Squats!

Younggunner

Hey guys im a young body builder just turned 19, i bin going to the gym for about a year and have made some great gains in strength and size, but because i started usuing the gym by myself with no partner i missed out on learning alot of things, the biggest was my legs. After a year i realised i never touched my legs and they are so skinny im ashmed to wear shorts!! But i started squatting about 3 months ago and im now doin 308 lbs which i dont think is too bad, but i have never used any belts or wraps for my knees. Im sure i have proper form but i would like to know if these things are really neccesary for squatting. Also any adivce on how to build my legs would be really appreciated

Tall

What's your current leg routine?

Pikey

Assuming your bodybuilding, you’re hardly Powerlifting if you haven’t been squatting….Strictly speaking a weight lifting belt isn’t a must for squatting, a power belt is mainly to push your stomach against to stabilise the core. A lot of people use them but it’s easy to rely on them, I would say its personal preference, unless you want to go really heavy.
Wraps I would stay well away from, you might not shift as much weight without but you’ll get better leg development. Most people don’t have a clue how to use them or put them on anyway and just seem to think they need them for heavy legs.
As you’ve just started training legs make your core exercises simple compound movements such as leg press and back squat, front squats are excellent but take some getting used to, make sure you perform full movements and with a rep range of 8 – 15. Follow this up with leg extensions and leg curl same rep range and full movement, bith work well with a hard squeeze at contraction and also make sure you train calves twice a week, which respond well to supersets and giant sets…

Chrisj22

Pikey's advice is spot on 'younggunner'.

I only use wraps on squats when I feel a little 'crazy' & want to attempt a PB - then again, I've been training for about 5 years (couple of years on & off) with squats being included from the very start.

At your juncture, I really wouldn't worry about wraps until you feel your joints are taking a hammering & you want to lift a fair bit heavier.

As for belts - some people love them, some people hate them. That's down to personal preference. I personally don't use one, but then again, I'm not squatting monstrous weight like others.

Younggunner

yeh i hate using anytyp of accesories when im at the gym, i just wanna get on with it, but from the people i go gym with they say 140kg squat will be bad on my knees etc, but i think i've got good tecnique and i dont feel any pain in my joints.

my routine is just squats and leg curls, i havent started deadlifting because the bar at my gym is bent and it can make it awkward. Can anyone explain to me this spillover thing i keep hearing about squating?

Pikey

Hi mate you don't need wraps at any given weight, they are merely a way to stabalise the joint, when applied incorrectly they will either be useless or do more harm than good. Keep your reps controled, keep knees static horizontally, ie don't push in or out and you can squat heavy without them, even powerlifters will keep track of their best unassisted lift and then with wraps and then suit and wraps... I never use them anymore, my Quad development is more rounded and I get much less knee pain, I've squatted 200K for 20 reps without them.

Spillover to me is in relation to holding more fluid under the skin when dieting when you've had too many carbs, I've never heard mention in relation to squatting

Younggunner

im talkin about the squats in relation to the rest of the body developing by doing them

crazycal1

squats will build up the entire body as so many muscles are used-
same goes for deads.
theres an article on here that i posted up about squatting for big arms somewhere...
want an inch on your arms then expect to add around 10lbs to your bodyweight...

einsteins mind was the key to all things...to understand more than to know.

www.extremenutrition.co.uk

Pikey

Most muscles are used to some extent when squatting, the thing I notice when I do squat now is how unstable my trunk feels as I'm not used to having heavy weights on my back. My old powerlifting coach tore his pec squatting and its also a common cause of tendonitis in the arms but I wouldn't worry about either until your shifting serious poundages.

If you're looking for all over body exercise clean and push press is an excellent one, if much more technical than squatting.

FAT BOY

i think most problems with squating occur with poor form and low reps .
get your tecniuqe right even if it means just using a empty bar to begin with build up slow and keep your reps up