Weight Loss Thread

I don't usually post on reddit but I felt the need to reading the replies to this thread. For those who care I'm a d1 coach with a phd in biomechanics (although that by no means makes me automatically correct). Everyone seems to be throwing vitriol at the doctor and saying things like "all exercises are dangerous using bad form". Which is absolute nonsense. The risk of squats are not even in the same realm as those of say, a chin up. The worst I've seen with chin ups is some mild tendonitis. On the other hand, I've seen a great deal of herniated/bulged discs from squats, more than any other exercise actually. And in guys in their 20s. Many who honestly just wanted to look better on the beach to impress girls but got pressured into doing squats.

The term good form itself is such an amorphous term and honestly it doesn't mean what most of you think it does. No one constantly keeps "good form". Powerlifters who live and breath the squat still constantly get injured doing light weights despite knowing damn well what "good form" is. It's just a part of the sport, any sport really. And that's fine if you're a powerlifter/olifter. It's your sport and you have to squat. No question there. But when it comes to the average noob on /r/fitness who wants to not be skinny, that concept changes.

The thing that people are overlooking is that squats require a good deal of mobility. Something that many beginners and just people in general in the western world lack. I'm not even talking about stuff like mild dorsiflexion issues, I'm talking full blown postural issues that require time to fix (and don't get me started on the variations required in the squat from anthropomorphic differences you see among people). And the vast majority don't bother.

So is your doctor right? Well sort of. Squats can be done with minimal risk in perfect conditions. But those perfect conditions don't exist in the real world. There is always a risk doing squats and that risk is far greater than most other exercises. It's up to you for whether that risk is worth it. If you have good proportions, mobility, and you compete, then obviously yes you should squat. If you're an athlete looking to improve your performance, then yeah you probably should, squats are a fantastic movement. If you're an average gym goer whose goals are to look like brad pitt from whatever that fucking movie is people always talk about, then honestly I would say you don't need to squat.

smart/strong guy well-respected on reddit
I feel like your post is conflating "heavy back squats" with "squats". The first is the injurious exercise of which you speak, the second is a fundamental movement pattern healthy people should be able to perform.

Without focus on the latter, the former can cause you issues. This is where Dan John comes in. He recommends two things I love here:
Start with the goblet squat, build up in reps. Eventually move to the front squat, and then the back squat.

Unless you compete in the squat, you shouldn't need to do sets of less than 10. I worry that your post is just going to swing a bunch of noobs wildly in the other direction away from squatting entirely when what they need is to work on the movement pattern.

d1coach
I've actually met Dan a few times and he's a very nice guy and I actually agree with what he says here (hell it's almost identical to what I do with my own athletes). And people do drastically reduce their injury rates with proper prep. But people don't do that. They want results so they jump on SS/SL and start squatting immediately. They don't get the proper mobility or movement pattern down and they never go past 5 reps.

But that's not even the point. Even if you're a natural squatter and have good foundation the risk is still there (despite being diminished). More so than other exercises. So when you say when what they need is to work on the movement pattern... Why? Why does a 20 year old college student who doesn't care about mobility or athletics and wants to impress dumb college girls (no offense) have to squat and invest all this time and effort into it?

smart/strong guy well-respected on reddit
Why? Because the mobility to squat (rather: the ability to rise from the floor without using the arms) is directly correlated with mortality.

European Journal of Cardiovascular Prevention & Rehabilitation(no it's not squatting specific, but if you do not have the mobility to squat, you cannot do this).

As for your point about dietary recommendations and the like, I entirely agree, but that's not a thing I care about or want to fight for. Others certainly should, though. I much prefer to champion the cause of movement quality for general health and longevity. To this end, I believe everyone needs to squat regularly in some form, but it doesn't need to be heavy and it doesn't need to be a back squat. As long as the movement pattern is present.

d1coach
In that case I absolutely agree. And thank you for the study

smart/strong guy well-respected on reddit
Yeah I agree with everything in your initial post, I just wanted to ensure we were on the same page and your post was about "heavy back squats" and not the movement pattern itself.