The squat has, since the beginning of time, been the exercise that separates the contenders from the pretenders. It’s an amazing exercise for a lot of things, its incredibly versatile and it produces more ground reaction force than ANY OTHER EXERCISE ON THE PLANET! For that last reason alone it should be something in your toolbox whether you’re an athlete or not. We can all benefit from the squat and its many variations. Every time I go to the local globogym in my area there’s always a line for the squat rack, everyone wants to squat. But the sad fact is that with the exception of a very few people, it’s cringe level awkwardness watching people try to fight their way through this movement. Whether they seem to be allergic to depth, they internally rotate their hips, or they break in their thoracic spine every time they achieve “depth” there’s no shortage of problems people deal with when it comes to this awesome movement. This article was put together in an effort to help you identify the issues with your own squat so you can take full advantage of this miracle movement and excel in the gym!

The Benefits of the Squat

There’s a million and one benefits to the squat. Here’s a short list of some of the most important:

• Increases ground reaction force better than any other lift on the planet

  • Increased speed, increased vertical, increased resiliency on the field of play and in life

• Helps to increase mobility, especially in the hips and even ankles

  • Most mobility deficits are actually strength deficits masquerading as mobility issues

• Helps to decrease pain in movement

  • More mobility = easier, pain free movement

• Can help increase work capacity

  • High volume squatting can lead to higher work capacity and conditioning

• Helps increase bone density

  • More force signals the body to lay down more calcium in bones

• Can increase growth hormone production

  • This does the opposite of stunting growth in youth

• Helps to add mass to your frame

  • More weight = more tension = more damage = more muscle growth

• Helps to increase confidence

  • You’d be hard pressed to find a more confident person than someone who just PR’d on their squat

The 8 reasons above are the biggest reasons we include the squat into EVERY training program we have here at The Lyons Den. Now you may be sitting there thinking to yourself “but what if you have bad *insert body part here*? You can’t squat!” While it’s true that a traditional barbell squat isn’t always the best option for everyone, the squat is probably the most versatile movement in the gym with the exception of maybe the lunge. The next section is going to give you options when it comes to the squat. Trust me, there’s a way that almost everyone can take advantage of the squat pattern!

Variations of the Squat

When you think of squatting I’m sure you’re thinking of some muscle bound super heavy weight bodybuilder getting under 4-500lbs with a traditional olympic or power bar. The truth is that a traditional squat is just one of a plethora of ways that we can squat. Below is a list of squat variations that can help you take advantage of squat patterning no matter what issues you may be having.

- Olympic/Power bar Variations

• Olympic stance squat

• Wide stance Squat

• High bar squat

• Low bar squat

• Box squat

• Front squat

• Overhead squat

• Zercher Squat

• Split squat

• Bulgarian split squat

• Front loaded Bulgarian split squat

- Dumbbell/Kettlebell Variations

• Goblet squat

• Overhead squat

• Bottom loaded dumbbell squat

• Single arm overhead squat

• Dumbbell Bulgarian split squat

• Single arm closed position dumbbell Bulgarian split squat

• Single arm open position dumbbell Bulgarian split squat

• Dumbbell front loaded squat

• Dumbbell front loaded Bulgarian split squat

- Specialty Bar Variations

• Cambered bar squat/box squat

• Safety squat bar squat/box squat

• Hex bar deadlift

  • People argue with me on this but a hex/trap bar deadlift is a bottom loaded squat pattern, I will die on this hill

• Spider bar squat/box squat

• Buffalo/Duffalo/Yukon bar squat/box squat

• Tsunami/Earthquake bar squat/box squat

  • I do not recommend these variations for many reasons

- Machines

• Belt squat/box squat

• Smith machine squat/box squat/Bulgarian split squat

  • Not a huge fan of these but they definitely have their place in the rotations of some people

• Hack squat

That’s over 30 different variations! You can also combine some of these between specialty bars, box squats, dumbbell vs barbell, etc. The possibilities are literally almost unlimited! With all these variations there’s still ways to take advantage of different applications of these movements.

- Different Applications of Squat Variations

• Band resisted

• Band assisted

• Chain suspended

• Chain resisted

• Weight releasers

• Low/High box box squats

• Partial range of motion variations

- But wait there’s more! Below is a list of bodyweight squat variations

• Infant squats

• “Air” squats

• Sumo squats

• Bulgarian split squats

• Single leg 1/4 and 1/3 squats

• Non loaded overhead squats

• Single leg squat to box

• Single leg/pistol squat

As you can see there’s a TON of different ways to squat. So the next time someone says “not everyone can squat” tell them how full of it they are! There’s a version of the squat that just about everyone can do, so stop making excuses and find a way to take advantage of this awesome movement!

Your Squat Might Suck, But it Doesn’t Have To!

So now that we’ve got many of the different ways to squat out of the way, let’s look at why your squat sucks. There’s a TON of reasons why, and for every reason why there’s a solution your problem! Whether it’s a mobility problem, a strength deficit, pain in movement, or even just an overall lack of base level strength there’s a way to fix your problem and squat your way to performance gains and health!

