Benefits of Squats

When it comes to fitness and workouts, I always say less is more. So if there is one exercise through which I can workout on a substantial part of my body, in my books, that exercise is a winner. Once such exercise, in the universe of bodyweight training is the SQUAT.

Just counting the squat as one of the many quadriceps exercises is doing it a disservice. It is actually the precursor to many motions – sitting down, jumping up and virtually any plyometric motion that your legs might perform. These motions have to mimic the squat in some way.This hence, renders it primarily as functional training exercise. The squats benefits us in the following ways:

·   It is one the best quadriceps strengthening exercises – The squat is a movement that is carried out by the flexion and extension of the knee joint, along with some flexion and extension at the hips and ankles. However, the bulk of this movement is carried out by the knee joints and therefore it primarily works the muscles in this area. The most prominent muscles carrying out this function are the quadriceps, which act as the antagonists.   The hamstrings control the cadence of the squat by acting as the antagonists. Therefore the squats are an excellent exercise for strengthening the quadriceps.

·     It has various functional benefits –As mentioned before, the squat as a movement is a precursor to most locomotive movements carried out by the lower limbs. The squats also mimic the sitting and raising actions. Apart from the strengthening of the quadriceps, the squats benefits us by strengthening the ligaments and tendons in the entire leg region thus making basic, daily tasks and functions easy to do.

·   Squatting is good for knee flexibility and overall health –Contrary to what you may believe, full squats are fantastic for strengthening the knees. Observe toddlers or as a matter of fact, observe babies in their fetal position within the womb. They are in the concentric position of the squat and remain like that for 40 weeks. If your trainertells you to squat only half the way down, be wary of this person and fire them immediately. The purpose of your fitness training regime is to ensure your fitness levels increase and this includes your flexibility too. By training through only half the range of motion of any joint, you’ll eventually reduce the flexibility of that joint. So ensure you are training all your joints, knees especially, through a full range of motion.

·         It improves posture –One of the greatest benefits of Squats is that it trains the body to move in the correct posture while it is carrying out the movement. As the saying goes, function dictates form – therefore squatting, improves function. The important thing to note here is that you need to train in correct form in order to be able to fix your posture.

Many more arguments can be made in the favor of squats and more so, full squats. So make sure you begin training with squats to reap all its benefits, peak functionality being the most important of these.

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Do you need progressive calisthenics with bodyweight training

Yes, you do. Often we do the progression exercises and variations. But that is not what the case should be.

If you were at the gym and it is your first day working out ever and the instructor tells you to get under the bench and do the bench press, would you load the bar up to 100 lbs on day 1? You wouldn’t. It would be foolish to do so. You’d need to start with just the bar, learn the proper form and then progress to loading the bar with progressively heavier weights. The same is the case with calisthenics exercises. You can’t jump to the master exercise on day 1 and not expect adverse consequences, maybe not on day but soon enough. You have to build up your strength to be able to handle the pressures the exercises lay on your muscles, joints, tendons and ligaments. This is done through progressive calisthenics.

Let’s say you the 5 lbs, 10 lbs weight plates and opt to load the bar by 25 lbs or 35 lbs instead and make a habit out of it, you’d plateau faster than if you followed the overload stages. Similarly, with bodyweight training, if you skip levels to do the master exercises without building a sound foundation of strength by doing the easier versions first, you are bound to plateau and much worse, injure yourself due to lack of strength or proper form.Therefore when embarking on your bodyweight workouts, make sure you have a good progression plan in place for the master exercises. Below is a list of exercises that I prescribe as the master exercises for your bodyweight training program at home.

1.      Pushing Exercises

·         Dips

·         Push-Ups

·         Handstand Push-ups

·         Triceps Dips

2.      Pulling Exercises

·         Wide Grips Pull-Ups

·         Inverted Rows

·         Regular Grip Pull-ups

3.      Legs and Core

·         Squats

·         Flat Leg Raises

·         Bridges

Each of these exercises needs to be done with your bodyweight. So imagine handling your entire body’s weight when doing the handstand on day 1, without prior practice. It’d be a disaster just waiting to happen. You’d need to begin with simpler exercises like the pike press to build your strength and be able to do the handstand push-ups.

The details of the progression exercises and how to do them will need a post for itself. It is most likely to feature on my website http://kalisofitness.com. Do stay tuned to the blog and subscribe to receive the updates at your inbox. 

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