THE SQUAT
Squatting is the flexo-extension action of the ankle-knee-hip chain (Heredia Elvar et al., 2014).
It is one of the main, or even the main exercise most used to improve the strength and power levels of the lower body musculature. It is used in athletes, as well as in physically active subjects, and also in the field of rehabilitation, in post-operative treatments. And it is that in the proper gesture of the squat develops the musculature that participates mainly in the common movements of running, jumping, climbing and descending stairs ...
The inclusion of squat in training programs has been very controversial in terms of use, depending on what profile of person would be intended, and also in terms of the level of execution, especially in terms of the depth of it, whether it should reach a deep squat or not. Certain professionals in the field advise against its use because of the possibility of back and knee injuries. They also state that in the event of an injury, the maximum flexion should not be greater than the point at which the thighs are aligned with the floor (Lavorato & Vigario Pereira, 2008). On the other hand, there are professionals in the field of physical activity and health, who advocate the use of the same both in athletes and in healthy subjects who start with a physical conditioning program.
On the biomechanical side, the squat is a closed kinematic chain exercise. This means that the distal joint supports a resistance that restricts its freedom of movement. The main muscle groups involved in the performance of a squat are the gluteus major, quadriceps crural and hamstrings in terms of the action of hip and knee extension. In the ankle extension, the twins participate. It should not be forgotten that it is also important the participation of the core, musculature that fixes and stabilizes. Mainly we have the spinal extensors and the lumbar square. However, we must point out that depending on how the load is distributed, the focus of action on certain muscles will vary.
Taking into account the possibilities of performing a squat, we distinguish certain variations:
Charge: they can be carried out by mobilizing one's own body weight, or by using external loads, such as bars, dumbbells, chest discs, medicine balls, etc.
In the powerpoint below, we will see a descriptive example of each of the variants mentioned:
We hope that this post has been of great help to you to know more about squat.
See you in the next post.
May the force be with you!
Squatting is the flexo-extension action of the ankle-knee-hip chain (Heredia Elvar et al., 2014).
It is one of the main, or even the main exercise most used to improve the strength and power levels of the lower body musculature. It is used in athletes, as well as in physically active subjects, and also in the field of rehabilitation, in post-operative treatments. And it is that in the proper gesture of the squat develops the musculature that participates mainly in the common movements of running, jumping, climbing and descending stairs ...
The inclusion of squat in training programs has been very controversial in terms of use, depending on what profile of person would be intended, and also in terms of the level of execution, especially in terms of the depth of it, whether it should reach a deep squat or not. Certain professionals in the field advise against its use because of the possibility of back and knee injuries. They also state that in the event of an injury, the maximum flexion should not be greater than the point at which the thighs are aligned with the floor (Lavorato & Vigario Pereira, 2008). On the other hand, there are professionals in the field of physical activity and health, who advocate the use of the same both in athletes and in healthy subjects who start with a physical conditioning program.
On the biomechanical side, the squat is a closed kinematic chain exercise. This means that the distal joint supports a resistance that restricts its freedom of movement. The main muscle groups involved in the performance of a squat are the gluteus major, quadriceps crural and hamstrings in terms of the action of hip and knee extension. In the ankle extension, the twins participate. It should not be forgotten that it is also important the participation of the core, musculature that fixes and stabilizes. Mainly we have the spinal extensors and the lumbar square. However, we must point out that depending on how the load is distributed, the focus of action on certain muscles will vary.
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Kevin Phengthavone 415lbs squat black and white by Lance Goyke in Flickr.com (CC BY 2.0) |
Taking into account the possibilities of performing a squat, we distinguish certain variations:
Charge: they can be carried out by mobilizing one's own body weight, or by using external loads, such as bars, dumbbells, chest discs, medicine balls, etc.
- Amplitude of movement: we differentiate two types of squat depending on the amplitude of movement in the phase of descent. On one side we have the complete or deep squat, and on the other, the half squat. In the latter, the descent phase ends when the thighs are parallel to the floor, forming the hip at an angle of 90º, and the knees go to perform a flexion of 0º to 100º. If we continue in the descent phase, we would arrive at what we have mentioned as a deep squat. You can also see a vertical impulse at the end of the exercise.
- Position of the element: if the exercise is performed with an external load, this can be distributed in different parts of the body, thus causing the activation of different muscle groups. For example, the activation of the frontal squat (with the bar on the shoulders) is not the same as that of the zercher squat, where the bar rests on the elbows.
- Variants: the most prominent are the squat behind, in front, the sumo squat, the Olympic squat, the zercher and the sissy.
In the powerpoint below, we will see a descriptive example of each of the variants mentioned:
Let us now deal with some of the most controversial aspects of squat work:
- It can be considered complete once it exceeds, even slightly, the horizontal with respect to the ground.
- Having a greater or lesser flexion will depend on the joint mobility of each subject. However, it is not advisable for people with high joint mobility to perform maximum flexions.
