Correlation between high squats/lack of pulling and sports injuries?

Training Q&A [Moderated]
1

Hey Docs,

Do you think that common sports injuries (hamstring pulls/tears, ACL tears, etc) are in any way associated with the above-parallel squats and lack of posterior chain work commonly found in high school and collegiate weight rooms across the country? I ask this because most of what I see programmed for young athletes are high squats, leg presses, and hack squats, with little to no deadlifting of any kind. It seems intuitive that this may lead to an underdeveloped, and therefore more injury prone posterior chain.

I’m interested to hear the thoughts of a medical professional (that actually lifts) on the matter.

2

I think that idea, while it may be superficially compelling, represents an oversimplistic (and therefore inaccurate) understanding of the mechanisms, risk factors, and epidemiology of injury.

We have a few things cooking and will be putting out much more content on injuries (risk factors, risk reduction, and management) in the future.

5 Likes
3

Thanks for the response! I look forward to more injury related content. The stuff you’ve put out so far has been very helpful!

4

This is definitely interesting because it’s hard to see how or at which point something like that becomes valid. Same is said for athletes getting shoulder injuries is due to too much pressing and not enough pulling to activate the back musclulatire and keep the shoulders in a good position. Example, my physical therapist who was also an Olympic lifter told me I had shoulder pain from weak lower traps and not enough pulling to keep my scapula from tilting anteriorly (but little did she know I already did 3x as many Pulls to pushes at that time back then and also bought into all the face pull junk). But then I’ve heard Jordan say that is incorrect and that all muscles “pull” and that the push pull ratio is dumb and doesn’t do anything and is not of any value/won’t prevent or cure anything. Maybe with lower body it’s different, but I feel like the doctors would not say a lack of pulls causes any pain or injury at least if the squats are done correctly and through the appropriate range of motion. But then again, I’m not them. So many new things I’m learning