I'm now going on my third try to get past 180 lbs for squats. I had to deload last night to 160 lbs from 180. I achieved a 5, 5, 5, 4, 5, which was my third fail.

I cannot figure out why my legs are so weak. It makes no sense. Granted, I'm not a big guy (6'1 185 lbs), but my upper body seems to be decently strong. My bench press is 205, which I can do all 5 sets of 5 reps without a spotter. My bb row right now is at 160 lbs. My deadlift is at 310. My overhead press right now is at 125 lbs and I'm progressing on all except the squat.

I watch some of these guys on youtube knocking out 10 reps of 500 lbs and I just can't fathom how I could ever achieve anything close to that.

I've now gotten to the point where I'm so frustrated by it that I'm questioning why I do it at all. What is the point of "getting stronger?" I mean, if I can lift my kids and I'm pleased with my appearance, shouldn't that be good enough at 42 years of age? It's not like I'm competing, or joining a body building contest. I wonder at what point should I just set my weight to where it is challenging, get a good workout, and be done with it?

Physiologically, what happens when a person lifts the same weight repeatedly? Does the body eventually get weaker?

Forgive the venting.

My bet is a form issue (and to a smaller extent, it's likely psychological now). At 6-1 and 185, you should definitely have the muscle mass to squat 180 lbs.

Also, as MFS pointed out, can you squat more than 180 for fewer reps? Have you ever attempted anything higher?

You could try just doing 3 sets of 5 reps on squats and keep doing 5x5 on the rest of your lifts.

AgEng06,

Well, I can obviously squat 180. I did it 5,5,5,4,5 - 24x in a period of about 20 minutes. The point is I cannot seem to get a full 25 reps without at least one failure.

I believe my form is just about right. I do find that when things get difficult, I tend to rock forward onto my toes a tad and my chest dips forward. Obviously I'm trying not to do that. I try and keep my weight on the heels, break at the knees, open up at the hips, and keep my chest up.

If I can squat 180 24x, I'm sure I could probably squeeze out at least a few reps at 200 lbs. plus.

I haven't tried just doing fewer sets as I've been trying to follow the 5x5 workout. Perhaps it's time to switch.

Yeah, you're right. I didn't completely think my response through there.

How long are your breaks between sets? Maybe stretch it out a little longer so you recover enough to get all 5 reps?

If I fail to get 5, I wait 5 minutes before my next set. When I hit 5, I wait 3 minutes before my next set.

Man, I don't know then. It seems like you are doing what you need to be doing. Hopefully someone will be along to provide more insight.

How long have you been on the program? After about 6 months or so doing 5x5, I had to reduce my squats down to 3x5. Squatting three times a week can get very tough once you get to a certain weight.

I would suggest doing 3x5 for a while and see how far you can go. A lot of times, it's a psychological boost knowing that you only have to do three sets of five, and you can continue increasing weight without plateau-ing for quite a while.

Once you plateau on 3x5, it would probably be time to look into an intermediate-level barbell training program, such as the Texas Method.

Is there a way to switch to 3x5 using the iPhone app? Also, can you switch to 3x5 for just squats and keep everything else on the 5x5?

I had a similar problem in my time with 5x5. I backed off squats completely and focused a couple of weeks on other exercises that focus on the areas. Lunges, split squats, box steps, side lunges, leg press. did as much as I could to engage stabilizing core muscles as well. did a lot of post workout foam rolling and stretching. the idea was low-moderate weight and focusing on the explosive movement with proper form throughout.

after I went back to squats, I wrecked shop without any problems

Yes just do 3x5 on squats, everything else can remain at 5x5. And I'm not sure about the phone app, but you can probably figure out a way to keep track of it.

If you follow 5x5, and Mehdi's advice, to the letter, you'd need to deload twice before you switch to 3x5.

quote:

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Switch to 3x5. After you had to deload twice on a lift, you switch from 5x5 to 3x5 for that exercise. When that no longer works you switch to 3x3 and then 1x3. This drops the volume (stress) while increasing the intensity. There will be less technique practice, but by this time you should have had plenty.

