Really there is no such thing as teaching the squat. The movement is so natural that it can more accurately be described as re-learning a skill that was once commonplace. For this reason adults often need more help “remembering” this movement as opposed to children who in many cases learn this movement with little formal instruction. This makes perfect sense once one observes a child as she attempts to stand and walk for the first time. Unlike most of us who are trying to recover from our time as wannabe bodybuilders, babies have no concept of squating to, “better isolate the quads”. They learn to stand from a seated position in order to better navigate their environment. Wow, what a concept!
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So easy a baby can do it!
Here are some cues to to help you get in touch with your inner toddler.
1. Start with the feet about shoulder width apart with the toes slightly turned out.
2. Keep your head up, looking slightly above parallel.
3. Accentuate the normal arch of the lumbar curve.
4. Keep a tight midsection.
5. Lower yourself by pushing your butt back and down.
6. Keep your knees and ankles parallel.
7. Delay the knees forward travel.
8. Stay on the heels of your feet.
9. Lift your arm up and as far from your butt as possible.
10. In profile, your ear does not move forward during the squat, it travels straight down.
11. Don”t just sink down but rather “pull” yourself down using your hip flexors.
12. Stop when the crease of the hip is below the knee.
13. Once you reach parallel rise without any leaning forward or shifting of balance.
14. On rising, without moving the feet, exert presure to the outside of your feet as though you were separating the ground with your feet.
15. Return to standing via the exact same path as you descended
16. Finish the hip at the top by standing as tall as possible.
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Here is a funny and informative video on the squat…checkout that El Pollo Loco squat, yeah!!!
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The corn refiners association is pumping some serious money into their new advertising campaign. I must have seen this commercial four times in a half hour time span last week. Do you think America will fall for this fear based marketing? To top it all off this was shown on everyones favorite family channel, Disney. Also, if I hear the word “natural” in reference to some notoriously evil invention of the food industry one more time I am going to gnaw my own arm off!
The other side of the HFCS story can be found here and here.