Deck Squats In F1

mtruelove... how have you approached deck squats? Have you been trying a scaled back version? Using more momentum? Or just having a go as demoed in the video?

I've been at these since F1 was released and I'm close to being able to do 1 properly. I started with forward rolls to squat and stand... then progressed to rolling back on to mats and am down to just under and inch of mats. It's a slow process for me but I make progress pretty much every session.

I spend a good 30mins doing mobility work before I start F1 and on SL/MN/SLS day I do H1 beforehand or just a few sets of HS/PE1>iM which seems to make a big difference for me. Maybe you could put a couple of sets of skiers in your warm up?

I also find that running cross country twice a week in zero drop minimal shoes helps. I have to keep a close check on volume doing this but I'm sure my mobility is improving and I'm getting some new nerve sensations in my lower leg which is a good indicator I think.

I hope there's something helpful there

I did have some trouble maintaining balance with these weeks ago. So I started back at Week 1 focusing on truly solid reps (which I should have done from the beginning). When I paid close attention to keeping tight compression during the roll, legs as close to my chest as I could hold them, and trying to touch my heels to my ass, the deck squat really took off for me. That tightness is key. Of course poor mobility will get in the way. Have you tried using mats like Richard?

The cool thing is that when deck squats started to come easy, my tuck-ups improved substantially. One day they just clicked. The compression really carries over.

George Launchbury said:

this vid and also opening a door, grabbing each doorknob in each hand and sinking down as deep as i could into a deep squat position and then pushing my butt outwards, returning to the squat helped me get comfortable with the bottom position. also moving around while in the bottom position and pinching with my butt cheeks as i lifted helped me become more conscious of using the butt and the door knob part helped me with the heels and butt stretching while under load. 

my last 4-5 SLS sessions have ended with my glutes with a bit of exhaustion and before i used to only feel it in the quads. a side effect of foam rolling and doing the before mentioned? could be a hypothesis. 

I mostly substitute with some sort of squat. My trouble is poor ankle mobility and the inability to compress; my knees cannot touch my chest and my heels can't touch my arse when I roll. Thanks for all the pointers though.

My ankle mobility is terrible. I find that compression is more important. But either way, substituting with something else probably won't get you there as fast. You should train the movement to improve at it. Use mats for height, or a counterweight held out in front of you, or push off the ground for some momentum out of the roll. And obviously continue to work on mobility.

mtruelove said:

I mostly substitute with some sort of squat. My trouble is poor ankle mobility and the inability to compress; my knees cannot touch my chest and my heels can't touch my arse when I roll. Thanks for all the pointers though.

I bought F1 the day it came out and only today i finally got my first deck squat, albeit not with perfect form but at least its a starting point. Took me around 4 month to get it. So keep at it, use assistance but dont substitute the movement, you will get there eventually.

Woohoo! Finally got my first three deck squats today!

Did my normal F1 session and just thought I may be able to do it. Had an introductory sports massage course at the weekend and have a feeling that helped as the mobilty work yesterday felt pretty good too. I actually feel like I'm getting somewhere now

Richard Hamilton said:

Woohoo! Finally got my first three deck squats today!

Did my normal F1 session and just thought I may be able to do it. Had an introductory sports massage course at the weekend and have a feeling that helped as the mobilty work yesterday felt pretty good too. I actually feel like I'm getting somewhere now

Sweet-o! No doubt you will be flying now!

Richard Hamilton said:

Woohoo! Finally got my first three deck squats today!

Did my normal F1 session and just thought I may be able to do it. Had an introductory sports massage course at the weekend and have a feeling that helped as the mobilty work yesterday felt pretty good too. I actually feel like I'm getting somewhere now

Congrats!! I know that feeling :-)

Murray, I will suggest the following things:

1) Child's pose. This is often used as a stretch, but what you can do instead of passively stretching is to treat it as an ab exercise. Actively use your abs to pull your chest into your knees, and knees into your chest. Apply pressure slowly... you will probably cramp up a little at first. You may find that applying a little pressure into the ground with your hands is a good way to get the first few contractions, but pay attention to the contraction and hold it as you ease off the pressure. Eventually you will not need the hand pressure at all. This is a short learning curve.

Step 1 is simply to FEEL the contraction, because this is what the compression will feel like as you stay tight through the rolling part of the squat.

2) Using an open door, railing, or other upright  object as a self-spot during a slow negative into a backwards half-roll to shoulder blades. Use the support by running your hands down it as you squat down into the bottom position. Do a few reps of step 1 first, and then use the same contraction. It will take some time to learn how to do this properly, but you will feel the compression when you do. KEEP this compression as you slowly roll backwards. A single hanging gymnastic ring can work nicely, as you can slowly spot yourself while keeping compression into the beginning of the backwards roll. This is a bit more advanced, as it will move with you and not be as rigid of a support, but it is a simple way to get yourself into the groove without losing tension. Make sure to try and pull your heels towards your butt the whole time, like an isometric leg curl.

3) The negatives, like step 2, but pausing in the bottom for a few seconds (perhaps 5) and keeping the contraction as you slowly roll backwards without any hand assistance. Keep the hands pointing at the wall in front of you until you start rolling onto your lower back, at which point you should just let them flow with your body. You should end with all the abdominal compression and knees bent about halfway between 90 degrees and a straight leg.

