Stopping dead at the bottom of SLS/PE1 (Deck Squat)

Greetings all,

I have always had significant issues with the desk squat and thus have never trained it seriously.  I started F1 today as my evening exercise for twice-a-days.  All that said when I do the deck squat I have no issue coming down into the squat but after I roll back I roll forward and end up whacking my tailbone a bit and my feet end up flat on the floor heels almost touching my rear end, arms extended forward and at a dead stop.

I am 6'1" and have pretty short legs and arms; most of my height is in a long torso and I am wondering if my biology is disadvantaging me for the deck squat?

I can do air squats all the way down, feet together without any issue.  I can do cassock squats easily as well.  3rd world squat for several minutes with feet totally flat, ATG squat with a pipe or barbell overhead, KB overhead squat with a pair of 20KG, again ATG.  I cannot be sure but I have serious doubts that mobility is my issue here.

I could probably generate more momentum but don't want to whack my tailbone harder as I fear injury.  I am rounding my spine but there is only so much rounding one can do with the lower spine and If I could I am not sure I would want more lower spine mobility as this is associated with nasty injuries.

Any suggestions folks could offer would be much appreciated.  I want to do this correctly but and not sure what I can do to fix the deck squat.

If you post a video people can get a better idea of what's going wrong.

I was having a similar "whacking" sensation in my sacrum at first. Learning to ppt and roll smoothly eliminated the clunky roll.

A few notes about what helps me to get through the motion more easily: for one as I come forward out of the roll to get back onto my feet there is a slight whipping motion. My hips get a little ahead of my upper torso followed by my upper torso catching up, that gets me over my ankles just fine. Another thing is to make sure my head gets over my ankles before I begin standing up, otherwise I have to restep to keep my balance. 

Good luck.

kimura said:

If you post a video people can get a better idea of what's going wrong.

For certain that is true.  I will have to see about trying to make that happen.  I am sure there is much wrong with my Deck squat folks could critique.

howens said:

I was having a similar "whacking" sensation in my sacrum at first. Learning to ppt and roll smoothly eliminated the clunky roll.

ppt?  I tried searching for what this might mean and am just not sure.  Please define this term for me.  If I lay on my back I can roll back and forth smoothly and the roll back seems smooth to me.  Though it is likely the roll is not nearly as smooth as I think it is.

I will try to post a video, also I suppose one option is to just do lots and lots of deck squats until something clicks in my CNS.  Any thoughts on if this is a good idea or just likely to ingrain bad habits?

Thanks to all for the advice!

I know as my bent hollows got better my deck squats improved also exhaling forcefully as u rock up can help. Ppt is essential and I'd recommend stretching ur hip flexors before. When I first started I had to throw my arms and hand pretty hard forward as well. If u do it from an elevated surface that may assist u to start as well.

Gillham said:

I know as my bent hollows got better my deck squats improved also exhaling forcefully as u rock up can help. Ppt is essential and I'd recommend stretching ur hip flexors before. When I first started I had to throw my arms and hand pretty hard forward as well. If u do it from an elevated surface that may assist u to start as well.

I am sorry I cannot seem to find the definition for the acronym PPT; what does is stand for? 

Posterior pelvic tilt. Tucking ur hips/tail under. Flattening ur back

It could just be your torso that exacerbates the issue but something I noticed, when this occurred with me, was ensuring I really kept my lower back flat to round out the spine. Keeps the roll from stopping right before you pop back up and allows the momentum to carry you up. It really helps with getting your feet to make contact before your tailbone does. This would be the PPT they are referring to. It's hard to see in the example video because of the slight angle, but you can see his pelvis is slightly tilted to allow for this.

ManlyBeardface said:

Greetings all,

I have always had significant issues with the desk squat and thus have never trained it seriously. I started F1 today as my evening exercise for twice-a-days. All that said when I do the deck squat I have no issue coming down into the squat but after I roll back I roll forward and end up whacking my tailbone a bit and my feet end up flat on the floor heels almost touching my rear end, arms extended forward and at a dead stop.

I am 6'1" and have pretty short legs and arms; most of my height is in a long torso and I am wondering if my biology is disadvantaging me for the deck squat?

I can do air squats all the way down, feet together without any issue. I can do cassock squats easily as well. 3rd world squat for several minutes with feet totally flat, ATG squat with a pipe or barbell overhead, KB overhead squat with a pair of 20KG, again ATG. I cannot be sure but I have serious doubts that mobility is my issue here.

I could probably generate more momentum but don't want to whack my tailbone harder as I fear injury. I am rounding my spine but there is only so much rounding one can do with the lower spine and If I could I am not sure I would want more lower spine mobility as this is associated with nasty injuries.

Any suggestions folks could offer would be much appreciated. I want to do this correctly but and not sure what I can do to fix the deck squat.

Your fear of rounding the lower spine is going to be a huge hinderance in your pursuit of Gymnastic Strength Training™. Rounding the lower back will not lead to injury during deck squatting. If we were talking about barbell back squats or overhead squats, then yes, rounding the lower back would be dangerous, but with many of the Foundation exercises it is a requirement.