For most lifters, squats are the most difficult, painful, and intimidating muscle-building exercise imaginable. You have to have some serious discipline and determination to do them correctly.
Just do one set of squats to failure and you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about!
Ultimately, squats are THE most effective muscle-building inducing exercise that you can invest your energy into.
Nothing compares to a squat when it comes to adding more size and strength to your lower body; The intense difficulty of this muscle-building workout also facilitates the release of more anabolic hormones like testosterone and the ever-powerful human growth hormone.
By stimulating the production of hormones, your body will also produce more muscle in the upper body.
Plus, this muscle-building workout results in strength gains similar to all your other exercises. When I started squatting to failure, the weight I could bench press increased by 20 pounds almost overnight.
The bottom line is that it works.
The sad truth is that far too many weightlifters have yet to experience the benefits of heavy squats. Too many bodybuilders will make up every excuse under the sun to stay away from the squat rack. There have been so many times I’ve heard sayings like “I heard squats stunt your growth” or “It’s bad for my knees”.
And what is my answer?
Nonsense!
If you train because you want to maximize your body’s opportunities to gain muscle, then training for muscle growth is essential.
Proper technique for squatting
Do your squats on a power rack or cage for safety. That way, you have the ability to adjust the height at which the bar passes, and you can always drop the bar on the safety pins if your muscles fail. Place the safety pins just below the depth at which you are squatting and the J hooks near the level of your nipples.
Your head should be thrown back during the squat, you should have a slight arch in your lower back, and your chest should be up.
Always focus your eyes straight ahead and avoid leaning too far forward or looking up or down.
Walk up to the bar and grab it with your hands, making sure they are the same width you use for a bench press. Before clearing, place the bar evenly across your traps.
When you set the bar up, it should rest on your lower traps and rear deltoids. It should almost feel like the bar is rolling down your back.
After passing the bar, go back as many steps as necessary.
Most people don’t know that most squat injuries occur from backing up, so make sure you only back up as far as necessary.
Separate your feet about shoulder-width apart and let them point at about 45 degrees.
Take a nice deep breath and lower your body. Imagine that you try to sit in a chair behind you, instead of squatting down in a straight line. Make sure your knees are in line with your feet and don’t bend inward.
During the squat, lower your body until your thighs are at least parallel to the ground. Once you get to the bottom position, you need to start going up again. DO NOT stay in that full squat position!
Use your heels and back to get back up as fast as your body will allow you.
After coming to an upright position, take another deep breath and continue the exercise until you have finished the required number of repetitions.
Final thoughts.
There are several very good reasons to squat, so hang in there and do it.
Treat squats with respect and your muscle gains will surprise you.
My advice is to do 2 sets of squats (5-7 reps each) once a week.
Keep pushing for more weights and reps in this muscle-building workout and push yourself to the max.