How To Squat With Perfect Form
When you are exercising, one of the most important factors in your success – no matter your goals – is doing every exercise with the correct form. A squat is a great exercise for beginners to fitness or those who have been exercising for years because it is so versatile. If performed incorrectly though, you could be putting yourself at risk for injury.
Why You Should Incorporate Squats Into Your Routine
There are a number of exercises that are great to incorporate into your regular exercise routine, including squats. Including a squat regimen, whether its body weight squats, a jump squat routine, or with weights, can offer the following benefits:
Build Muscle
When you squat, you are not only engaging a variety of lower body muscles but also causing your body to release testosterone and human growth hormone, which are vital to increasing muscle mass.
Burn Fat
Strength training exercises are not necessarily going to burn more fat than a long run, but this type of exercise does allow your body to burn fat even after you’ve stopped exercising. For every pound of muscle you gain, your body burns an additional 35-50 calories per day.
Improve Core Strength
Your core is involved in every part of your daily routine. An exercise like squats not only helps tone your legs and butt but also requires you to engage your abdominal muscles and lower back to perform the exercise correctly. A strong core helps improve your athletic ability and everyday tasks.
Low Impact
There is a common misconception with the squat exercise that squatting is bad for your knees or back. Squats, when done correctly have no negative effects on your knees and are considered a low impact exercise, which is ideal for people with chronic back pain or other injuries.
Perfecting Your Squat Form
Now that we have discussed the benefits of incorporating a squat regimen into your regular exercise routine, let’s go over the proper form to ensure maximum benefit and injury prevention.
Bodyweight Squat
If you are new to squatting, a bodyweight squat is a good introductory point to learn the correct form.
Feet – Your feet should be positioned shoulder-width apart and turned out slightly. Be sure to keep your entire foot flat on the floor, don’t rise up on your toes or rock back on your heels.
Knees – When you squat down, your knees should make at least a 90* angle.
Hips – Push your hips back, as if sitting in a chair, careful not to let your knees bend over your toes. Once your hips drop just below your knees, completing the 90* angle, push through your heels to return to a standing position.
Chest – Your chest should remain in a neutral position, don’t lean forward when performing the squat.
Lower Back – Maintain the natural curve of the lower back to ensure there is no strain on the back during the squat.
Barbell Squat
When performing a barbell squat, the same form rules apply. In addition to the positioning of your body, there are certain precautions to take related to the barbell to ensure safe exercise methods.
Hands – Firmly grasp the barbell with both hands, but don’t try to hold the bar with your hands. The bar should rest on your traps and shoulders.
Wrists – Your wrists should remain neutral. Don’t let the flex backward.
Elbows – Keep your elbows tucked close to your sides, directly underneath your hands.
Best Practices For A Squat
When performing any squat with weights, you should always warm-up. For example, when using a barbell, do a couple sets with just the barbell before adding any weight to the bar.
If using a barbell, the ideal location for the bar is directly above your shoulder blades. If you experience pain from the bar, adjust the placement until you find a comfortable position. Do this before using a towel or pad, which can often hinder correct positioning.
Finally, ease into squatting. Your chances of injury are significantly increased if you try to lift too much too fast. If doing a couple of sets of bodyweight squats provides you with a significant workout, then stick with that before building up to a weighted squat. As they say, slow and steady wins the race.
There are enough tips on perfecting your squat form to fill a book. This guide summarizes the tools necessary to incorporate squatting into your workout routine both safely and effectively. Happy squatting from Boost 180 Fitness.