- Another aspect to consider is the load with which this exercise must be trained. It is not advisable to work the squat with maximum load (1RM). That is to say, the effort character of the exercise should not be the maximum.
- There is no reason to discourage its use. Since healthy non-sports users must work with much lower loads, therefore the stress that is produced is much less.
- It is recommended both the half squat and the full squat, but with a distinction, and that is that in the half squat the load should be lower, because otherwise increases the risk of injury, without obtaining greater benefit in terms of performance.
We now turn to certain considerations that must be taken into account in the performance of the squat. Above all aspects that minimize the risk of injury while enhancing its benefits:
- 1. Position of the feet: They must be separated from each other at a distance equivalent to the width of the shoulders. The toes should be facing forward and slightly oriented outwards, at an angle of approximately 30º. In the concentric phase, pressure should be placed on the back and outside of the feet to provide greater mechanical stability (López Chicharro & Sánchez, 2014). The feet must be in the same line, so as not to create instability.
- 2. Grabbing and grabbing the bar: take it by surrounding it with your thumbs, at an equivalent distance on each side. The grip should not be too wide, as a deep flexion would unbalance us forward. Neither should it be too closed, because lateral oscillations would occur. It must be a medium distance, according to the physical structure of each subject. Also note that the elbows must point to the ground (López Chicharro & Sánchez, 2014).
- 3. Position of the head and torso: the eyes should be facing forward, and the head should be aligned naturally on the spine. Do not make the mistake of looking down, so as not to suffer a loss of balance forward.
- 4. Core: it is advisable to take a deep breath while at the same time contracting the abdominal muscles. This serves to stabilize the torso in movement, and thus control the spine.
- 5. Knees: follow the linearity of the feet. For the squat to be performed in a healthy way, they must surpass the vertical with the line of the feet, otherwise there would be a leaning of the trunk forward (Gonzalez, 2014). A good dorsal flexion is essential for the movement pattern to be adequate. Nor should they be rotated inwards.
- 6. Depth: there is no risk of reaching a greater depth. It will depend on the joint mobility of each subject. Moreover, the activity of quadriceps, hamstrings and gastrocnemius increases as knee flexion also increases. It is for this reason that trained and healthy athletes perform flexions of up to 100º (Escamilla, 2001).
- 7. Speed of execution: in the flexion phase (eccentric) a high speed should not be reached. It should go down slowly, without bouncing when going down. But for the ascent process (concentric), in athletes who have a correct technique and mastery, the maximum speed would be the best option (Rønnestad & Mujika, 2014).
Finally, we are going to raise something that would be highly recommended to do, since squats are exercises where the spine supports a high pressure which can cause a compression of the intervertebral discs, since they are joints little irrigated in terms of blood flow, and the speed of restitution does not exist properly, so the joint components are worn. For this reason, joint decompression exercises are highly recommended as a way of restoring the elements of the joint.
An example of this exercise could be a suspension hanging from a bar, with pendulum movements or elevation of knees.
We hope that this post has been of great help to you to know more about squat.
See you in the next post.
May the force be with you!
REFERENCES
Escamilla, R. F. (2001).
Knee biomechanics of the dynamic squat exercise. Medicine and Science in
Sports and Exercise, 33(1), 127–141. Retrieved from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11194098
González, C. (2014). Lo
que Todo Entrenador debe Saber: Sentadilla Profunda y Retroversión Pélvica.
Retrieved April 26, 2019, from
https://g-se.com/lo-que-todo-entrenador-debe-saber-sentadilla-profunda-y-retroversion-pelvica-bp-R57cfb26d70b01
Heredia Elvar, J. R., Peña
García-Orea, G., Mata, F., Isidro Donate, F., Martín, C., López, I., … DA SILVA
GRIGOLETTO, M. E. (2014). Nuevo Paradigma para la Selección de los Ejercicios
de Fuerza en Programas de Acondicionamiento Físico para la Salud. PubliCE.
Retrieved from
https://g-se.com/nuevo-paradigma-para-la-seleccion-de-los-ejercicios-de-fuerza-en-programas-de-acondicionamiento-fisico-para-la-salud-1676-sa-G57cfb2723fe30
Lavorato, M. A., &
Vigario Pereira, N. (2008). La sentadilla ¿es un ejercicio potencialmente
lesivo? Retrieved from
http://www.productosfortia.com/la-sentadilla-es-un-ejercicio-potencialmente-lesivo.pdf
López Chicharro, J.,
& Sánchez, D. (2014). Fisiología y Fitness para corredores populares.
Prowellness. Retrieved from https://prowellness.es/libro-corredores/
Rønnestad, B. R., &
Mujika, I. (2014). Optimizing strength training for running and cycling
endurance performance: A review. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine &
Science in Sports, 24(4), 603–612. https://doi.org/10.1111/sms.12104
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