How to be balanced and stable in Good Morning + Squat

Question

This exercise (Good Morning + Squat) is taken from this video of Olesiy Torokhtiy:

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I wanted to explore the best technique to do that.

1. My first doubt is about the balance. The barbell is not above the midfoot. On the way down our butt goes backwards so it is ok (like in squat) that te barbell must be slightly in front of the midfoot. But that shift depends on the weight and with huge loads it must be practically above the midfoot.

In this Good Morning + Squat Exercise, it seems to me that at the end of the good morning phase, the barbell position cannot be changed too much, and that is enough in front of the midfoot. How can we deal with huge loads in this exercise? Can a low bar position be better since it puts the barbell closer to the midfoot line?

2. My second doubt is about the stability. The squat starts with the knees locked at the top and with the hip under the parallel at bottom. And the good morning? I see his knees are not locked when he is parallel to the ground. This makes me feel unstable and without a reference point. Do you have some suggestion to feel it more stable?

Answer 1

With huge loads [the bar] must be practically above the midfoot.

In this Good Morning + Squat Exercise, it seems to me that at the end of the good morning phase, the barbell position cannot be changed too much, and that is enough in front of the midfoot. How can we deal with huge loads in this exercise?

You can shift the position of the bar backwards through increased ankle plantarflexion. However if you are aiming to reach a horizontal torso position, increased hamstring flexibility will be needed.

However I believe this was only intended as a warmup exercise anyway, so it would never be done with heavy weights.

Can a low bar position be better since it puts the barbell closer to the midfoot line?

A little, but I would probably prefer a low bar position just because when extremely bent over, having the weight of the bar on the backs of the shoulders instead of pressing into the neck would be much more comfortable.

This makes me feel unstable and without a reference point. Do you have some suggestion to feel it more stable?

It's just balance. Practicing with very light weights and, when comfortable, work up from there.

Answer 2

1. I believe it is designed this way to challenge the glutes more intensively as the lever arm is longer. Barbell above mid foot is giving us the most efficient bar path during a squat but that does not mean all exercises need to be carried out in that manner. You can do a squat while holding a dumbbell with your arms outstretch. This introduces a different demand for your muscles. As long as your are bending from your hips and your spine stays neutral, you will be fine. He is not going into excessive flexion or extension of the spine at any point.

2. It’s quite difficult to lock your knees with your hips bend that much. It’s known as active insufficiency. The quad muscles runs from your hips to your knee cap and it is responsible for straightening your knee and flexing your hip. So it can’t do both at the same time to full range.

I’ll like to highlight that stability comes from your muscles. Find out which part of the movement you’re are not stable, identify the muscles that need to make you stable, and work on those