back problems

coach,
if your kids are squating too much weight too soon they may experience ower back issues. If your kids squat too deep(yes there IS such a thing!)and lose the proper curvature of the lumbar region they WILL have lower back problems. The spine is made up of three arcs of 43 degrees(all of our spines should be THE SAME)- the lower spine should maintain this throughout the squat.
Just below parallel is fine but no more than that, and you minimize this issue.
I was a 705 lbs. squatter @ 200 lbs- I KNOW lower back pain.
I'm not a big fan of hang cleans because of the lower back stress- I like power cleans much more.
what lifts are they doing?

lower body / upper body strength is USELESS without CORE strength.

The kids HAVE to be improving their core stabilizers in the off-season.

work the abdominals and upper/lower back with crunches, reverse crunches, leg raises, oblique crunches, back extensions, oblique rows, pullups, med ball routines, etc.

Abs, Abs, Abs, Abs...you MUST train the abs. Im not talking just crunches, either. As others have said, a weak core is a set up for failure or injury. Of course, the CORE consists of more than just abs, but the abdominal region is probably the most neglected area in many strength programs...train them using many different movements.

Flexion: Abdominal Cable Pulldowns, Sit Ups, Overhead Resisted Sit ups, Normal resisted sit ups, Exercise Ball crunches (resisted), hanging leg raises

Extension: Ab wheel, Suspended Blast Strap Extensions (I can explain these if necessary), Planks (for stability)

Rotation (IMPORTANT!): Cable baseball swings, Barbell side bends, DB side Bends, Cable Side Bends, Russian Twists, Side Planks, Side Planks w/ Raise, Lawnmowers, etc.

Medicine balls can be very helpful with abdominal work as well.

Low Back work is just as important as abdominal work:

Good mornings, Back Hyperextensions, Reverse Back Hyperextensions, Romanian and Straight leg Deadlifts, Cable Pull Throughs w/ straight leg, etc.

And, of course, as others have already mentioned...train the hamstrings. The lifts above will train the hip extensors (where the glutes meet the hams)...to train the flexors (where the hams meet the knee) go with movements like Glute/Ham raises, Plate Slides, Band leg curls and regular leg curls.

I would NOT take squats out of the program. The ONLY way I would recommend this is if you can't teach them or if you have athletes w/ legitimate back injuries. I would HIGHLY recommend you purchase or build boxes so that the athletes can box squat. This is, in MY experience, is the BEST way to teach CORRECT parallel squats. If you have boxes, get started now...if not, I recommend in your upcoming days off for Christmas, you get to building some.

If you need help w/ squatting technique, we can help you with that. Once you know how to teach the squat, go with low weight (use a weight the athlete can get for 12 reps) and go with 8-12 SETS of 3 REPS. That is not a typo...8-12 sets x 3 reps. If they are squatting wrong, it will take a while to break the bad habits they have learned...if you continue to use higher rep schemes (6-12 reps) OR low rep schemes but with heavy weight, then you will continue to intensify the bad habits. Squatting for 3 reps per set w/ low weight will not give them enough time to tap into the bad habits. Using 8 x 3 will give them just as many reps as going with 3 x 8...however, with 3 x 8 you will probably have about 9 or 10 GOOD reps out of 24 total reps (3x8=24), meaning that you have about 14 bad reps (or old habit reps)...using 8 x 3 however, you will have 24 GOOD reps out of 24. Catch my drift??? If they can't get 3 reps w/o screwing up, go down to 2 reps per set and add a set or two.

Good luck w/ your program.

Have a blessed day, Coach.

Jimbo

CUI,

Rest intervals don't really matter here. The key is to concentrate on technique, period. The weight should not be heavy enough to cause fatigue. My guys always work in a 4 or 5 man team, so basically the rest interval will only be as long as it takes the team to complete their sets. Usually ends up being around 1 to 1.5 mins.

Remember, this method is used to eliminate bad technique habits and install new good habits. The goal is NOT to see how much you can lift for 3 reps or see how FAST you can complete 3 reps...the goal IS to improve technique, so the athletes must concentrate solely on your focus points.

On the squat:
1) Assume "athletic" stance (a little wider than shoulder width...too wide can be hard on the hips)
2) Head straight ahead, Back Arched, Chest Out, Bar resting on TRAPS...not neck
3) Grip the bar tightly (choke it to death)
4) Elbows should be UNDER the bar, not behind it
5) On the decsent, SIT BACK, not DOWN (while maintaining position described in #2,3,4)
6) Reach parallel (I prefer to use a box set at parallel)
7) On the acsent, push neck BACK (this doesnt mean look up) into bar (helps to come up in straight line)
8) Push knees outward (spread the floor with feet)
9) Come up FAST, yet under control (if in the correct position, control shouldnt be a problem)

This is just the beginning...there are several more pointers involved in building big squats. But, as you can see...with all of this to remember, they will have NO CHOICE but to concentrate on technique only, and since there is so much to remember, any more than 3 reps and they will most likely screw up. That is, until they become much better at the particular lift. Once they become able to finish every set w/ NO faults in technique CONSISTENTLY (I'm talking months here), they can progress to a regular set/rep scheme and increase weight.

I use this set/rep method when teaching the Bench Press, Deadlift and Squat. Most of the other lifts we will perform (in the beginning) will be solely to increase muscle hypertrophy and general strength, so light to medium weight is used in those lifts...plus they are less difficult to perform, so we can use a regular 3-4 sets x 6-12 reps scheme. Bench Presses, Deadlifts and Squats (done correctly), however, are very complex and can take some time to teach. One note: the athletes will NEVER be perfect with their technique, so don't expect them to be...BUT, they need to be able to complete each lift they perform without injuring themselves...and THAT responsibility belongs to the STRENGTH COACH.

Have a Blessed day!

Jimbo Hale

Coach Easton,

YOU THA MAN!!! Seriously, I appreciate the kind words...its trully humbling to hear something like that from a coach/man of your stature and background. THANKYOU.

Also, not to sound too sappy...I am extremely grateful that you are back in action...you are loved by everyone on this site.

Now without further adieu, LAY SOME KNOWLEDGE ON US!

Jimbo

Coach Aztec,

Done properly, a box squat doesn't consist of dropping onto the box. Of course, a tight back is paramount when squatting, therefore the reason of the 3 rep scheme I use when teaching the squat (almost every athlete I have trained can stay tight for atleast 3 reps). I have seen coaches who have no idea how teach the box squat, and if you have seen these types, then your point is valid, however a properly taught/performed box squat will only release tension in the HIPS for a split second before the ascent off of the box, the BACK stays tight.

Jimbo

Found it.

Coach Mac

Jimbo - Good to see you on here again. What size are your boxes? I know you add mats or whatever if necessary. I am going to make some new, and wanted to be educated on what size to make. Also, when you test on box squat (if you do), how do you determine what size of box (height) they can use. Just sitting on a box can be deceiving.