Performance Area > Article & Video Discussion
Quarter Squats Transfer to VJ and Sprinting
T0ddday:
--- Quote from: adarqui on August 24, 2016, 12:07:35 pm ---
--- Quote from: maxent on August 24, 2016, 05:50:36 am ---tis interesting however i wonder how well using full squats mainly and quarters as assistance would go? or vice versa. I feel it wud work better in some sense
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ya, they complement each other.
- quarters and halfs get you stronger with more weight on your back
- halfs aren't so far off from below parallel that those gains won't "leak" into deep ROM
- quarters aren't so far off from halfs that those gains won't "leak" into half ROM
my slightly below parallel squat improved while I was half squatting.. very rarely, i'd warmup going deeper, then transition into halfs. On a few occasions I worked up to a heavy single before transitioning to halfs. I remember distinctly hitting 315 x 1-3 reps @ ~150, below parallel .. while my half squat was getting up near 400.
Form is essential on all of these variations, but even more so (IMHO) with quarters .. it can just be so much weight on your back. If you intend on playing with halfs & quarters, it's best to quiet the ego a bit and keep it on the safe side (early on). As we get more experienced, we usually know what to do - as long as we recognize the ego.
As for myself, deep squatting usually ends up making my hips feel like crap.. and I REALLY hate that feeling. So unfortunately i'll stick to halfs and above.
pc!
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The problem with all non-full squats is consistency. It's a bigger problem with quarters that anything else. Are quarter squats useful? Sure. But it's hard to make gains real because the squats because it's easy to get stronger by doing 0.25 (quarter) squats one day and the 0.24 squats and then 0.23 squats, 0.22 squats,...0.10 squats, etc. Full olympic squats pause squats are the only squats that are don't have this problem.
However, I have found that people who half squat well like Andrew are able to keep a semi-consistent depth on the half squat. This is because there is a ROM where going a little bit higher doesn't make it that much easier for most people - so you can hammer out the squats and make real gains... Once you approach quarter depth each centimeter higher you go makes the squat so much easier that consistency becomes difficult. If you want to play with different depths there are a few things you can do -
Simple:
1) Pin squats. Of course they have the problem that hitting pins turns it into a pause squat....
2) Box squats - great exercise but sitting on a box doesn't allow you to reverse the weight without help...
Both of these are useful but I don't like them as the only movements, a little bit more complicated but very useful are:
1) Band "pin" squats. Wrap a band around the squat rack like pins. Hit the band and then stand up. This allows you to hit consistent depth but the band bends and doesn't stop the weight which is better. Of course you have to be careful you are not just doing a good morning to get the bar down - make sure back angle is consistent.
2) Reverse band squats. One of my favorites. You attach a band to the bar and the top of the squat rack. The band tightens at some point (say at parallel) so you squat down and the band stretches - you make sure to get near parallel because at this point the band provides assistance and pulls the bar up - you finish the movement with this initial acceleration from the band... Really does a good job for jump training because this is what a proper DLRVJ is like - we use speed to give ourself a dynamic boost so we plant into a slightly above parallel squat and rebound up - the beginning of the movement is momentum from our approach and plant - the muscles fire after to send us into the air...
T0ddday:
--- Quote from: Coges on August 23, 2016, 11:12:57 pm ---https://www.strengthandconditioningresearch.com/promotions/quarter-squats-transfer-sprinting/
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Cool article.
I'm emailing the author to see if they have video to share - I doubt it... But it would be useful.
The problem with this article and a lot of article is that they don't understand that while joint angles in squats are fixed joint angles in jumps are not. You can't say the joint angle in a quarter squat is more similar to the joint angle in a vertical jump. Kingfish's best vertical jump comes from a joint angle that is identical to a full squat. Mine is between a half and a quarter squat. The vertical jump doesn't have a joint angle - it is a jump not an prescribed exercise with a defined range of motion!
We all do it differently. And unfortunately that difference isn't just dependent on your structure it is dependent on your strength.
Take an extremely weak beginner and make them do a vertical jump or a running double leg jump. (I just trained one). They will do a 1/16 or less squat. So I guess that means for them they should do a 1/16 squat? No way! They are not strong enough to use more than a 1/16 squat - but if we train them and get them strong and stable maybe their best vertical jump comes from a full squat or half squat... We can make guesses based on their structure but we can't be sure...
