Being able to control and work against gravity is beneficial to overall balance in daily activities.

This position could cause force to pull the athlete forward, rather than downward. Can result in kneck injury or fall. This form is typically a result of weakness in the erector spinae, trapezius, and rhomboids.

Here we see Kyphosis (Flexion) resulting from less than ideal strength of the core.

When ascending, the force should be produced from the Lower Body domain. Over-Flexion of the torso will result in unwanted exertion of the back during the squat ascent.

Unaligned knees will likely result in hips that are not parallel to the ground. This poor form likely results from the posterior chain muscles being weaker. When squatting it is necessary to avoid valgus position as much as possible.

Ideal squat depth is found when parallels between the hips, thighs, and ground exist. This incorrect form is caused by loading the force onto the knees, rather than the hips and glutes. Ways to target this issue are to control the speed of the motion by aiming for a 2:1 descent to ascent ratio.

Here we see the previously mentioned knee loading.

Make sure the feet are firmly planted to the ground to provide a stable base for the whole movement.

Assessment of Hips, Knees, and Feet to begin squat motion. Following this list sets us up for having a stable base.

When standing, it is always ideal to have the spine in the neutral/straight position. However, with weight on the barbell it is expected that our athlete may adjust their spine to accommodate the force applied; just make sure the Lordotic curvature is not excessive in the standing position.

Here we actually see an error in the Upper Body Mechanics, however, the Lower Body is engaged in correct form. We will later discuss the error in the Upper Body Domain. It is important to note that the stable base provided by our athlete by engaging the Lower Body correctly aids in him not becoming imbalanced even with incorrect Upper Body form. However, if he were to slightly disengage his foot contact to the ground at all, there is a risk of falling forward due to the Upper Body misalignment.

Here we see that our athlete performs the squat with a good depth. The depth can be assessed as seen on the screen. Focus should be placed on upper thigh, knees, and hips. The upper thigh should be parallel to the ground without causing the knee to deviate from ideal position. The hips should also be set towards the back - not hovering over the feet or heels.

Our athlete has suffered rotator cuff injuries in addition to his recent back injury. When first loading, he tends to struggle with balancing the barbell as he still feels greater pressure on his right side. However in the next still shots I will be going into detail about why this may not be a huge issue (at lower loads).

In our previous still shot we see that our athlete had an ever slightly skewed bar when loading; the degree was within four degrees of the ideal 90. However, here we see our athlete descend and correct his form without my outside feedback indicating a need to do so. The moment arm of the force decreases as he is closer to the ground, which allows for him to maintain better form with minimal effort.

Now we see that our athlete becomes so focused on straightening out his bar before decent, that he forgets to be aware of another component that is also crucial for stability. If you notice, the cap is no longer facing out towards us as the trainer, but down to the floor. If you recall from the error portion of the video, this indicates that the thoracic position is incorrect - which could cause an unwanted forward moment arm stemming from the athlete (I.e., causing forward motion leading into a fall or an injury at the neck). So in turn, we may actually be compromising the Upper Body Mechanics more so now than when the bar was slightly leaning.

Again, with the Lower Body Domain it is crucial to have even dispersion of the forces working on the body. Ideally, to assess the knees you would want to view them at the front view. However, assessing your athlete from the rear view also allows for one to see if the lateral aspect of the knees are remaining open (I.e, avoiding Valgus position by clearing the torso and hips).

Here we see good depth as the knees are not over-flexed or required to do the work in the motion.

When our athlete goes back into extension of the knees, the chest is moving up and out gradually - the torso remains in an upright position without buckling over. Balance is maintained throughout the movement.

Here we see the thoracic position is correct; the athlete should be facing forward during this movement. The athlete’s trunk is also relatively parallel to his tibias during this motion, which will help aid him in not flexing the spine.

The torso should remain in an upright position in lead to the hips and knees. The thoracic position should also remain consistent when ascending.