SQUAT, SQUAT, SQUAT

The question most people keep asking, "I've heard squatting is bad for the knees, is that true?" Short answer, NO! The squat is the king of lower body exercises. It primarily works the thigh and butt muscles, but is in actuality a full body core movement. Squatting is not bad for the knees as long as you do not have a pre-existing knee problem and it is performed correctly. 

There are two common mistakes people make when performing squats. 

The first, and hardest on the knees, is letting the knees move forward of the toes. When I teach my clients the squat I tell them to stick their butt back and pretend like someone is walking behind them and they are trying to bump them with their behind. Your knees should not move forward more than a few inches when you go down on the squat. Your thigh bones and your hips should move back from where your knees are when standing straight at the top. This is the key to proper squats, stick your butt out!


The second most common mistake is to bend forward too much when going down. It is true you must lean forward slightly while squatting to keep from falling back, but your shoulders should stay aligned over your feet and this can take time to develop the strength to do. When people bend too far forward, it is usually from a lack of strength in the glutes (butt muscles) and the spinal erectors (the muscles along the spine that allow you to keep your back straight. People who make this mistake may not be able to put their hips back and down, due to a lack of strength in these muscles and try to compensate by dropping their shoulders by bending over instead. You should never allow your back to round out when squatting and the way to ensure this is to puff your chest out the whole time. Even when you are at the bottom of the squat, leaning forward slightly, you should maintain a chest puff (back arch). The chest puff puts your spinal erectors in a contracted position which is what they do while stabilizing your back during the squat (along with many other exercises).


These muscles must be conditioned before you can even think about putting any weight on your back while squatting. The chest puff is where you start. So let's say you don't have the strength to squat properly and make all of these mistakes, how do you develop it without injuring yourself? sit down on a bench or chair of varying heights and stand back up maintaining the positions I have just described. This way you can train these muscles properly without fear of falling or losing your balance. When you can easily squat properly onto a bench or chair/ couch, pick a lower surface like a stool or a step. You should be able to stand up off of the seat without rocking forward or losing your body position before moving to a lower height. Keep training yourself onto lower surfaces until you can squat with your thighs parallel to the floor without assistance.

Follow all of these guidelines and tips and you'll be squatting like a champ before you know it.