Steve Goggins has been busy lately opening a new gym and staying occupied during the holiday season, but now he's back and ready to answer more questions from elitefts readers. For today's video, Goggins responds to a question about his 1102-pound squat:
"How does it feel to do a good morning with 1100 pounds?"
The "good morning" in this question is actually Goggins' 1100-pound squat (the first ever), but the person asking the question calls it a good morning to emphasize Goggins' unique squat technique, which uses a lot of lower back, hips, and glutes. Whereas many lifters attempt to stay as upright as possible when squatting, Goggins intentionally squats with a greater forward lean.
WATCH: Should You Keep Your Lats Tight When You Deadlift?
So, to answer the question directly, Goggins says that the 1102-pound lift felt completely normal, just "heavy as shit." Because this technique is the way that Goggins has always squatted, it didn't feel abnormal at all. He has been told many times since the very beginning of his lifting career that he had terrible form in the squat. He heard this enough times when he started powerlifting that, for a while, it made him think that he needed to correct it. But as he continued to get stronger, the only issue his style of squatting ever caused was him having to focus more on getting down to depth, which was a matter of discipline more than anything else.
Once Goggins realized that this was simply his natural style of squatting based on the way his torso and body was built, he accepted it, stopped trying to change his squat, and worked instead to perfect what was natural to him. He got better and better at it and it never caused any serious problems. After he stopped fighting what was natural to him and stopped trying to squat like other lifters, he was able to focus on getting stronger in the style that made sense for him.
The takeaway is that you should focus on perfecting the style that works for the way that your body is built. If you're an upright squatter, you need to work on perfecting an upright squat. But if you're not, why would you try to force a style that doesn't make sense for your body? Master the style that is right for you, not the style that is right for someone else.
One of the most impressive things I've ever seen.
That power!
Still the way you answered the question, breaking down why it's important to squat the way that best fits your body type is another reason why you're an exceptional coach!
I'll swing by the new gym if/when my schedule opens up (you know I'm juggling a lot too!)