5 surprising advantages of squats that go beyond the strength of the legs

The squat is a fundamental movement model that humans learn at a very young age. The muscles you use in a squat help you feed your daily tasks. Adding squats to your training can help reduce your risk of injury and make you move easily throughout the day.

Jump at the main dishes to remember.

1. Reduce your risk of injury

Squats are compound exercises, which means that they target several joints simultaneously. They improve strength, flexibility and coordination. As a result, they can improve balance and your ability to move easily and reduce your risk of injury.

2. Strengthen your heart

Squats help strengthen your nucleus, which stabilizes your trunk and spine. During a squat, your abdominal, low and gluteal muscles in your buttocks all contract to keep your torso in position.

3. Burn calories

Squats are an exercise composed which simultaneously activates several muscles. Muscles require oxygen to contract and the body burns five calories for each liter of oxygen used during activity. Thus, compound exercises use more oxygen, burn more calories overall and contribute to weight loss.

4. Improve mobility

Most people make squats to strengthen the muscles of their lower body, because this movement targets the muscles of the buttocks, thighs and lower legs. A strong lower body improves your ability to do daily activities, such as entering and getting out of the car, recovering objects from the ground and standing from a chair.

5. Improve flexibility

Squats increase the amplitude of movements and flexibility in the lower back, hips, knees and ankles. However, flexibility also has an impact on the depth to squat. The more you practice this movement, the more flexible you will become.

What muscles do squats work?

Squats mainly target leg muscles, but they also strengthen your nucleus – the muscles of your abdomen and back. The muscles you work on during a squat include:

How to make a squat

To perform a body weight squat with an appropriate shape, follow these steps:

1. Get your feet on the width of the hip.
2. Handle your toes forward or turn them slightly outwards.
3. Gather your hands in front of your chest.
4. By keeping your chest, deposited at your hips as if you are sitting on a chair.
5. Discard your knees and lower yourself until your thighs are parallel to the ground.
6. Stay standing.

When you practice body weight squats, you can widen your squat position while moving away more to see if it is more comfortable. You can also crouch more deeply, allowing your hips to fall under the level of your knees, as long as you can maintain an appropriate shape.

What are the disadvantages of squats?

It is essential to learn the right squat technique with just your body weight before adding resistance, such as a dumbbell or a dumbbell. When they are poorly finished, squats can cause back and knee injury.

The factors that contribute to your risk of injury when performing a squat include:

• Press your trunk forward: This increases the pressure on the lower back muscles.
• Lower back: Keeping your right spine is important to reduce the risk of back injury.
• Move your knees too far forward: Allow your knees to pass your toes while you are increasing the pressure through your knee joints.
• Skimp too deeply: If you have tight hip muscles, the lower back will start in round if you cook too deep.
• Using too heavy weights:: Gradually increase resistance when you are crouching and only use weights that allow you to make squats with an appropriate shape.

Talk to a health care provider, such as a physiotherapist, on adding squats to your fitness routine. A physiotherapist can assess whether the squats are appropriate for you and show you changes to accommodate conditions such as low pain, knee pain or osteoarthritis (wear arthritis) in the joints of your legs.

Main to remember

• Squats are a multi-argument exercise with many potential advantages, such as the leg muscles and the stronger line, improved flexibility and an increase in calories burns, which can help weight loss.
• Start with body weight squats until you master the right shape.
• For an additional challenge, try other squats, such as back squats, side or pistols.