A lot of people do not know how to squat correctly. Squatting whilst using bad form will only hinder your gains and get you injured. Performing the squat correctly and safely is not as easy as you think. It can take a while to grasp the technique but this article will help you. The squat is known as one of the best lower body exercises you can do and rightly so. Squats should be included in every leg workout as there is no other exercise that can build strong muscular legs the way squats do.
How to Squat Correctly
The squat is the best full body exercise you can do. The squat will work your quads, hamstrings, calves, bum, back and abdominal muscles. Before we look at how to squat correctly let me quickly go over some misconceptions about the squat.
Bad for your knees. The squat is not bad for your knees as long as you go below parallel. Performing squats and not breaking parallel is far more likely to injure your knees. Breaking parallel basically means bending your knees until your hips are in line with them. If you only squat down to this position your not reaping the maximum benefits that squats offer. Dont get me wrong you can still see results squatting down to parallel but its far better to go past parallel and is actually safer for your knees.
Dangerous. The squat is only dangerous if you make it dangerous. If your new to squats always start off light and work your way up to more challenging weight. Dont throw 200 pounds on the bar if you’ve never squatted before. Focus on perfecting your form and lift inside a power rack so that the safety pins can catch the weight if you are no longer able to squat back up from the floor. This should eliminate any danger of injuring yourself whilst performing the squat.
I dont need to squat. True, but if you want a strong muscular lower body then you should squat. No excuses. Take a look at do I need to train my legs for more information on why you should squat and train your leg muscles.
How To Squat Correctly
Before you even attempt to squat you will need to pay close attention to the following things:
Hand Placement. Grip width or hand placement can often vary dramatically amongst people when performing the squat. Ideally you should place your hands slightly wider than shoulder width apart. The narrower your grip the more stable the bar is going to be on your back. Reason being is that your trap and back muscles are contracted more with a narrow grip and therefore make a more stable area for the bar to rest on.
Im not saying you should use a narrow grip im just saying its recommended for the above reasons. Some people actually place their hands right next to the weight plates at the very end of the bar. Results will be seen however wide you choose to have your grip. As long as your comfortable and form is not effected using the grip you have then there’s no need to worry too much about it. In this article however I will recommend using a narrower grip.
Thumbless Grip. Another controversial topic when squatting. Its recommended you use a thumbless grip when gripping the bar. Remember that you are not actually holding the weight of the bar. Your back/traps supports the weight while your grip pins the bar down on to your back to help prevent it from moving. To use the thumbless grip, grip the bar as usual but rest your thumbs on top of the bar next to your fingers. A lot of people still squat with a normal grip. If the normal grip feels more comfortable for you then use it.
Bar Placement. There are two ways you can place the bar on your back to perform the squat. These are known as high bar and low bar. The placement we will look at in this article is going to be the low bar position as you can normally push more weight using this position. Bar placement can be quite tricky to explain so im going to show you a quick video that will explain it to you in far more detail.
Tight upper back with elbows back. When your standing under the bar with hands, grip and bar placement all in check place your elbows back and tighten your upper back. Elbows should not be down by your side but pushed backwards. Not up, backwards! To help tighten your upper back try bringing your shoulder blades together. You will now have a solid base to rest the bar on.
Chest up, look forward. Keep your chest up and look forward!
Foot Stance. Assume a shoulder width stance with your toes pointing out slightly.
How To Unrack The Bar Properly
Unracking the bar. Bearing in mind all of the above points, its now time to get in a position to squat. This firstly involves unracking the bar. You should always squat inside a power rack/squat rack with safety pins unless you have a cushioned floor to be able to drop the weight off your back. Setting the safety pins slightly lower than the depth of your squat will ensure that you have a way out if you get stuck in the hole (bottom position of the squat).
The bar should be positioned around upper chest level in the power rack before unracking. To unrack the bar place your feet directly underneath it. Get under the bar and position it on your back assuming the low bar position as described in the above video. Tighten your back and push your elbows back as described above in this article. Use a thumbless grip if you can along with a grip width that you find comfortable (preferably narrow). Now squat up to unrack the bar.
Obviously you cant squat from where your currently standing so take one step back with one foot and one step back with the other. Adjust your stance accordingly to insure feet are in line with each other and shoulder width apart. Also remember to point your toes out slightly. You dont really need to move anymore than these two steps to get in a position to squat as it can be awkward and tiring especially if you have a lot of weight on your back.
Performing The Squat Correctly
How to squat down. You have now unracked the bar and are in a position to squat. Bend your knees to squat down keeping your chest up, head looking forward, back tight and elbows back (not up!). As you squat down stick your bum out and imagine you are bending down to sit on a chair behind you. Ensure you go below parallel! Things to remember when squatting down:
Everything should remain tight. Your grip should be solid, back kept tight and elbows pushed back. Looking forward with your chest up helps maintain this tightness and will make the lift feel more comfortable.