This is why I think everyone*** should start with full squats. I actually favor half squats over full squats for athletes but I think full squats are a necessary base to build strength and mobility. When your training an athlete who wants to jump you should get him capable of sitting down in a full squat with close to bodyweight. I usually use 135lbs for most guys. Get them able to hit full depth, pause, and drive up with 135. After this is accomplished then train with half squats, quarter squats, etc and test vertical jump. If the athlete performs vertical jumps best with a deep squat then deep squats should not be abandoned - again use structure for clues here. If the athlete doesn't jump with anything near a full squat then they don't necessarily need them - you can keep them as warmup (or do bar overhead full squats - great mobility warmup), but you don't need to progress.
*** Everyone doesn't mean everyone. I make an earnest effort for most people. It might require oly shoes, plates under shoes, a lot of stretching, and it might not be totally full... If the guy is 7' feet tall it might not be worth the effort to build a full bodyweight squat... But within reason I like athletes to get this mobility figured out... How do you know you shouldn't use a deeper squat to get a higher vertical jump if you have zero strength or comfort or range of motion at that angle...
This is my caution with praising partial squats. It allows a shortcut. I feel I have earned the right to do partial squats! I am 5'11 and have really long legs and no torso. I still built up my oly pause squat to 400 and could do 315x15 pause squats. Despite that I could never jump at all out of a full squat and always vertical jumped with a high joint angle... I am confident that I'm not selling myself short by not building my full squat bigger.... But that's not the same as some kid with short legs who jumps 24'' and can't full squat 135 doing ugly pin squats with 405 and claiming that he doesn't full squat because it doesn't translate to his jump. If your vertical is 24'' you don't have a jump.
maxent:
I do agree that its easy to fudge the depth on quarters .. however, if you use them as an assistance, who really cares .. as long as you're getting better at adding weight and can maintain or improve depth over time?
Im 3 weeks in into a quarter squat program .. i do them once a week ... too early yet to say yay or nay but im digging them so far. Wish i had tried them sooner.. will report back after a while to see what affect if any has been noticed
Kingfish:
full squats until you get yourself to the level of very strong (2BW+), then partials to get stronger on the specific joint angle.
i got 38"+ SVJ on vid jumping from 1/4 squat depth. this was peaking from weeks of 1/2" supramax partial squats up to 125%RM. without the potentiation effects from a cycle of the very heavy partials, i just go lazy and jump from a full squat depth.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYYFQBdq5vU
T0ddday:
--- Quote from: maxent on August 24, 2016, 11:58:11 pm ---I do agree that its easy to fudge the depth on quarters .. however, if you use them as an assistance, who really cares .. as long as you're getting better at adding weight and can maintain or improve depth over time?
Im 3 weeks in into a quarter squat program .. i do them once a week ... too early yet to say yay or nay but im digging them so far. Wish i had tried them sooner.. will report back after a while to see what affect if any has been noticed
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Well if they are easy to fudge on depth... Then it's hard to add depth over time!
Also, I am talking about people who use them not as assistance but as their primary movement...
I actually not even against a partial squat as a primary movement... My point is just when evaluating an exercise you gotta look at all facets of the exercise, exercises that are fudgeable always have the disadvantage because its harder to tell the athlete to just go do it and add weight... There is no way to cheat the full squat... Same with the deadlift. This is great. Depending on structure for some athletes partial squats are better than full squats as far as carryover - but you have to be diligent with them because they do have the fudgeability factor. And it's not be taken lightly. Most exercises can get ugly and cheated... Bicep curls can be cheated. Close grip pull up can be cheated. However, I prefer close grip pull ups over bicep curls 100x because bicep curls can be cheated way more and the cheating can make the exercise completely unrelated and dangerous which is much less likely with pullups....
Partials have the problem that you can cheat on depth AND achieve more "depth" by bending the back and good-morning the weight. This is a very dangerous combination. It depends on the athlete and the coaching they have available... Good supervision and a diligent athlete and you are fine...
But, then again you have the competitive athlete who wants to throw more weight on the bar... Say the guy who is 170 and claims a 135 bicep curl and a 400lb RDL despite no similar non cheatable strength or athleticism feats... The guy who really wants to life more weight at all costs... And pushing up those partial squats is a recipe to destroy the back..
For the most part I agree with Kingfish... Although his line of 2x bodyweight is IMO far too heavy for some people... But get strong using full squats - if your weak your weak and you don't know your body... Once your strong whats best for you might not be so simple. But weak people can keep it simple until they are strong...
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