Squat is not alone a bald giant with a beard, a gaudy onesie, the weight lifting belt pulled to the last holes, clouds of chalk, screams, the coach's slaps on the neck and ears, rock music ball, this mass of metal to be loaded on the shoulders, the giant wedged under, the spotter in place, the bar detaching from the supports
and under the vacuum.
Uff, I'm sweaty for him. For the giant, I say.
Squat is also a series of movements that do not carry a fatal risk. The free body squats, for example, the Smith Machine squat, and the box squat (if done correctly).
Index
What is the box squat
Simple: do squats, but behind you is a wooden box, a bench, or other such support. Its presence requires you to carefully perceive the depth of your squat.
The box squat is used to achieve several goals:
- learn the technique. In this case, the height of the box is progressively reduced, until you are able to reach a satisfactory depth. Also for beginners, the box squat allows you to improve motor patterns, eliminating certain frequent execution errors (and limiting for the growth of the load)
- perfect the technique, especially from the point of view of explosiveness. The presence of the box allows you to focus on force pure thrust
- have a training variant of the squat different from partial ones. Especially in powerlifting, given that the box requires changing the inclination of the torso and concentrating part of the movement on the hamstrings
- work on movement rehabilitation
Furthermore, the box squat remains a training movement. So you work with the load - even medium - to improve performance in the squat, but also the mind-muscle connection and proprioception in a "delicate" exercise.
The modalities of the box squat
The execution is that of the squat. What changes is the relationship with the so-called hole, that is, with the lowest portion of the movement. In fact, the box must be positioned in such a way as to "fill" the hole when you are at the end of the movement. At this point, you have two options:
- the box is only a reference for the depth you need to reach. You touch it, push, and get out of the hole by closing the rep
- the box is used to unload the weight, BUT NOT THE TENSION OF THE CORE, otherwise the barbell will crush you! You sit there, "unload the weight", push and get out of the hole
In both situations you can take a break: this depends on whether or not the paused squats in your tab.
Obviously, there are some mistakes to avoid:
- loss of concentration (both psychological and physical). One of the key elements to a successful squat is being able to avoid the "fear" of the load. Now, it's not that having a box under your butt should make you "relax", on the contrary: keep your concentration for the entire duration of the movement!
- unbalance, both in the phase of arrival in the box and in the push phase
- bounce on the box to help you climb
- train the core tension
When to use the box squat
Always. (what an answer)
Seriously, you can use the box squat at whatever level you are:
- are you a beginner? use it to create a perfect pattern (perhaps initially free body, with dumbbells or kb)
- are you an athlete? Use it for explosive power
- are you a powerlifter? Use it as a variant
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