5x5 and the front squat

**nickphillipp** · 28-09-2009 10:56 AM

I started the sl 5x5 today which was awesome aside from the odd looks i got doing the inverted row.
The only thing with it is because my gym has no squat rack I was doing front squats.

Now the question with the front squats is when holding the bar up on the top of my chest it makes my wrists ache. Is this just because I'm not used to it and the flexibility will grow or am I doing it wrong??

Cheers

Nick

**bad_horse** · 28-09-2009 11:10 AM

Mine ached when i started doing fronts but apparently its supposed to get better with time as you become more flexible but what i did was just use a different grip.

have a look at that.

**LionHair** · 28-09-2009 11:14 AM

See quote from stronglifts below re: how the clean-grip affects wrists (bits in purple text)

.

Quote

Stronglifts.com - How to Front Squat with Proper Technique

The Clean Grip. Front Squats using the Clean Grip will feel uncomfortable at first. Many switch to the Cross-armed Grip for that reason. Don’t be one of them. Front Squat with a Clean grip. Benefits:

Safer. It’s easier to keep your elbows up so the bar doesn’t roll of your shoulders using the Clean Grip.
Carry-over. Power Cleans & Overhead Presses become easier because you’re using bigger weights in a similar position on the Front Squat.

If the Clean Grip hurts your wrists, you have tight wrists and/or triceps. Stretch your wrists & triceps 3-4x/week, flexibility will improve.

**nickphillipp** · 28-09-2009 11:36 AM

Sweet! Cheers! That what I thought but just wanted to check. I'm new on this forum but I'm well impressed with how quickly people get back to ya!!

**JohnW** · 28-09-2009 12:26 PM

Front squats are good to start with as they will force you into good form, the only issue is I think you'll find it gets very hard very quickly as the weight increases.

**SpiderDan** · 28-09-2009 03:03 PM

The bar should be on your delts not on your chest.

But yeah flexibility is most peoples issue with it, it will get easier, just make sure you keep your elbows up. If you let the elbows drop the weight willl shift on to your wrists more causing pain.