Tate

Mistake – Upper Back Tightness

I see this mistake all over YouTube. This has to be the No. 1 mistake I see with beginners, intermediates and non powerlifters. They’re wasting far too much effort getting the bar set up and then when they do get ready to squat their upperback are never set, nor tight. They may be squeezing the bar, but they are not making the back tight from all angles. The goal is to have the upperback as tight as humanly possible. This happens by having your feet grounded, lower back arched, hands tight on the bar, shoulder blades pulled together and head back.

Why? There are any reasons why you need to keep you upperback tight. These include:

1. It will keep the torso tighter allowing for more strength to be transferred to the bar.

2. It will help keep the bar path in a straight line. If the bar falls forward the distance increases and the load shifts forward making the lift harder.

3. If the bar does shift forward, more stress is placed on the spine.

4. It will also allow you to lift more weight and will become a more fluid movement.

Often, when a lifter falls forward either on the way up or down, they want to know what movements they can do to bring up this weak point. Many will also feel all they have to do is train harder…or use a better training cycle. Usually the last place they look is the first place they should – technique.