Perfect
your squat
It’s one of the best exercises there
is – if you know how to do it safely and
effectively. PT Ian Gardner explains
how to get down without risk of injury.Manypeoplejumpstraightinto
thedeependwithoutanyprior
helporpracticeingettingtheir
techniqueright.
Body Book Technique
The squat
should
be the
staple of
anyworkout routine.
While exercises such
as the leg extension,
leg curl and hip thrust
allow us to isolate our
quads, hamstrings
and glutes, the squat
allows us to work all
three of these major
muscle groups in one
- giving us more bang
for our buck. The leg
press also allows us to
use all three of those
major muscle groups,
but it doesn’t make use
of the hip stabilisers
or help to build great
core strength, due to
the machine providing
that stability.
Yet despite all of the
benefits, the squat
also comes with a
greater risk of injury,
and many people
jump straight into
the deep end without
any prior help or
practice in getting
their technique right.
Each of us is unique:
we have different
movement patterns,
different levels of
strength and varying
levels of flexibility.
Not being aware of
your strengths and
limitations will lead
to injuries, as well
as knee, hip and
lower back pain.
As a personal trainer,
I’ve taught endless
amounts of people to
squat, ranging from
those in their first
few weeks, to those
who are regular gym
users. With all of them,
I follow one principle:
start at the most basic
level. Before adding
any weight, you must
be able to master the
body-weight squat.
Once you’re totally
comfortable with
this, you should then
progress onto a goblet
squat – holding a
weight in front of the
body to start adding
some resistance – and
only once both of these
moves are mastered
can you then start to
use the barbell for back
squats. But no matter
which variation you’re
doing, the following
rules apply...102 MEN’S FITNESS SEPTEMBER 2019
T