Read more: http://stronglifts.com/what-to-do-after-12-weeks-of-stronglifts-5x5/

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I'm not sure about the iPhone app, but I know the Android app has the (paid) add-on of 3x5 and 3x3/1x3, (both are included as part of the "Power Pack") and I believe the app will automatically switch you over after you deload for failure (as opposed to missing a week of workouts...) the correct number of times.

What kind of shoes are you wearing? If you are using running shoes or even some cross trainers you'll have trouble not rocking forward. Take a deep breath before the squat to keep your chest open and your shoulders back, but don't let it out at the bottom of the squat and let your chest collapse and shoulders roll forward.

This is more than likely a form issue, even if you think it isn't. Remember, just being able to go up and down with the bar doesn't mean that rep should count; if you find yourself rocking on the way up, shifting your weight over your toes, or leaning forward, you should not count that as a successful rep. You say you've had trouble in the past - did you count those reps? You shouldn't have, even if the lift was easy.

It's relatively easy to plow through the smaller weights with bad form, but it really prevents you from going forward once the weights get heavy (in your case, 180). It's also nearly impossible to correct your form at your target weight. My recommendation is take a lot of weight off, maybe even go all the way back down to 95lbs and make form your #1 focus. Take a video of yourself and take notes. If you ever feel that your weight is shifting, your feet aren't quite right, or anything else that you suspect was an improper lift, don't count it.

If your goal is to squat 300lbs by the end of the year, it absolutely won't matter if you start at 180 or 95 today; what will matter is building proper form. Moving to a 3x5 routine before you do an exhaustive form-check will only mask the problem until you hit your next plateau; it's also unsafe with bad form.

You're 42 now, if you spend a couple years, slowly bringing your squat up with proper form, your back will thank you for decades to come. Don't give up! Your deadlift at 310 means you are more than likely strong enough to squat a lot more weight, you just need to shape up your stabilizing muscles.

Some other non-form related things to think about:

• Are you using the proper shoes?
• Are you eating enough?
• Are you squatting first in your routine?
• Are you doing a proper warm-up?
• Are you focussing on your form during your warm-up?
• Are you able to concentrate during the workout? (busy gyms make this impossible for me, so I lift in my garage now adays)

Also, forget about those guys squatting 500lbs on youtube; they've either been lifting regularly for several years or are taking steroids - if you haven't done either of those things then you shouldn't compare yourself with them.

I've been lifting with the Vibram 5 fingers shoes, not because I think they're the ideal shoe, but more because that is what I have sitting up in my workout room. Should I switch? I originally started out barefoot when I'd squat.

I squat first before anything else. I typically squat first, then ohp/bench press next, then bb row/deadlift last.

I think my form is okay, but there have been a few reps where my form was poor and I did not count them.

As far as diet, this is probably a real deficiency in my program. I'm on a high fat/high protein diet. I hardly eat any carbs at all due to Type 1 Diabetes. My Diabetes is in super control, but gaining weight is very hard when you eat the way I do. This is why I wonder if I should just be satisfied with where I'm at and just leave well enough alone. I don't really have the option of carbing up to gain weight. The few times I took weight gainer, I saw noticeable gains, but it came at the expense of blood sugar control.

All that written, it still seems like I should be able to get to a least 220 or so given my current weight. 180 lbs seems so small to me. If I can bench press 3x6 at 225 (did this before I started 5x5) at 180 lbs, surely I can squat at least 220 lbs a few reps, no?

I've been following the form guidance for squats from Johnny Candito. Here is a link to the video I've been following:


Would you suggest something else, or does he seem to have pretty good form?

Honestly, having T1D should help you here.

If you know what 100g of carbs takes to dose for you can get a quick 500 calories in you just by downing some dextrose. and since you know your peaking action of your insulin down to the minute you can time your insulin dose exactly to hit it so your BG doesn't rise. Start with like 5 glucose tabs and step it up to either getting straight dextrose from a supply store to where you are getting 200g carbs in one dose. Dextrose because it's the fastest way to hit your bloodstream reliably. Soon as you carb up hit the weights. Test BG 45 minutes after your dosing and adjust. Test again 1:15 later and adjust.

This is what some people did before anabolics came on the scene and is part of the logic behind carb backloading, but they don't have the advantage of being able to take insulin. They have to hope that they can stimulate enough insulin production from straight junkfood and the weight lifting uses the sugar to feed the muscle.