I can't do a proper squat, /fit/. I'm a total novice

>>41458900
Highly doubt it's your lower back flexibility that's the problem.

Mobility tends to be the problem, though. Ankles, hamstrings, and hip flexors are the big ones, so work on stretching those.

Best bet is to get a coach.

Do bodyweight squats daily for a week. Do the same for goblet squats. Look up some yoga and shit. You need to learn how to move.

Your torso doesn't need to be vertical unless you're front squatting.

The bar needs to be over your midfoot (midway between the back of your heel and your metatarsal joint). If that means you've got to lean forward a bit so be it. Just don't let your lower back round and you'll be fine.

>>41458900
Practice stretching for a while to work on mobility

You have mobility issues, most probably because of tight hamstrings or hip flexors.
I had the same problem as you when i started lifting a couple of months ago, want i did was mobility work on my rest days and now i can do ATG front squats without a problem.

>>41458940
The sticky's link for mobility "specifically for squats" leads to a 404. Do you have an good sources I can read up on?

>>41458900
Do a bodyweight squat, can you go ATG while keeping your heels flat on the ground?

If you have to raise onto your toes to keep balance, you have a mobility issue. Foam roll your calves, quads, and your hamstrings, then do some stretching. Should be better after a couple weeks

Post video plz

>>41458993
https://www.reddit.com/r/flexibility/comments/4lxu1l/welcome_to_week_1_of_the_squat_mobility_month/

>>41459010
Not quite.

After reading a few of these responses I think it might be my hip flexors; they feel incredibly tight when going parallel or lower.

I'm also concerned my posture (or lack thereof) might be of concern, since my job has me in a desk for roughly 9hrs a day.

>>41459030
Sure thing, give me a moment to record and upload.

File: bhuy.webm (2MB, 1920x1080px) Image search: [Google]

2MB, 1920x1080px

>>41459030
Sorry bout that. My phone is from '11 and I had to fuck with it.

>>41458900
I get crippling knee pain and have to exert myself to squat by bodyweight. I got folded under 135 on my fourth rep once. I bench 245 and deadlift 435. If I wear knee wraps on the other hand, my squat almost doubles. This started when I began squatting without doing any sort of mobility work because I didn't want to "waste time." I really suggest you take squatting to a stand still and assess exactly what is going on. Record yourself from all angles and compare to videos of pros. Look at your knee in relation to your ankle, your lower back, how you rise and sink into and out of the hole, bar position on the back relative to foot width (never do like a high bar wide squat or something autistic,) how far you turn your feet out. When I started I was doing a high bar good morning with a sumo tier stance and just loosely sinking into the bottom of the rep, losing all tension and wondering why I was struggling to get up lmao .5pl8

>>41459375
Well damn.

From that angle, I can't tell you much about your stance (although I'm assuming you're wide as fuck), but holy mother of god that lower back.

Mobility work as suggested above out the ass. Plus keep that back straight and sink as low as you can for a long as you can with a good back; it will improve over time. Wall squats might help you, too.

>>41459518
I'll see if I can get a better angle. I don't feel as if I'm all that wide (considering I'm 6'5''), but I'd rather not assume too much.

The problem is, that was me trying to keep my back as straight as possible, and even then it was uncomfortable as shit.

If I keep it straight, it becomes nigh impossible to get my legs bent past 45-50 degrees without my back screaming at me.

You need to loosen up your hips and stop worrying about keeping your knees behind your toes. Your knees should travel out as far as they need to go. How angled are your feet?

>>41459375
You probably need to stretch adductors
It took me about two weeks to stretch to comfortable take a squat stance
I find that the best way to go is slowly squatting without breaking form, and pushing slowly at the point that you feel rigid