Squatting progress relating to overall strength

Rilla · 26-10-2007 06:02 PM

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Originally Posted by Jonathan

It's cool that other people experience this too.

As far as I am aware, squats trigger greater hormone release than any other lift, which must increase overall strength. Please correct me if I am wrong though - I don't read up that much on Sports Science.

Jonathan

Pretty sure that's right. One thing I've noticed is that the only thing that can rival heavy squats is heavy deads in terms of pot-WO euforia...
The rush you get after hitting a new PB on deads/squats is out of this world.

**hailtotheking** · 26-10-2007 10:18 PM

Quote

Originally Posted by Jonathan

It's cool that other people experience this too.

As far as I am aware, squats trigger greater hormone release than any other lift, which must increase overall strength. Please correct me if I am wrong though - I don't read up that much on Sports Science.

Jonathan

I think you're right, but the hormonal effect would only trigger gradual changes over time. I think the neuromuscular adaptation is more important, more directly responsible, and quicker to take effect than hormonal changes.

**Jonathan** · 26-10-2007 10:21 PM

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Originally Posted by hailtotheking

I think you're right, but the hormonal effect would only trigger gradual changes over time. I think the neuromuscular adaptation is more important, more directly responsible, and quicker to take effect than hormonal changes.

Absolutely. What I mean is that you would probably make better upper body progress (for example), if your squatting was going well. I think it is partly psychological too, as it took me the longest of all to be happy with my squat form. If my squatting goes badly, it gets me down, which affects my other lifts too.

It is funny that to the uninnitiated/uneducated, weightlifting is a simple sport where thicko meatheads lifts heavy stuff repeatedly. The reality is that there is so much more to it as a sport, and lifestyle.

Jonathan

**hailtotheking** · 26-10-2007 10:27 PM

Quote

Originally Posted by Jonathan

It is funny that to the uninnitiated/uneducated, weightlifting is a simple sport where thicko meatheads lifts heavy stuff repeatedly. The reality is that there is so much more to it as a sport, and lifestyle.

Jonathan

Olympic weightlifting is much more technical than your average gym jockey gives it credit for. It can take a good year and a half for many to get to grips with the clean and jerk, and years to master the snatch. I thought it was the most technical of power sports, but at the moment i'm studying shot putt, and thats even more technical (even though it is the simplest of the throws)!

Been watching videos of the great Brian Oldfield throwing - what a beast! apparently he could standing military press over 200kg!

**Jonathan** · 26-10-2007 10:35 PM

I was just talking about weightlifting in the general sense (bodybuilding, powerlifting, strongman and olympic lifting) but of course olympic lifting is the most technical of all. I love to watch tiny people move huge weights over their heads, with sickening ease!

Speaking of 200kg strict presses, Zydrunas Savickas has strict pressed 4x200kg in training, according to another forum I frequent. Crazy crazy crazy! He also pressed a new log world record at Lithuania's Strongest man - 207.5kg:

AlexTemper · 27-10-2007 10:02 AM

Thats awesome and pretty scary at the same time if you think about the stress the body is coping with just on the mechanics of that press.

The relationship between squatting and overall strength is definately a valid one.

**Marks1972** · 27-10-2007 10:07 AM

I tend to do my big compounds at the start of my sessions, and find if they go well i feel good, and have loads of confidence which carries on throughout the workout. If they go bad, like last week when i was about to get ill and didnt realise it and couldnt get 150kg off the floor when doing deads, it just went downhill from there.

**Shicky** · 28-10-2007 11:52 PM

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Originally Posted by Jonathan

Absolutely. What I mean is that you would probably make better upper body progress (for example), if your squatting was going well. I think it is partly psychological too, as it took me the longest of all to be happy with my squat form. If my squatting goes badly, it gets me down, which affects my other lifts too.

Im with you there mate, currently having a nightmare trying to nail my form on this. But from past experience once i've got it sorted, i LOVE the gym and almost everything goes to plan. Strange really as i always have troubles with squats and SLDL but i always end up sorting my deadlifts before squats.