Posted on February 26, 2015 by Kate Halsall
What do you think about when you squat? Is it about how low your bum is going in relation to your knees or ground? Is it about the awesome weight that you’re squatting with or about how many reps you’ve got left? Do you ever think about what your feet and knees are doing; how your back, abs and chest look or even about what your arms are doing? If you look in the mirror whilst you squat, what are you looking for – because next time have a real think about how your squat looks.
From a posture point of view we look at squats to see if we can identify any muscle imbalances – strengths and weaknesses. Here’s a simple test to do. It’s called the overhead squat assessment and it takes 2 minutes of your time. All you need is a way to record yourself or a mirror. When you’re ready, simply to squat to about the height of a chair, with your arms extended in the air – that’s it! Repeat a number of times (once you’ve warmed up a bit your posture will change). Easy right? But how did you do? As Personal Trainers, we are looking at a number of elements when we do this with a client such as you feet, knees and hips; but the top ones YOU should be looking for are:
The excessive lean forward can mean overactive lower leg muscles and tight abdominals (not in a good way!), whilst identifying a possible weakness in the glutes and muscles surrounding your spine.
Lower back arching can mean overactive hip flexors and back muscles, whilst identifying a possible weakness in the glutes, hamstrings and core muscles.
If your arms fall forward, this can mean overactive lats and pectoral muscles, whilst identifying a possible weakness in the upper back and shoulders.
So what?
If you want to get that squat PB, avoid injury and simply look awesome whilst squatting; you need to look at what other exercises and stretches you could be doing to help you achieve that. That’s exactly why we do postural assessments, why we check technique and why we add varied exercises to plans. If you have any questions about your squat, just ask one of our personal trainers to check it for you.