The squat has been called the basic exercise of all strength. The true test of a strength athlete is to put him under a loaded bar and check his leg power. Without powerful legs and hips, the athlete is severely lacking.
Ask any champion like Hugh Cassidy, Jim Williams, Russ Fletcher or Jon Cole and they will tell you that the secret to a massive physique that boasts the ultimate in muscle size as well as physical strength is heavy unrelented work on the legs. Heavy, intensive leg work will effectuate the building of your physique far more quickly than any other form of exercise.
Russell Fletcher
This one exercise is called the granddaddy of them all because it brings into play more muscles than any other single leg exercise. Leg work, intensive leg work, triggers your body's metabolism so dynamically that every muscle group gains in additional power and strength which, in turn, permits you to perform more exercises, use more sophisticated training principles and techniques and handle heavier exercise poundages.
Doing The Lift Properly
There are basic rules for performing the squat. Briefly, you take the weight on your shoulders, your head should remain looking slightly upward, and your feet should be shoulder width apart and toes pointed slightly outward. You then take a breath and with as much relaxation as possible, lower yourself down until the tops of your thighs have dipped below parallel with the floor, then without hesitation come up to a standing position again. You can then exhale your air.
The most crucial part of the lift is getting the tops of the thighs below parallel. It can be a crushing disappointment in national meets if you get turned down with a lift that was passed locally, so it's best to practice the lift correctly. The rule states that the thighs must be below parallel to the floor. This means that the thigh at its highest point must be below the highest point of your knee in order for the lift to be legal.
As in the bench press, the weight cannot stop on the way up. There shall be no dropping with the weight. You cannot take the weight out of the rack, drop with the weight, bounce out of the lower position, and then come up on the rebound. You must go down in a controlled matter and then arise. You may not move the feet in a contest and you should not move your feet in practice either.
It is advisable to wear a lifting boot that has a slight heel. It is generally a good idea to stand still for a second or two after the completion of the lift because in a contest the judge will hold you momentarily to make sure that you have your balance.
Squatting Tips
There is more to squatting than just going up and down with a weight on your shoulders.
Put the weight on your shoulders comfortably. That is, have adjustable racks so that you can get under the weight easily. Make sure the racks are placed out near the revolving sleeve. Furthermore, make sure the weight is set on your trapezius muscles and shoulders comfortably as you start the lift. Adjustments cost energy to the lifter.
The bar may be padded but this should be minimal.
Keep your head up. Balance is a vital problem in doing the squat. In coming up with the weight, you have to be at just the right angle with your body to get the most power out of your legs and back. Keeping your balance and keeping your head up are two of the most important things to remember in doing this lift.
In addition to the thighs, other muscles help in creating a great squat style. Powerful and thick calves will help you to control your descent and give your thighs a base to move back upward. A large, paunchy abdomen will interfere with squatting and getting down to the below-parallel position, and powerful abdominal and back muscles will help you to keep your body in the proper position while coming back up with the weight.
As with the other power lifts, the squat is a basic exercise that has few really valuable assistance exercises. This means that the way to improve your squat is to squat, Squat, and SQUAT some more. Usually 3 to 5 reps beings best results in building great power, and proper style should be a habit in training as well as competition.
Try some squatting variations for added power. Try doing the movement very slowly, up and down, and try the movement with your back as straight as possible. Experiment with heavy half-squats for more power, but don't fall into the habit of not going to parallel with realistic competition poundages. Use the half-squat as a power builder with overload, not as a substitute for proper squats.
Exercise the calves and abdominals as noted, to improve total fitness for overall body development.
Make sure your trapezius muscles get enough exercise so that they will thicken up and cushion the weight with comfort.
Don't train heavy if your knees are bothering you, but do work with light weights to warm them up gradually.
Your thighs are made up of the largest and most powerful muscle masses in your body, and the squat is the exercise that will strengthen them best. So, if you want to squat to show your power, or if you want added strength to help you excel at your sport, consider the squat. The immense leg power developed by training on squats will help you with any form of athletics.
Training Schedules
In an attempt to avoid workouts of excessive length, many lifters employ split routines which are very popular with their bodybuilding cohorts. They perform upper-body exercises on one day, and lower-body movements on another day. Now, while it may be true that split training allows the trainee to space and reduce his workouts, it is also a fact that energy will still be down from the previous day's workout. The result is fatigue. You will be lacking in motivation, although the muscles being worked that day seem rested.
Bodybuilders tend to use lighter weights and higher repetitions than powerlifters; they do not drain their overall nervous energy level to the same degree as powerlifters. Powerlifters are consistently handling limit and near-limit poundages. And that is why bodybuilders are able to make great gains on the split method of training.
In my experience, and a great majority of other lifters agree with me, trying to lift limit poundages more than once a week in any particular lift will retard progress. This is not to say that an athlete could not have a set of special assistance exercises that he could do on another workout day which are similar to the main set of exercises. I find that it is not a good idea to attempt limit poundages more than once in any 14-day sequence.
The problem, or rather the answer to the problem, is to devise a squat program that will give maximum results and at the same time have no adverse effect on your bench press and deadlift training sessions. I used the following program and found it to be of excellent value in gaining on this lift.
Tuesday
Full Squat:
135x10
315x5
425x2
515x1
605x1
Power Rack Squat:
650x2, slightly above parallel
715x2, ditto
785x2, half-squat
855x2, ditto
Full Squat:
605x5
Saturday
Full Squat:
135x10
315x5
425x2
515x1
605x1
705x1
755 x 3 singles
605x5
Exercise and reps should be limited to basic power exercises which work large muscle groups. A lot of specialized exercises will only fatigue the lifter and retard his progress.
Leave bombing and blitzing to the bodybuilders.
Enjoy Your Lifting!
