Jaytron

Random question for you guys, what type of squatting do you prefer?

ATG, olympic squats or a wider but less ROM powerlifting squat?

Oly -More ROM, more upright, more emphasis on quads/trunk
Power- Can usually put way more weight up, due to less ROM. More forward lean and more emphasis on the posterior chain.

Do you just switch it up each cycle? Do you have a favorite?

carleton

I don't like ATG as much as femur parallel.

On a related note. I'm looking to build a home weight room with a proper power rack. Craigslist is hit-or-miss week-by-week when it comes to selection. But when the good stuff shows up, it's not cheap.

Jaytron

Damn, I wish I had a house to do that with. Would be pretty sweeeeet.

Minion1

I was doing A to G based off starting strength's program, but was (probably) tweaking my back a little to frequently and it was upsetting progression, right now I'm trying out Chris Duffins method of bracing for squats, which only goes to horizontal, but less forward lean - been really happy with it so far, and DLs have improved as well using the same method - basically belly breathing and bracing with the ribcage down, rather than chest up. Duffin's a powerlifter though, so can't really comment on how that relates to only lifts. Someone who knows more about the different types of lifts will probably point out they're both Powerlifting styles and they're 2 stripes on the same zebra, but I'm probably not good enough of a lifter to benefit from A to g right now.

gtrob

Do you guys take into consideration the movements of the pedal stroke when thinking about these things? A lot of info out there is about 'huge gains bro' and I realize you don't want to replicate the pedal stroke exactly, however something like ATG is seeing some pretty steep hip and knee angles you would never see on the bike (not to mention its bilateral).

Im not sure either way to be honest, just asking. I want to be stronger, but my first priority is a stronger/faster pedal stroke.

Jaytron

You should be bracing your core like that with any style of squats/DL tbh. Chris Duffin does have some great videos though. AtG oly squats should really tweak your back less as they are typically more upright than the powerlifting squat. I'm leaning towards oly style myself because oly lifts are super fun


No, not really. At high rpm it's basically all quad anyways. Leg press is great at isolating the quads, but is fairly boring to me. In that sense, an more quad dominant, oly style squat is maybe better. I'd say my "primary lifts" when training/coached were leg press and squat.

You won't gain any faster pedal stroke at the gym. High rpm work won't build strength.

Go to the gym for strength. Get on the bike for speed work.

gtrob

Your right, and I didnt mean faster pedal as in cadence, but rather a faster sprint/more power on the bike.

At 6'4 with long legs Ive never 'loved' squats but find I get a different workout than just leg press (single or double) so like to keep them in the rotation. I find with a slightly less than parallel and slightly wider stance than some, I get a good balance of inner quad and glute activation. However a 'deeper' lift in the leg press I feel in my glutes the next day for sure.

Jaytron

I'm not as tall, but I have SUPER long femurs. I don't love squatting either, TBH. Luckily I have the ankle/hip flexibility to squat pretty deep. Previously my coach was really only concerned with going parallel. I think stopping BEFORE is selling yourself short though. I used to have to take a fairly wide stance myself. It's probably been about a year and a half since I started squatting and I've been doing a ton of mobility work to help with my crappy hips. Lifting shoes were a great investment as well.

I know a different coach that had his athletes bend over forward while doing an incline bench press, to more simulate the "aero position". Mine didn't have me do that. He was just concerned about getting to a 90 degree bend at the hips (similar to a parallel squat) and not much more than that.

We used straight legged deadlifts to really target the hams/glutes. These days I'm not coached, nor do I really sprint as much (life happened), but straight legged DL's and romanian DL's are really great at targeting your posterior chain.

Brian Ratliff

First, every time I've gotten stronger, I've gotten faster.

Second, you either want to have an exact movement pattern, or an unrelated movement pattern (that utilizes the same musculature). Almost exact is very bad and will hurt your pedaling technique.

carleton

I'm living proof that training the exact same movement pattern may work.

One season I did 100% of my training on spin bikes and bikes and I was as fast as ever and had the highest max (2,170W) and average wattage numbers ever.

EDIT:
I'm not saying that one way is better than the other (cycling-only training or weights and cycling). Done right, cycling-only training may work.

