Tips to improve your Squat performance!
When it comes to working out in the gym, you probably don’t go without doing squats. Not only does this powerful exercise can help you to build the muscles in your lower body, but it strengthens your upper half as well. But squats are not easy to master and require good mobility and positional awareness to do it correctly. Here are some of the tips with which you can improve your squat performance and can do squat like a pro. So, please have a look!
Start the squat on the right foot-
It is commonly seen that many people play around with their foot position during the squat. While some fitness experts recommend pointing your toes outward, others recommend doing whatever feels most natural to you. The truth is, though, there is only one correct foot position for the squat- “your feet need to be slightly wider than your shoulder-width apart, with your toes pointed out about 10 degrees”. This position allows you to adequately activate the proper muscles by putting pressure on the outsides of your feet.
Improve ankle mobility-
Your ankle mobility plays a crucial role in your squats. To test your ankle mobility, place your foot firmly on the ground. When you’re about 5-6 inches from a wall, place your heel flat on the floor and try to bring your knee up against the wall. Your knees should be able to rest against the wall; however, if you can’t continue this stretch, you can gradually improve it.
If you notice that your ankles are tight or have one ankle with better mobility than the other, try some foam rolling or bent-knee calf stretches. When performing calf stretches, keep your knee bent to hit the Achilles tendon; this will improve your ankle mobility and, eventually, your squat performance.
Strengthen your core-
Aside from being a lower body workout, squats significantly impact your core strength too. Muscles found in your midsection are included in the word “core,” which refers to the grouping of the rectus abdominis, transverse abdominis, obliques, and erector spinae. These muscles help to keep your spine in a stable position by exerting intra-abdominal pressure on it.
A strong core will ensure that your lumbar spine remains rigid, thus efficiently transferring the force generated by your legs to your upper body and weight on your shoulders. But if your core is weak, you may find your hips rising while the weight lags behind. Wearing a weightlifting belt can help increase core stability and strength, but direct core strengthening is essential too. Strengthening your core for squats is best done with moderate to heavy weights and low to moderate repetition.
Improve imbalances in legs-
Everyone has muscle imbalances, and these are unavoidable. However, these imbalances can hinder your improvement in bilateral (i.e., two-sided) exercises, like bench press, squat, and deadlift. Single-sided workouts are often used to treat muscular imbalances and are proven to be beneficial.
Loosen your lats, i.e., overhead squats-
You are not alone if you have tight lats and spinal erectors. However, performing the squat will cause the lower back to round before getting to full depth, thus causing back pain. The overhead squat is a great way to avoid this and loosen up those large, fan-shaped back muscles.
So, these are some useful tips by which you can improve your squat performance and do squats like a pro. So if you are a fitness enthusiast and looking for strength training to improve your squat performance in NY, consult our expert team at Onyx Fitness today! Call us at (516) 221-1800 for expert guidance.