I have been feeling a bit light headed after squatting the past few workouts.
I think it might be my breathing causing this? What is the correct techniqe?
Should i exhale slowly on the negative side of the rep or vice versa?
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I have been feeling a bit light headed after squatting the past few workouts.
I think it might be my breathing causing this? What is the correct techniqe?
Should i exhale slowly on the negative side of the rep or vice versa?
[QUOTE=braden101;458245041]I have been feeling a bit light headed after squatting the past few workouts.
I think it might be my breathing causing this? What is the correct techniqe?
Should i exhale slowly on the negative side of the rep or vice versa?[/QUOTE]
To quote Tate:
[quote=Dave Tate]I've caught more **** over this than any other aspect of training. But the truth is that every big squatter I know has learned how to use his abdominals while squatting. You must learn how to breathe into your belly. You want to pull as much air as you can into your belly, then flex and force your abdominals out.
Walk over to a mirror. Take a look at your shoulders and take a deep breath. Did they rise? If they did, then you're pulling all the air into your chest, not your belly. You need to learn how to breath into your belly. This is how we teach everyone to squat. For the squat, we advise the use of a weight belt worn one notch loose. This is to teach you to pull air into your belly then push out into the belt. The belt acts as a great training aid to push against.
As a side note, we use the same technique for all of our max-effort work, but don't use the belt in that situation. This is one aspect of our training that has been misunderstood for too long. We use the belt to teach how to use the abdominals for the squat, bench, and deadlift, and do not advocate its use for anything else unless the lifter feels it's needed. Many in the gym have worked up to 600 and 700 pound good mornings without any adverse effects and have been doing them this way for over ten years.
This brings me to the next point. We've been told breathing and using the abdominals this way will lead to back injuries. Louie Simmons has been coaching this for the past twenty years at Westside and hasn't had any lifters with these problems. Learning to use the belly has made a profound difference in all of our squats, especially for those who've never tried it. I've seen squats increase by 25 to 50 pounds on this aspect alone. Now that's what squatting big is all about.
Filling your belly with air will also create a larger torso and give you a bigger base of support from which to drive. Ever wonder why those with bigger waists squat so much? Think about it. We want as much tightness and support as we can get from the gross muscles of the spinal errectors, abdominals, and obliques.[/quote]
[quote=Dave Tate]I learned this lesson firsthand at the 1990 Toledo Hall of Fame powerlifting competition. I'd just tried a 760 squat and got smashed with it. This was my second attempt of the day and I decided to give it another try on the third. I had some doubts because the second attempt wasn't even close. Saying I got smashed is an understatement. The weight stapled me to the floor! I didn't even get out of the bottom of the lift. This weight was a 20 pound personal record for which I had spent the last four months training.
I didn't understand what the problem was or how to fix it. On the third attempt, while I was getting wrapped, Louie Simmons walked up to me and told me to get my abdominals tight. I had no idea what he was talking about at the time, but would within the next few minutes. As I got under the weight I realized Louie was the spotter behind me. (No pressure there, huh?) As I got set under the bar he told me to expand and push my belly into the belt. Now I understood what he was talking about. I was always told to flex my abs, but never to expand and push out.
As I set the bar up, I noticed that I had never felt so tight and stable. Once set, I locked in my back and began the squat. I kept my belly pushed into the belt and blasted the weight up! I had just smoked a weight that stapled me to the floor moments earlier all because I learned how to use my abdominals! In my opinion, this concept is one of the most misunderstood in the sport of powerlifting today. Many lifters don't know how to use their core to set up a squat. Some do nothing at all while others are trying to suck their stomachs in. This is probably fine for those who strive to squat 400 pounds, but if you're looking to squat maximal weights in the 700 to 900 range, you'd better learn how to use your core.[/quote]
And Rip has some words on it too:
[youtube]QkeN_fkXrdE[/youtube]
Be careful of really fast deep breaths (or shouts) after you're done a set though!
