Australian strength coach Sebastian Oreb fixes a common squat mistake that can wreak havoc on your back – Muscle and Conditioning

Sebastian Oreb, better known as ‘The Australian Strength Coach’ to his over half a million followers on Instagram, knows the importance of lifting heavy while staying injury-free. And as mentor to Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson, the results speak for themselves. So when Oreb took to social media to correct the common mistake of arching during squats, it was clear he had our backs… literally.

Finding perfect form during traditional back squats can be particularly difficult. There are a number of factors to consider, such as foot placement and keeping the bar stable while it rests on the shoulders, but one area that is often confused is how much the back should be bent. Oreb shared that the reason for excessive bending is often caused by the lifter trying to avoid a rounded upper back and shoulders. The problem here is that too much bending creates an elongated spine, while squats require flexion and range of motion.

“So a lot of people stretch excessively to avoid going into flexion,” Oreb explains. “That does two bad things. First, it lengthens our rectus abdominis, the rectus abdominus is a six-pack abs. If I hit you in the gut as hard as I can, would you want to lengthen or contract those muscles?” Hopefully you’ll never get hit while preparing yourself for a squat, but the illustration serves an important purpose. “Okay, so when we lengthen those muscles, we don’t activate them.”

How to properly brace your core for squats

It all starts with the first brace, explained Oreb, who was too accompanied by Bailey Haslam for the detailed demonstration. The Australian strength coach explained that while many people remember to inhale as they begin descending the bar, some forget to tighten their abdominal muscles. “The way we contract these is we bring our ribs towards the pelvis,” he explained.

With this advice, Haslam took a deep breath and contracted her core as she bent her knees and lowered herself. With her core flexed, the arch naturally narrowed as the spine straightened. This contracted core then strengthened Haslam’s stability and ability to stand up with purpose.

Why arching during squats is dangerous

Oreb further explained that lengthening the spine during squats causes an anterior tilt of the pelvis. “So the anterior tilt reduces the amount of hip joint flexion available to us,” he shared. The Australian strength coach demonstrated that when standing the hips are not flexed, but when his hips drop toward his knees during a squat, hip flexion comes into play. Oreb explained that if the spine is lengthened before lowering, it takes up valuable hip flexion before even starting the rep. The position of a hunched back takes away the ability to rotate the pelvis.

So Oreb once again pointed out the importance of contracting the abdominal muscles and neutralizing the pelvic position, to gain more available degrees of movement during the descent phase, thus achieving a powerlifting depth more comfortably.

For more tips on finding the perfect shape, follow Sebastian Oreb on Instagram by click here.