friend told me it's bad for your knees to go past your toes when squatting

[chris5]

i've been squatting like this for months with no problems but he mentioned it's not good. basically when i go down to the point where my thighs are parallel with the floor, my knees go a little past my toes. i can't imagine them not doing that otherwise i would fall backwards if my knees didn't go past my toes. am i gonna be hurt in the long run?

[thespokesman]

depends on how far we are talking
yes when you get really heavy, it can be an issue

just try lighter weights and work on your form in the mirror

[chris5]

depends on how far we are talking
yes when you get really heavy, it can be an issue

just try lighter weights and work on your form in the mirror

maybe an inch or so, if that.

[bobbelibobban]

Thats proposterously ridicoulous in titanic proportion. Go to real full depth and you will fall down on your behind if your toes are not past your knees.

And no, full depth aint a paralell in a special PL-gown or hump-squats in a smithmachine.

[failuretogain]

yes you should work on your form keep your knees as far back as possible you should feel like your almost going to fall back. that how i do it anyway but i see many poeple go over there toes all the time using to much weight. probly have **** for quads though. my quads arent that great ethier but they are getting there slowly.

[bobbelibobban]

yes you should work on your form keep your knees as far back as possible you should feel like your almost going to fall back. that how i do it anyway but i see many poeple go over there toes all the time using to much weight. probly have **** for quads though. my quads arent that great ethier but they are getting there slowly.

proposterous. if you go full depth it is totally impossible to not get the toes in front of the knees. try, and youll fall on your arse.

[aqua-beowulf]

I've said it before, and I'll say it again... it's nearly impossible for your knees to not travel past your toes slightly when doing deep squatting. Most people who think their knees don't... need to have someone videotape them and see for themselves. To the original poster, a slight travel of the knees past the toes is fine, and normal... especially if you're going ass to grass... just make sure you're using proper form, and trying to sit back as much as possible. Anymore overtravel than a couple of inches would be too much, in my opinion.

[CelluliteTech]

every video ive seen of olympic lifters, their knees go noticebly past their toes. these guys are using like 600-700 pounds totally raw ass to grass, absolutely no knee wraps, belts, or anything. go tell them it's bad on their knees all you experts.

[THE_Grim_Reaper]

every video ive seen of olympic lifters, their knees go noticebly past their toes. these guys are using like 600-700 pounds totally raw ass to grass, absolutely no knee wraps, belts, or anything. go tell them it's bad on their knees all you experts.

Agreed.

[_Lifter4Life_]

Well, 4 or so years ago I started squatting with the bar, now I can ATG some good weight with allmost perfect form. I do think with a little more time ill beable to go back without my knees going over my toes, I pretty much can do it now with my knees just linining up with my toes. Some are just not 'made' to do this. I am however lucky and faily ...experienced?

Lifter,

[dymondgirl]

kness past toe, I agree 100%. When I was doing aerobic class with no weights, not a problem, but once I started adding weight, theres no way to do it without putting to much stress on your back unless you go past your toes. Keep in mind you still have to use good form and dont go past too far, just enough to keep your balance. I find the same thing goes with lunges...any advise on that?

[MsDominatus]

It is going past parallel that has helped bring my knee back to life, IMO. W/an already weak knee, I can't emphasize enough how much using light weight and working on getting my hams to touch my calves has HELPED stregthen my knee w/out the added stress of trying to keep it parallel. If it hasn't bothered you yet, you're probably doing something right. The one common thing i've heard about squatting is that everyone does it a little different. Things like height, leg length, strengths and weaknesses, stance - all determine how you squat. I think the important thing is that you're feeling it where you should be and not feeling any pain in your back or knees as a result. Keeping your back strong is far more important than going a few inches over the toe(as long as no pain is involved).

As for lunges, I think the most important thing is keeping your knee straight and aligned w/the rest of your leg rather than veering off to the side, causing bad form and also keeping your back upright, shoulders back and looking straight ahead help to keep good form. Good form will really bring out the stabilizer muscles necessary to do all other leg work. As far as the knee? This is my opinion and based on my experience but if your knee is traveling too far over your toe - you're not using your potential enough and getting your full ROM w/the lunge and probably not benefitting from it as much as you could be.

[zfan88]

proposterous. if you go full depth it is totally impossible to not get the toes in front of the knees. try, and youll fall on your arse.

You are wrong again. If you have perfect form your knees will not travel past your toes. I'm 6'4 with long limbs and mine don't go out that far, even going ATG. Took a lot of practice before the weight, but I got it down

[bobbelibobban]

You are wrong again. If you have perfect form your knees will not travel past your toes. I'm 6'4 with long limbs and mine don't go out that far, even going ATG. Took a lot of practice before the weight, but I got it down

maybe your grass is a redwood?