4) Start with a negative like in step 3, but KEEP the compression as you roll forward, and pretend you are doing an explosive leg curl to kick the heels at the butt as you start rolling into the upright position.The only other thing you should need to do is fling the arms towards the front wall and keep them reaching forward, and at the same time keep kicking/pulling your heels towards your butt. You will end up in a bottom position.

At this point you have deck squats, because all you have to do is stand up.

Bam. Done.

Charm said:

Sweet-o! No doubt you will be flying now!

I don't know about flying Charm but it's progress. Now that my ROM is improving on the iM that's almost more of a workout than the deck squats! I love how F1 has continually allowed me to make progress... just a few weeks back I was wondering if I'd ever manage one of these and now I've done it after 6 months. I still have a very long way to go but I'm getting there... I've been doing a few Cossack and speed skater squats after F1 sessions and they're pretty hard but I think by the time I've completed F1 I'll feel like a new man. The strength gains are nice but it's the improvement in mobility that's putting a big grin on my face

Richard Hamilton said:

I don't know about flying Charm but it's progress. Now that my ROM is improving on the iM that's almost more of a workout than the deck squats! I love how F1 has continually allowed me to make progress... just a few weeks back I was wondering if I'd ever manage one of these and now I've done it after 6 months. I still have a very long way to go but I'm getting there... I've been doing a few Cossack and speed skater squats after F1 sessions and they're pretty hard but I think by the time I've completed F1 I'll feel like a new man. The strength gains are nice but it's the improvement in mobility that's putting a big grin on my face

I think you will surprise yourself once you finish these I think you will accelerate. Time on through basics is training time best spent

Edit;

By this I mean, with dedication, you have put yourself in an excellent position for through upcoming ones. A few more iMs conquered and you won't recognise your hips and knees

Thanks for all the a advice guys. I have been following and making good progress. I can now tuck my knees to my chest in MN:PE1 and I can roll into the bottom position of the deck squat... Well half the time. Thanks again!

Joshua those pointers sound amazing I'm going to start adding them to my routine and maybe throughout the day. Cheers.

Joshua those pointers sound amazing I'm going to start adding them to my routine and maybe throughout the day. Cheers.

Murray Truelove said:

Joshua those pointers sound amazing I'm going to start adding them to my routine and maybe throughout the day. Cheers.

Let us know if they work for you! 

Well done Richard

How do we make this one a sticky? A lot of good pointers for the community

Any pointers on lumbar flexion? I have zero. I roll fine over my T-spine, but as I roll toward my lumbar I "fall" right on to it. A good "thump" sound every time I roll. I'm suspecting a tight QL, but have any of you some pointers or experiences with this?

- Julie

Julie Gunstensen said:

Any pointers on lumbar flexion? I have zero. I roll fine over my T-spine, but as I roll toward my lumbar I "fall" right on to it. A good "thump" sound every time I roll. I'm suspecting a tight QL, but have any of you some pointers or experiences with this?

- Julie

Do you have an anterior pelvic tilt (ATP)? I had very tight hip flexors and weak glutes/hamstrings, this left my lumbar spine in an almost constant state of flexion, since correcting this my lumber mobility has improved dramatically, making elements like deck squats and the rocking FL PE's much smoother.

Joshua Naterman said:

Murray, I will suggest the following things:

1) Child's pose. This is often used as a stretch, but what you can do instead of passively stretching is to treat it as an ab exercise. Actively use your abs to pull your chest into your knees, and knees into your chest. Apply pressure slowly... you will probably cramp up a little at first. You may find that applying a little pressure into the ground with your hands is a good way to get the first few contractions, but pay attention to the contraction and hold it as you ease off the pressure. Eventually you will not need the hand pressure at all. This is a short learning curve.

Step 1 is simply to FEEL the contraction, because this is what the compression will feel like as you stay tight through the rolling part of the squat.

2) Using an open door, railing, or other upright object as a self-spot during a slow negative into a backwards half-roll to shoulder blades. Use the support by running your hands down it as you squat down into the bottom position. Do a few reps of step 1 first, and then use the same contraction. It will take some time to learn how to do this properly, but you will feel the compression when you do. KEEP this compression as you slowly roll backwards. A single hanging gymnastic ring can work nicely, as you can slowly spot yourself while keeping compression into the beginning of the backwards roll. This is a bit more advanced, as it will move with you and not be as rigid of a support, but it is a simple way to get yourself into the groove without losing tension. Make sure to try and pull your heels towards your butt the whole time, like an isometric leg curl.

3) The negatives, like step 2, but pausing in the bottom for a few seconds (perhaps 5) and keeping the contraction as you slowly roll backwards without any hand assistance. Keep the hands pointing at the wall in front of you until you start rolling onto your lower back, at which point you should just let them flow with your body. You should end with all the abdominal compression and knees bent about halfway between 90 degrees and a straight leg.

4) Start with a negative like in step 3, but KEEP the compression as you roll forward, and pretend you are doing an explosive leg curl to kick the heels at the butt as you start rolling into the upright position.The only other thing you should need to do is fling the arms towards the front wall and keep them reaching forward, and at the same time keep kicking/pulling your heels towards your butt. You will end up in a bottom position.

At this point you have deck squats, because all you have to do is stand up.

Bam. Done.

Just realised this was from a year ago. It worked perfectly and I've even suggested (hopefully accurately) it to someone else having similar trouble.

No, no anterior pelvic tilt. And I have good hip extention.