Barbell Squats Are Not Primal? page 2

[Chorlton]

Solution = Full Squat Cleans (there, I just made it Primal)

That would be the barbell equivalent to throwing a carcass over your should, or hefting a log up to build a shelter.

Yep, i came to the same conclusion. It's an exercise I particularly like in fact. squat/deadlift/clean/thrust --good stuff

[Neckhammer]

Hey the guy gotta point. There is a very legit argument against the way we load a bar on our backs and squat. I think you could argue that if you cant lift that amount of weight from the ground to your shoulder then it is likely too much for you to be squatting with. Why? Cause it makes sense. The vertebral column is build much like a pyramid with the smallest bones on top and the largest at the bottom. Why would you top load a structure like that with more weight than you could legitimately expect to lift from the ground? Whatever... I love deadlifts. Just not a fan of the position we put ourselves in with squats. Call me a sissy.... but I'm just adding a deadlift day and hitting the leg press instead. BTW yes there are tensegrity models of mechanics you can use to refute the pyramid analogy and I can acknowledge that exists... I also am speaking as someone who herniated a disc at the age of 15. I'm a prude when it comes to spine safety these days.

[NowhereMan]

Just because back squats "aren't primal" doesn't mean they can't be advantageous to your fitness and/or health.

[feren6]

Just because back squats "aren't primal" doesn't mean they can't be advantageous to your fitness and/or health.

Yes!

It's so annoying when people use Paleo or Primal as an excuse to do or not do something.

Paleo is a FRAMEWORK for your health. It's not the end-all-be-all. Just because someone 10,000 years ago didn't do a barbell squat doesn't mean we shouldn't do it today.

I didn't read the article, but if that's what it's saying, that's lame. That being said...if you do the barbell squat with bad form, you can really screw yourself up. Gotta be careful.

Squats are phenomenal, though. I started squatting a year ago and now am very close to having a 6-pack..I haven't done any ab work either

[sbhikes]

"But a squat with weight on the shoulders (or something even close to that) – I've never seen it. "

I did it just this weekend. I stopped at a spring, filled up 7 liters of water, put it in my backpack and put on my backpack. Just for fun I thought, could I squat this? So I did. I never actually dropped anything with my pack on, but if I had, I would have squatted down to pick it up and squatted back up with my pack on because if you bend over to pick something up with your pack on, it slides forward and the weight might shift enough to throw you forward.

[jfreaksho]

Hey the guy gotta point. There is a very legit argument against the way we load a bar on our backs and squat. I think you could argue that if you cant lift that amount of weight from the ground to your shoulder then it is likely too much for you to be squatting with. Why? Cause it makes sense. The vertebral column is build much like a pyramid with the smallest bones on top and the largest at the bottom. Why would you top load a structure like that with more weight than you could legitimately expect to lift from the ground? Whatever... I love deadlifts. Just not a fan of the position we put ourselves in with squats. Call me a sissy.... but I'm just adding a deadlift day and hitting the leg press instead. BTW yes there are tensegrity models of mechanics you can use to refute the pyramid analogy and I can acknowledge that exists... I also am speaking as someone who herniated a disc at the age of 15. I'm a prude when it comes to spine safety these days.

Yeah, he has a point. I'm not convinced it is valid, especially for men. I don't have a ton of experience rucking, but more than zero, and I like to wear the weight up high on my shoulders, about the same place a barbell goes. It makes me a little tippy if I bend over, which is why squatting is such a useful technique to have.

For me, the issue is not getting the weight up high enough, but the manipulation of the weight, using your arms, at that height. Seriously, load a ruck or a pack, and then see if it is easier to put it on your back first, then stand, or deadlift it and put it on your back. I would posit that loading the weight on your back and standing up is far safer for your spine than trying to manipulate the pack from your front to your back while standing.

Regarding the size of vertebrae: Why is it that so many traditional cultures have the concept of carrying weight directly on top of the head, or across a yoke, where a barbell typically goes?

He has a point, but I think he's missing/ignoring too much for it to be valid.

*Edit: I may have to review Starting Strength, but I'm pretty sure that shear forces on the spine are higher during deadlifts than with squats. I may be wrong, but I don't think what you said is a valid reason for a healthy person to avoid squats in favor of deadlifts.

[CavemanJoe]

I do BB squats and I love them. So there.

[not on the rug]

Nope. I'm convinced. I'm done with squats and going to take up wooly mammoth hunting instead.

just checked the regs. mammoth season opens february 23rd. don't forget to sharpen your spear

on a slightly more serious note, these threads really have to stop. squats aren't "paleo" but typing on a computer is. what about the car you drove to work today, or the fridge keeping your grassfed beef cold? i should start a "did cavemen really eat beef" thread. that ought to really throw the softheads into a tizzy

[Tribal Rob]

on a slightly more sersios note, these threads really have to stop. Squats aren't "paleo" but typing on a computer is. What about the car you drove to work today, or the fridge keeping your grassfed beef cold? I'll should start a "did cavemen really eat beef" thread. That ought to really throw the softheads into a tizzy

This

[sbhikes]

When my pack is heavy, I will lift it to my knee and then put it on. When my pack is really heavy I'll set it on something, a rock or a picnic table and then sit in front of it and put it on. It is never easy to put a heavy pack on sitting on the ground and then trying to stand up.

In other cultures they carry heavy loads suspended by a tumpline strapped over the forehead. Super heavy loads, too, things like rocks for buildings or inch thick sheets of plywood. They have really strong necks.

I do have to agree that maybe 300lb squats aren't very natural. In fact, I've been wondering if there's a point where I'm simply "strong enough." Rippetoe would say you're never strong enough, but I think I disagree. Once everything I do is easy enough, how can being even stronger matter much?