- Squats are a fundamental exercise that allows you to strengthen the lower body and the core. The pattern of movement reproduces many activities that we carry out on a daily basis; Squat training is all about training your body to get up from a chair or bend down to reach for something as you get older.
Seeing weights increase is an exciting experience, especially for beginners, and this passion often leads one to wonder how appropriate it is to squat during the descent of the squat and how safe it can be done.
There are many types of squats and to understand how much to squat you need to evaluate as many factors: the type of squat, gender, age, body weight, starting physical condition, etc.
Index
What are the different types of squats?
There are many types of squats; it is essential to understand that not all squats are created equal when determining how far you should squat.
Let's analyze two types of squats, for example:
- Squats with your own body weight (air squats): using only the resistance offered by your body, without any load, certainly allows you to squat more safely than those who use heavy loads
- back squat with barbell: this exercise, used in powerlifting, is often a guideline for how far you should squat; the loaded barbell is certainly an obstacle, at least at the beginning, to reaching a good level of squatting. To squat to full depth, you need to bend over without flexing your back and use your mind-muscle connection to imagine your butt going forward while your shoulders go back.
Why is correct form so important?
Proper form is critical to squats, because affects the effectiveness and safety of exercise; Before you start loading the barbell, it's a good idea to examine how far you can squat without loads added to your body weight.
Once you have learned the correct form and the ideal degree of squatting without loads, you can use the barbell; maintaining correct form with the use of loads is even more important because a minimal shift in movement or failure to explore the range of movement can lead to a accident debilitating or a permanent mobility problem.
How many squats to do and how much to squat?
Two main factors affect your ability to squat: gender and body weight; from here we are divided into the various categories based on the level of experience:
- Beginner
- Regular
- Intermediate
- Advanced
- Elite
On the amount of squats to perform can not give an unequivocal answer; there are many factors at play and it is always advisable to follow a personalized protocol tailor-made by a personal trainer.
As regards the how much to squat we have seen that depends on the type of squat that you want to perform. The ideal, for any type of squat, is of reach the parallel during the squat,, that is, the point where the highest part of the hip comes under the highest point of the knee.
“Splitting the parallel” means achieving the greatest muscle recruitment, including hip and hamstring muscles, as well as quads, glutes and core.
Not reaching the parallel does not allow hip flexion-extension, all the work falls on the quadriceps and knees; at the same time, however, it should be emphasized that trying in any way to squat down could prove counterproductive: balance would be lost, the core would risk not activating in the right way and the lumbar could give way. As always, the solution lies somewhere in between!
And you, how much do you squat during your squats? Let us know in the comments and remember to follow us on our telegram channel
SUBSCRIBE HERE TO THE TELEGRAM CHANNEL