jmar257 wrote:I have the same issue, FWIW. I can stop deadlifting for months and come back and be back to my previous work weights relatively quickly, but my squat falls off quicker and comes back more slowly. Unfortunately, I like deadlifting way more than squatting. Some unsolicited advice re: the elbow issue: make sure when you squat you're not holding the weight with your arms/wrists, that pressure can cause elbow pain. Use a thumbless grip when squatting to help get that position right.
Thanks for the advice on the handgrip position. I will likely try the thumbless grip (I am familiar with using it on other lifts). For the moment I am using a very gentle hybrid that takes almost 100% of the pressure off the entire arm, elbow and all and am balancing the weight almost purely in a natural trap groove. Once I correctly identified the issue, it was an easy modification to make. It will be slow to heal, however. I am still sticking with the power squat since I like how it takes nearly all the pressure off the knees and focuses on the posterior chain. That squat variation also seems easiest to balance.
IronMike wrote:Ditto. And my squat sucks.
Best I ever did with DL was 325lbs. Best for squat, 225lbs. And I'm coming back quickly (after the lockdown) in DL. Squat, not so much. Can't believe how much 115lbs in squat hurts.
I have a very similar strength profile. When I was younger, with some work I could consistently workout with over 315 on the DL (conventional). I have always wanted do get a trap bar but have never done so. Glad you are building the home gym. I am also much weaker on the squat and typically would not work out with more than 195 lbs or 205 lbs. Interestingly enough I have been training stairs for nearly five years straight now and it seems to keep my baseline squatting strength at about 185x5 even after taking a year or two off. I would also use 115lb I think had it not been for the stairs (similar to doing a lightweight, low ROM lunge I expect from a movement perspective). I also haven't sustained a single hiking-related leg injury in that time and I do attribute it to that extra leg power. In my early thirties, I did end up with quite a bit more soreness and even minor pulls/injuries after a week of summiting.
Another possibly interesting point around squatting for me is that when I switched from a high-bar (in trap groove but highish) to a low bar position, I'd like to say I immediately added maybe 35-50 lbs of strength to the same depth (not quite parallel but in the ballpark) doing a power squat. I am currently working on adding depth before weight, but due to an older leg-press related lower back injury, I don't squat or deadlift quite as heavy as I used to, nor do I go to the same depth (not at first anyhow).
IronMike wrote:I did this same method last year before deploying. I'd listen and read HP in Croatian while walking up 12 flights of stairs. I had to hold the railing though, that was the only way to make it work, safely.
Glad to find others that have done the same/similar. Without the hand on the rail, the only other way I could do it would be to use the side of the exterior wall as a hedge to help balance, but that would be unsafe. It is that second to last step that is tricky at each landing and it is easy to misjudge and make a double step down when you think you are taking a single. I use my smartphone neck holder to angle the actual text off the right, giving me good frontal visibility, much better than I would get by waving my hand about without it. I wear five fingers shoes which help both with knee tracking and give extra sensitivity on foot placement (plus lots of hiking in tougher terrain than an indoor concrete stairwell).
When I was younger, I used a Yukon Powerrack (I think from NewYorkBarbells) and loved it. At the time it set me back around $325 and I sold it for not much less. Due to space considerations and the realization that I am not likely to ever squat massive weights, I just have connected uprights that elevate to a free-standing squat rack. I like the freedom they give, but it is annoying to constantly have to switch between bench, squat, and OH press positions.