[youtube]5CVb3dKnw60[/youtube]
Thanks for that man, makes alot of sense. Shall give it a try tomorrow.
That second video is a great lol His mate goes face first into a dumbbell and he just laughs lol!
Hey,
I am having the same problem. But the thing is I never gave any thought to my breathing technique until now.
So just to get it clear..
When I go down, I exhale
When I come up I inhale in the belly...
I will really appreciate it if you can clear my confusion.
Cheers
I think you'll get past this. Especially if you do some extra metabolic training.
I used to get this but now I always use the valsalver manuever when squatting and deadlifting and never feel dizzy, even at maximum effort. But don't do it until you can do it without any traces of dizzyness.
[QUOTE=andys43us;495163471]Hey,
I am having the same problem. But the thing is I never gave any thought to my breathing technique until now.
So just to get it clear..
When I go down, I exhale
When I come up I inhale in the belly...
I will really appreciate it if you can clear my confusion.
Cheers[/QUOTE]
You got that in the wrong order.
Most inhale before they go down. And they hold the air until well on the way up. If you exhale on the way down, you won't be able to come up, because you have lost your air, and your tightness along with it.
For high rep squats, many just inhale on the way down, then exhale on the way up.
[QUOTE=andys43us;495163471]Hey,
I am having the same problem. But the thing is I never gave any thought to my breathing technique until now.
So just to get it clear..
When I go down, I exhale
When I come up I inhale in the belly...
I will really appreciate it if you can clear my confusion.
Cheers[/QUOTE]
No.
Big deep breath at top, hold this all the way down into the hole.
As you rise, you can let a little breath out, or just hold completely until you get back to the starting position.
It's important to have a chest full of air on way down and back up, as it acts as a brace inside your torso, gives you extra stability, and protects your spine.
Alright.. Got it.
It's weird I never noticed how I breathe during squats or any other exercise.
I always feel a little dizzy during heavy training. But, thought that was normal. Today I searched about it and realized that breathing is also very important in training.
Thanks for the clarification guys. Much appreciated.
Cheers
If you are doing the valsalva and getting a bit dizzy, you probably just need to slightly lower how much air you take in OR let some out via grunts on the way up.
[QUOTE=zephed56;495191411] let some out via grunts on the way up.[/QUOTE]
Does it matter which end it comes out of? :)
[QUOTE=SuffolkPunch;495197371]Does it matter which end it comes out of? :)[/QUOTE]
-----------
As long as it doesn't come out of your ears and blood along with it, it's all good...:D
[QUOTE=andys43us;495163471]Hey,
I am having the same problem. But the thing is I never gave any thought to my breathing technique until now.
So just to get it clear..
When I go down, I exhale
When I come up I inhale in the belly...
I will really appreciate it if you can clear my confusion.
Cheers[/QUOTE]
No, it goes like this....
Get under the bar
Inhale and hold
Unrack weight
walk back and set feet
Exhale.
Inhale as much air as you possibly can into belly, pushing belly against belt
Squat
hit depth
Stand up (letting out some air if you need to, but it's not necessary )
Rack weight
Exhale
[QUOTE=SuffolkPunch;495197371]Does it matter which end it comes out of? :)[/QUOTE]
lol
It does to those standing behind you!
oh man squatting is the worst when you have to fart.
[QUOTE=SuffolkPunch;495197371]Does it matter which end it comes out of? :)[/QUOTE]
lol. guess it depends on whether you'll ever want someone to spot you.
Another good reason to train at home = rocket assisted squats ;)
[QUOTE=andys43us;495183621]Alright.. Got it.
It's weird I never noticed how I breathe during squats or any other exercise.
I always feel a little dizzy during heavy training. But, thought that was normal. Today I searched about it and realized that breathing is also very important in training.
Thanks for the clarification guys. Much appreciated.
Cheers[/QUOTE]
I nearly fainted a couple of times when I first started deadlifts. I realised after a while I was trying to do the whole set on one breath pretty much! I think it's hard to co-ordinate your breathing when you are first learning a movement.