Work on Better Technique

Above all, you need to dial in your technique first. If you’re technique is poor, it makes no sense to start adding more weight and injuring yourself further. There are three very simple cues you need to always be thinking when you squat; chest up, hips back, and knees out. Most people squat straight down, instead of pushing their hips back into a hip hinge pattern while driving their knees out, which forces them into a vertical and more quad-dominant squatting pattern. This type of squat requires great mobility at the upper back, hips and ankles and a strong core and upper back. If you don’t have all of these qualities and your movement is limited, you are more likely to fall forward when the weights gets heavier.

Two drills to help you keep your chest up, push your hips back and drive your knees out are wall squats (which will load your posterior chain to a greater extent)—where you face a wall with your feet about 6” away and squat down without hitting the wall, trying to go as deep as possible—or goblet squats—where you hold a dumbbell vertically on one end and squat down keeping your chest out and driving your knees outward—will teach you proper positioning during the conventional squat pattern.