The Bottom Position of Your Squat: A Defining Characteristic of Your Human Existence

Okay the title is ridiculous.  Though, whether on the competition platform or when training for your respective sport, ones bottom position in the squat can tell you a lot about an athlete.  I want to focus on a common movement pattern that some utilize to attain “proper depth”.  I’m talking about lumbar flexion/posterior pelvic tilt at or near the bottom of the squat.  That’s right – the dreaded BUTT WINK.

Recently, I discovered that there is a “Pro-Butt Wink” camp.  The rationale being that a posterior pelvic tilt in the bottom of the squat puts the gluteus maximus in a more advantageous position for elastic rebound.  If I don’t think about it very hard, this almost makes sense.  To me, however, the reward is not worth the long-term risk.  There seems to be plenty of literature pointing to the fact that loaded flexion is not such a good thing^1-4  So wink away if that’s your thing; but I’d rather just cue a good ‘ole braced neutral spine.  Now, are positions always going to be perfect on the competition platform or the field on game day?  Of course not.  You do what you have to do to win; and there is always a buffer zone or range of movement that certain athletes can get away with relatively unscathed. ⁵  This is especially the case in Olympic weightlifting where the dynamic mobility demands are so extreme. Does that mean we should not strive for optimal positions in training?  Absolutely not.

Structural/Anatomical Differences

I am not going to say much about this.  Personally, it bores me to talk about things that cannot be changed.  There have been a couple recent articles floating around explaining the fact that everyone’s bony structure is different, and everyone’s squat position will and should not look the same.  Of course, I acknowledge that this is true.  However, I’m getting the sense that some are using this as an excuse to have a shitty squat.  So for the rest of this particular article, we are going to focus on things that we can change.

3 Common Causes of The Butt Wink

So why do people use this pattern? Poor joint mobility? Poor muscle flexibility? Poor motor control/stability?  The answer is YES.  It can be any combination of these.  We will discuss a few common causes, and the interventions will focus mostly on joint mobility and muscle flexibility.  This is because trying to stabilize a system that can’t move in the first place is equal to the proverbial piss in the wind.  Just know that sufficient motor control and stability is the end goal, and the subject for a future installment.

Cause #1:  An initial set up position highlighted by excessive anterior pelvic tilt and lumbar lordosis

If you start the lift in a poor position, it’s damn near impossible to correct in the middle.  Usually it will just get worse.  Especially with 550 on your back, like you had last week when you were training out of town.  Your phone died though, so you couldn’t get video.  Anyway, what we see often is that people set their backs and hips with too much low back arch.  This arch only increases as they descend.  Then as the person approaches parallel, his or her femur and pelvis meet.  The result is a posterior tilt and round back to achieve more depth – AKA a butt wink.  A common complaint from the athlete may be a pinching feeling in the front of the hip.  This is not a surprise considering they are smashing tissue between two bones.  Again, while ultimately this may be a motor control fix, let’s first address mobilizing a lumbar spine stuck in extension, and short anterior hip musculature that can tug on the low back and tip the pelvis forward.  Hyperextension in the back squat descent has been shown in the literature as well.⁶  See the video below for a test/retest and two corrective drills.