Intentional Stress Challenge: Squat

Progressive challenge series aimed at improving the ability to squat.

Squat

I recently underwent shoulder surgery. My recovery consisted of a month in a hard brace that completely immobilized my right arm followed by another month in a soft sling. Physical therapy then began where I worked on building up mobility followed by strength in that arm over the course of six weeks. For someone who likes to get some form of intentional exercise in every day, even if it’s just five minutes of work, I didn’t have many options for those first two months. Every day was leg day. 

The SAID Principle (Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands) supports the idea that the body and/or mind will adapt to optimize responses to the demands we impose. If you want to get better at public speaking, practice public speaking. If you want to become a better parent, intentionally work on strategies that you consider supports better parenting. If you want to get stronger legs, exercise your legs. Makes sense. 

If you’re anything like me though, I often avoided leg day or found ways to work out my legs in ways I was relatively comfortable with which was often followed by several days of rest. 

The more you do anything, the better you consciously and subconsciously get at it. Plasticity at its finest. Even in my injured state, I found my legs were feeling better and air squat workouts that used to floor me were becoming easier. I was getting stronger and more efficient.

Squatting is arguably the best compound movement to support leg strength, mobility, and balance. Proper technique in a standard air squat directly targets the quads, hamstrings, and glutes while indirectly engaging the lower back and core. These are some of the largest muscles in the body. Efficiency and strength in this region supports functional movements across all domains. Moving, balance, and strength maintenance for the entire body are all primarily supported by leg, core and lower back conditioning and health. 

The squat is a giant stimulus—not only for the legs but for other parts of the body, too. I often say that if I were thrown in jail and I was allowed to weight train only half an hour three times a week, I would just do squats. That’s it.

- Dean Tornabene

Another additional benefit of the squat is it can be done without equipment or any specific space requirements. I love burpees but they are much harder to knock out in my office or other environments from a space, noise, proper clothing, and safety perspective. Squatting can be done by anyone, anywhere, anytime. 

If you asked what the best exercise is for whole body health that doesn’t involve any plyometric component, I would answer the squat.

You must squat to achieve your full bodybuilding potential. It’s a total body exercise.

-Tom Platz

A proper squat involves starting with your feet shoulder width apart with toes either pointing forward or slightly outward. Hinge at the hips and begin to lower body by bending your knees while keeping your chest up, back straight, core engaged, and feet flat. Knees should stay in alignment with the toes throughout the movement. Continue to lower your body until your thighs are parallel with the floor (standard squat) or until you drop your buttocks as low as you can into the deep squat position (deep squat). Return to the standing/starting position by engaging your glutes (medical term for ass muscles), thighs and core while continuing to keep your neck and spine straight. No bending or looking down at any point during this movement. 

Modifications can include sitting down onto the edge of a chair and then returning to standing position, holding onto a fixed object for upper body support, and/or decreasing the range of motion for a 1/4 or 1/2 squat. All modifications should still focus on maintaining proper form throughout the movement. 

Keep your squats low and your standards high.

-Unknown

Air squats, aka unweighted squats, can also be made harder by slowing down the movement, extending the range of motion (deep squat), adding in a jump as you return to the starting position (jump squat), and/or performing a knees over toes squat where the intention is to allow the knees to bend and extend beyond the toe line increasing the range of knee mobility and flexibility in the associated ligaments and tendons. The knee over toe squat requires shifting your body weight forward and getting on your toes to maintain balance and proper structural support throughout the movement. Side note: knees over toe squats were my favorite way to move my kids to sleep while they were younger.

Even if you have a preexisting knee or lower body injury, squatting (especially when initially modified to encourage success and proper form) is one of the best ways to improve overall function. Unless you’re actively recovering from surgery/injury and have professional recommendations to avoid lower body exercise until healing has occurred, squatting with the appropriate level of support can be of benefit to anyone. 

Of all the exercises used to develop body power one stands alone. I am referring to the Deep Knee Bend or Squat. No other single exercise can give the trainee greater overall strength in return for the time and effort involved.

-Doug Hepburn