Knees go out with your toes. Your knees should be pushed out in the direction your toes are pointing when squatting down and up. Do not let your knees buckle inwards as this will cause injury.
Go below parallel. A lot of people ignore this and squat down until their hips and knees are parallel to each other. This is more uncomfortable on your knees and can actually cause them injury overtime. Others wont even squat down to parallel. My advice is to squat down as deep as you can go. These are known as ATG squats. ATG stands for Ass To Grass and basically means you go as far down to the floor as possible.
Imagine your trying to touch the floor with your bum. This is not actually possible for those of you who are wondering but im sure you grasp the concept. Squat down as far as you can. If you are performing ATG squats properly you should notice your hamstrings nearly brush your calves in the bottom position of the squat. Im well aware that for some people this may not be possible. I will talk about this later on in the article.
Squatting back up. Once you’ve broken parallel and squatted as far down as you can (that feels comfortable) you need to drive out of the hole by leading with the hips and driving your feet down in to the ground as if you are pushing the ground away from you. Things to keep in mind:
Keep the bar travelling in a straight line. Not entirely straight but imagine keeping it in a straightish line as you squat down and back up. This can help you stay tight and stable throughout the movement.
Chest stays up. You shouldnt really be able to drop your chest once you start the squat off with your chest up as it will feel dangerous to do so but just a reminder to keep it up throughout the movement.
Elbows remain pushed back. Keep those elbows back to help keep the back tight and help stabilize the bar on your back.
Look straight infront of you. Looking straight infront of you instead of up or down will help prevent rounding of the back.
Knees are pushed outwards. Push those knees outwards as you squat up in roughly the same direction your toes are pointing.
Keep feet on the floor. Feet should remain on the floor throughout the whole lift. Especially your heels. People have a tendancy to lift their heels off the floor when squatting back up. Keep them down on the floor.
Bounce out the hole (bottom position). Do not stop and pause in the bottom position of the squat unless you are moving light weight or warming up. In your working sets you want to be squatting deep and with a slight bounce at the bottom, drive yourself back up. When I say bounce this does not mean to break form and jerk the weight up. Its a small natural bounce at the bottom. Everything else should remain still and tight under complete control.
Range of movement should not alter when squatting up. In other words you go back up in the same range of motion as you came down. Your body shouldnt sway or swing in any way. Your hips should be pushed forward to help drive you out of the bottom position using your lower body and leg muscles and thats it.
Problems squatting deep or breaking parallel
I mentioned earlier that some people may find it hard to squat deep or break parallel. The main reason for this is a lack of hip flexibility or tight muscles. To help fix this problem I recommend stretching your entire lower body before you begin your squats. Another great trick is to perform bodyweight squats each day without any added weight. Squat down to the lowest position you can possibly go and hold this for a count of 10. Once finished squat back up.
Repeat this for 3 sets of 8-10 reps each day attempting to go as low down as you can each day. This should improve your flexibility for squats and should eventually allow you to squat deeper and break parallel. If this isn’t the case then I would just continue squatting as deep as possible each and every workout. Even though you may only be reaching parallel on your squats, overtime continous squatting should allow you to hit a deeper range of motion
Its important to remember that some peoples range of motion for the squat are going to vary. For example, if a person has big calves and big thighs, when this person squats down, calves and thighs are going to come together a lot sooner than somebody else with small calves and small thighs. Theres not much you can do about this. Just ensure you are squatting as deep as you can to reap the maximum benefits of squats.
A Video Of The Squat
Just to show you how what the squat should look like heres a quick video:
This is a great example that takes into account the majority of the points I’ve mentioned in this article. The grip is narrow helping the bar rest perfectly on the back and trap muscles. Elbows are pushed back, chest is up, head is looking forward and the depth of the squat is below parallel.
Also notice that the stance is around shoulder width with toes pointing outwards. Knees are pushed out when squatting down and up in the direction of where the toes are pointed. If you pay close attention to the bar at the start of the lift, it travels down and up in a reasonably straight line. Form is good and everything is kept tight and under good control.
Other Points Concerning The Squat
Should I wear a weight lifting belt when squatting? Wearing a weight lifting belt is not entirely necessary. If you have previous back problems or are going for a max attempt then it may be wise to wear one.
Shoes. Pick a good pair of shoes if your going to be squatting. Preferably flat ones. No running shoes. Shoes with an elevated heal can make the squat uncomfortable and throw your form off. Squatting barefoot or with only socks on can also be effective.
Use free weights. The best way to build muscle and get the most out of your squats is to use free weights. Stay away from the smith machine. Machine squats require less work and guide the bar up and down in a fixed motion which is unnatural to the body. Squat strength built on machines will not translate over to free weights so stick to using the barbell and squat rack if possible.