Minion1

I learned to squat from reading starting strength about a dozen times over 18 months, and every time I tweaked something or started missing reps I'd go back and re-read the specific chapter, which would fix up everything except the squat. I have a long torso, and also have an old back injury, a trapped nerve through the facet joint of one of my verterbrae that flares up if I get too low in the squat.

Rip's method of chest up, chin down encourages a little bit of extra lumbar flexion, which was getting me into strife, even with some warm up movements added in to wake up the spinal erectors. Duff's method gets you to begin by exhaling deeply and drawing the rib cage down, then bracing, kind of the opposite of Rippetoe's method, which given my back issues, has worked really well for me so far.

Right now, I'm just experimenting with different things to see what works for me and what doesn't, given I'm a weird middle-aged collection of historical injuries and imbalances, and I find this stuff really interesting. I was flexible too, once.

carleton

Hi, guys.

I'm looking for a squat rack or power rack for my garage gym. Even though I live in a major city, craigslist is very hit or miss.

Any suggestions on reasonably priced and decent quality:
- Squat Rack or Power Rack (prefer the latter)
- Bars
- Weights

I'd buy these new as a last resort.

VanceMac

Carleton, see my post here: https://www.bikeforums.net/track-cycl...l#post16713405

I almost went with a Rogue rack, but decided to save a little money. If I had to do it again, I'd still have a tough time deciding. Haven't had any regrets with the cheaper route.

That Body Solid rack can still be had new for about $500. Pretty good value.

And here it is being used TODAY by one of your favorite curmudgeons (not me) handling a pretty good load: https://youtu.be/T4KHLh6RDmk

carleton

Whoa. I'd forgotten about that. That's the exact type setup I'm going for!

I think I need to give up the idea of getting a nice rack for cheap and just start saving.

And, good lord, that's a lot of weight Quinn is lifting. I haven't seen him around on the forum lately. How's he doing?

gtrob

Have you looked into getting a custom one built? I always thought if I had the space for one Id go that, just to get the dimensions how I'd like, and imagine any medal works shop wouldn't have trouble with it. I know you like designing things

carleton

Hahaha, I think it would cost a fortune and I wouldn't get any more functionality than I'd get from an off-the-rack setup.

carleton

What are you guy's thoughts on Vertical Leg Press?

This one is new to me. Muscleheads seem to dig it.

VanceMac

It was a long season, and as much as I love omniums, I'm ready for a break. I'm very excited to attack the weights again. I came off maintenance mode a few weeks before my last "A" race, so I'm not that far off last winter's PRs. So I have high hopes for the next few months. I may finally add Power Cleans, but still focused primarily on the big three: squats, deads, press.

carleton

It's a nice relaxing feeling to simply lift weights and feel strong. "Digging deep" for cycling efforts for several months takes a mental toll on me for sure.

Jaytron

Srsly, I hate omnium events.

carleton

This should be good: https://www.******.com/r/Fitness/com...ting_strength/

replace the *** with "red dit". Not sure what it's a banned domain.

VanceMac

I wonder if @Jaytron has hit any PRs lately. I also wonder if he's ever getting back on the bike. #povey

gtrob

One thing I see our olympic sprinters do a lot (both men and women) is med ball throws. Especially the first 2 of these

Diesel Crew ? Muscle Building, Athletic Development, Strength Training, Grip Strength » DieselCrew.com » Explosive Medicine Ball Training for Speed and Power Development

I think they are doing them in the mornings in place of weights, before an afternoon track session.


I picked up a 20lb slam ball and took it to a short hill near me (so I didnt have to chase the ball). That was 2 days ago and I still hurt all over lol

misterwaterfall

Back into the weight room after riding all summer. I shouldn't have stopped lifting for the last couple of months, but the change up is nice.

I'm having trouble fitting dead lifts into my split. I usually am in the gym twice a week intermixed with bike work. One session is more strength and one more hypertrophy. The strength workout I treat like a powerlifter and make the squat the main lift. I already do dead lift variations like the SLDL and Romanians, and I missing out not doing traditional from the floor dead lifts?

VanceMac

Agreed.

Why only twice? Why is one hypertrophy? I would think if goal is to get stronger, it would be 3x and no hypertrophy (ever).

Why the variations but not the main lift? Omnium day is my favorite day... but deadlift day is a close second.