Overhead Squats

Workout 10 February 2009:

Overhead Squats 5 sets of 3 reps

Results: 65-75-85-95-105lb
Previous Best: No prior 3x5

The overhead squat is probably the most difficult type of squat. It is also one of the most beneficial since it works essentially every muscle in the body and demands significant core strength and stability. If you have a weak muscle group, this exercise will find it and if you do enough reps at a heavy enough weight, muscles will be sore the next day that you didn't know you had.

However, there are a couple of major drawbacks to this extremely beneficial exercise.

First, it requires a significant amount of shoulder, hamstring, and ankle flexibility. This is the main reason I haven't done many in the past. Only recently, with a lot of effort, have I gained enough flexibility to attempt more than a few reps at a very light weight. My form is not good: my stance is too wide, my knees don't track over my feet (they turn inward), and my torso is not fully upright. However, the only way to get better is to do lots of them, so I plan to incorporate more into my workouts even if it's just some skill training at the end of a workout.

Second, in order to go heavy, you need to be able to safely bail. My current setup does not permit throwing down my barbell (unless I want to break something). To do this properly, I would want to use rubber bumper plates (designed to be dropped) on a lifting platform (designed to have heavy things dropped on it). Until I have regular access to both, I will need to work with a weight that I know that I am able to fully control. For now, this is fine, since it's safer that I not do extremely heavy OHS without improving form first.