Squats and deadlifts build more strength per minute than almost anything else you can do. They are also the two lifts where small technical errors compound into sore backs and stalled numbers.
These are the five faults we correct most often during filmed form assessments.
1. Starting the deadlift with the hips too low
Squatting the bar up turns a hinge into a poor leg press. The bar drifts forward, the hips shoot up first, and the lower back finishes the lift.
Fix: set your shoulders slightly in front of the bar, pull the slack out of the bar before you move, and think about pushing the floor away rather than lifting up.
2. Losing bracing at the bottom of the squat
If your ribs flare and your air escapes at depth, your spine loses its support at the exact moment load peaks.
Fix: breathe into the belly, brace as though about to be pushed, and hold that pressure until you are past the sticking point. Practise it with tempo squats at 60 percent.
3. Knees collapsing inward
Valgus collapse under load is usually a stability issue, not a mobility one.
Fix: screw the feet into the floor, add banded goblet squats, and build single-leg strength with split squats before adding more weight to the bar.
4. Rounding at the start of the pull
A rounded upper back can be trained for; a rounding lower back that changes position mid-rep is where injuries begin.
Fix: raise the starting height temporarily, strengthen the position with Romanian deadlifts and back extensions, and only lower the bar height when the position holds.
5. Adding weight faster than technique improves
The most common mistake is not a position at all — it is impatience. Load exposes whatever pattern you have.
Fix: use a progression rule. Add weight only when every rep of the last session met the standard on video. That single rule prevents most of the injuries we see.
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