Friday, January 14, 2011

Squats - the essential exercise

Whether you want to lose fat, or get strong, squatting is an extremely important workout. Squatting with free weights is basically a full body exercise, working not only your legs but also your core and other stabilizer muscles. If your goal is to get strong, squats are a must. That's why you'll see my logs including squats every time I go to the gym.

If you're new to squatting and plan to start, this is important information. If you're already squatting, then good job. Just make sure your form is right. Bad form can cause you to mess up your back big time, and back injuries are the worst to live with.
What you want to do is start with the bar on your back (with your shoulder blades tightened) with feet shoulder-width apart, and before going down stick out  your butt and then go down. Going down before sticking out your butt means you're going to go down improperly; by sticking it out first you ensure that you go straight down and not forward which is bad for your knees. Go as low as you can go (until your butt is at knee-level, this is best) and push back up. Make sure when you're going down your chest is out so that you don't lean forward.

A video showing perfect form is here (don't worry about how heavy it is)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGeRTvAf2hc

16 comments:

  1. Nice, I've been looking for something like this. I look like an idiot trying to do squats

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  2. Fortunately I started squatting after learning the proper form. If you need to squat empty bar just to perfect the form, do it. Form is more important than weight.

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  3. i hate squats, they make mi thighs huge
    Anyways, cool blog, I'll follow and support :)

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  4. good description on how to perform "the squat"

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  5. Yeah, I remember doing a few squats back in the day when I was still working out. That video shows pretty good form.

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  6. Nice info. Check out randomnewsreports.blogspot.com

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  7. I applaude you sir for informing me of the correct way to perform squats. Theyre so important for everyone to learn. Keep it up and we'll all have ripped abs in no time! A+ blog content! Check out my poem blog if you're interested at all. Cheers!

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  8. Love squats! Too bad I'm currently unable to do them. Very awesome article though, more squats less curls!

    Find out why: http://pyrosive.blogspot.com

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  9. squats suck, but give you a work out

    http://ruegersrants.blogspot.com/

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  10. Yeah every break between sets I dread going back for another set because you really feel it when doing it RIGHT. But oh man the payoff is great.

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  11. Isn't it also a good idea to keep your heels elevated an inch or two by standing on a block of wood? I was told this helps keep the spine straight.

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  12. Wait, only your heels? I'm not sure about that...actually you're supposed to make sure the weight comes down on your heels (and not your toes) so it might help to kinda curl up your toes.

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  13. squats aren't as essential as people make you believe. ever since i hurt my back, i can't do them. i do leg presses, lunges, and step ups and my leg development is coming along just fine.

    deadlifts are essential though.

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  14. Really wish there was an easier way to get ripped.

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  15. i don't mean that squats are essential for leg development. But all the exercises you named don't give you a full body workout like squats do. No different than deadlifts

    I wish there was an easier way too. But now I'm hooked.

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  16. I wish I could do these too. I guess I can do them without weights though. Hmmm...

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