TacticalBarbell.com

Hi,

I plan doing TB Operator with beginning of next year and I’d like to use the Swat Cluster.
The Problem: I’m feeling really shaky when doing back squats and get more back and hip pain from them than anything else. Some trainers said, it may be because I’m relatively tall (1,90m) and got long legs even for my height, I don’t know. But months of technique training didn’t help so I’m looking for an alternative.
I liked front squats until I had a knee injury (patellar tendon) a year ago. Now I instantly get knee pain when doing them, although my knee is completely cured.
Deadlifts are no problem, but if I do them three times a week I’ll die.
So do you have any ideas for a lower body exercise, I could do in the cluster? Thought about (Bulgarian) split squats, but I don’t know whether they’re suitable when doing low reps.

Thank you and merry Christmas!

Knollkopp wrote:Hi,

I plan doing TB Operator with beginning of next year and I’d like to use the Swat Cluster.
The Problem: I’m feeling really shaky when doing back squats and get more back and hip pain from them than anything else. Some trainers said, it may be because I’m relatively tall (1,90m) and got long legs even for my height, I don’t know. But months of technique training didn’t help so I’m looking for an alternative.
I liked front squats until I had a knee injury (patellar tendon) a year ago. Now I instantly get knee pain when doing them, although my knee is completely cured.
Deadlifts are no problem, but if I do them three times a week I’ll die.
So do you have any ideas for a lower body exercise, I could do in the cluster? Thought about (Bulgarian) split squats, but I don’t know whether they’re suitable when doing low reps.

Thank you and merry Christmas!

First, keep working on your squat. Maybe you can't keep them in your cluster, but practice them when you can. Eventually you will find the groove and be able to do them. I think Bulgarian split squats are great, and you can put them in your cluster like a regular lift. They are also great for improving mobility. You might experiment with lunges. Goblet squats are a good idea. They might be too hard to load heavily enough to use a main lift, but you can keep them as an accessory. Finally, if you can get access to a sled you can push and/or pull (or maybe use your car?), you can use that to stand in for the squat too.

Merry Christmas to you!

If you have access to one, trap bar deadlifts might be ideal for you in your situation. I definitely agree to keep working on technique though - we all innately squat as children so it's just a matter of finding your groove. Goblet squats as part of your warm up will go a long way towards helping you.

Thanks for the reply!
I'll do the cluster with Bulgarian split squats and do goblet squats for warm up. Also I'll do lunges and sled pushing in the conditioning workouts, so I hope my legs get enough attention.
Trap bar would be great, but I don't have access to one unfortunately.

Dr. John Rusin posted this article the other day about how to load the Landmine Squat with more weight. Here is the link to the article. Might be a good alternative for you. https://drjohnrusin.com/the-best-squat-youre-not-doing/

I've had this problem too. I feel for you

Welcome to the forum Knollkopp.

Don't discount pistols and/or weighted pistols to build up some leg strength and stability before moving back to squats.

All good advises here. Just my personal 2c.. Comes from guy who is 1.87m with long limbs and who had very similar issues in the past.

Generally speaking, long legs can affect your technique but you still should be able to squat to/below parallel without back/hip pain unless you have some anatomical predispositions that prevent you from that. Usual recommendations for tall lifters are to take wider stance and to point your feet more out. It does help but it will put decent amount of pressure to the hips and knees. Been there done that.

It took me long while of tries and errors to realize that it all comes down to mobility and technique. And both dimensions can be slightly different for a particular lifter depending on the personal body structure. In my case - it did cost me 1.5 year to bring MY mobility to MY level to make it to MY safe comfortable squat. And it also took a while to find MY stance. There is no magic when it comes to mobility, though. Consistency and patience will do it for you.

My journey of re-learning the squat was starting form the beginning by sticking with mobility drills on the regular basis and progressing as following:

- Walking, front, reverse lunges->Bulgarians (Back and/or Goblet variation)->Goblet KB/DB Squat->Front Squat->Back Squat to Box->Back Squat.

Something like that. It took me good 2 years to get back to good pain free squat. Another good call for me personally was investing into olympic shoes. It did help a lot at some point.

Bulgarians are great but there are few things that can go wrong with them too. My long legs forced me to take stance that was too wide and my front knee was flying out when I tried it for the first time with decent load. That was good call for bad injury. It took me while to dial proper technique for Bulgarians. But the exercise itself is simply great one.

Just sharing my story.. YMMV, though. But the point is it is doable.

Good luck and Merry Christmas!

Knollkopp wrote: So do you have any ideas for a lower body exercise, I could do in the cluster? Thought about (Bulgarian) split squats, but I don’t know whether they’re suitable when doing low reps.

Bulgarian split squats are perfectly fine. I did them a lot after my ACL injury (almost 3 years ago). Just make sure you do set first with rehabilitated leg, and match that with healthy one. Work on back squat form with low weight higher reps, and do lots of mobility and flexibility work.
Also, give your body more time. Tendons and ligaments takes long to heal....

Can you do pistol squats?

You could also add snatch grip deadlifts, really good variation. Gives more range of motion than conventional, so you work legs harder with less overall fatigue.

Thank your for your tips!
I will start with Bulgarian split squats and work on my squat technique. And also on my pistol technique to be able to do them as an other alternative on my way to squats.

Would you do Bulgarians with a 2min break between the legs or do both legs and then have the break?
And is there a real difference between doing them with a dumbbell or a barbell?