Problem 1 - You’re unable to achieve depth, or have to get on your toes to get it

There’s a lot of reasons why you may not be able to achieve depth in the squat. It could be hip mobility problems, could be ankle mobility problems, could be weak lumbar extensors, or it could just be a lack of strength and/or your load is too high.

• Shifting to your toes in the squat

  • It’s probably an ankle mobility problem. Strengthening the muscles that act at the ankle joint can help to increase ROM and allow you to stay on your heels when squatting. The ankle isn’t always the culprit tho. Sometimes it’s a hip mobility issue, more on that below

• You just can’t achieve depth, even without a load

  • This could be a hip mobility problem. The body will not allow you to get into positions it doesn’t believe you can get out of, and because you lack end range of motion strength you lack the ability to get to those end ranges (lower in the squat). Non weight bearing isometric holds at these end ranges of motion will pay dividends for you. In addition to that you can slowly chip away at depth by spending more time at depth with lighter loads, or even bodyweight.

• You struggle to get depth with heavier loads

  • IT’S TOO HEAVY! Lighten the load and perfect the pattern then you can begin to add weight. Ego lifting will leave you broken and in a worse spot than not lifting at all.

Problem 2 - You feel like you’re falling forward (because you are!)

If you’re falling forward it’s typically one of four reasons:

• You’re looking down at the ground when you squat, so your body is following. You can fix this by not looking at the ground, duh. There is one time you can look at the ground when you’re squatting and that’s after your walk out to check your foot positioning. After that your feet are where they’re supposed to be, no need to check them again.

• Your upper back muscles are weak. When you achieve depth you struggle to keep your chest up. You can fix this in the moment by driving your chest up towards the ceiling as you come out of the hole. This will ensure you maintain a good position. In addition to this, you need to spend more time strengthening your upper back. Horizontal pulls/rows should be a staple in your training.

• Your lower back/lumbar extensors are weak. We need to be as rigid as possible when we squat. Now this doesn’t mean that we need to achieve some crazy big arch, but there needs to be enough stability/rigidity to transfer the force you’re driving into the ground through your body into the bar. In the short term you need to lighten the load so you can maintain good positions. In the long run, you need to strengthen your lower back muscles, AND more than likely spend some time lengthening your hip flexors.

• You’re sitting way too far back and turning your squat into a good morning. Bring your stance in and allow for more of a positive shin angle (knees traveling forward). A lot of times squatting with a high bar and narrower stance can clean this up for you. You can also work to increase your thoracic extension (being able to arch through your upper back) which will allow you to low bar squat with a wider stance.

Problem 3 - Your knees cave in when you squat

There’s a couple reasons this may happen to you, but it’s mostly due to a lack of strength and/or a load that’s too heavy.

• We’ve already addressed the fact that your body isn’t going to allow you to get into positions it isn’t sure you’re going to be able to get out of and sometimes your knees falling in is a result of this. Your body craves stability, and in an effort to find that stability you’ll internally rotate the hips and drive the knees in. This stability is not a good one as you’re resting on the outside of your knee joint, but it’s stability nonetheless.

• Your glutes and external rotators of your hips are weak. We can find stability at the end ranges of hip external rotation, and this stability IS a good one unlike internally rotating and allowing the knees to cave in. It helps to put the knee in a stable and safe position and it creates torque in the hips while cueing you to do this on the field of play (non contact ACL tears are a lot of the time a result of internally rotating the hip during deceleration, externally rotating the hips during the downward portion of the squat cues you out of that habit).

• You pronate. Orthotics can help, but you also need to train yourself to use the proper parts of your feet. Orthotics are like putting a bandaid on a bullet wound, it’ll stop the bleeding momentarily but it’s not tackling or correcting the problem. Do me a favor and look at the bottom of your feet. Where are your fat pads? The heel, the balls of your feet and the OUTSIDE edge of your foot. These fat pads are there for a reason, they’re built in “shock absorbers” courtesy of God himself. These parts of the foot are where we’re supposed to transfer force, use them!

Problem 4 - You have pain when squatting

This isn’t an easy fix by any stretch of the imagination. If this is structural (like an arthritic issue) then there isn’t a ton we can do however we can change the movement or at least make it less painful!

• Knee pain

  • Box squat! This movement takes much of the sheer force out of the knee and places more of the forces into the hips. With a perpendicular shin angle we can, oftentimes, squat pain free over time while also helping to increase our hip mobility. Look at your hip, and look at your butt, which one looks like it’s able to produce/accept more force? Taking the load off the knees and placing it into the hips can help clean this issue up for most people.

  • Squat with a wider stance and a low bar position. This is much like a box squat without the box. This isn’t the best option, but it’s an option nonetheless.

  • Use your hips! You’ve got them for a reason, don’t take the most powerful muscles in the body out of the equation. One of the reasons the box squat is so beneficial to those who have knee pain is because it takes the load off the knees and places it into the hips, and it forces you to externally rotate the hips creating more torque there.

• Back pain

  • Get on one leg. Whether it’s a split squat or a Bulgarian (rear foot elevated) split squat you can take a lot of the burden of movement off the low back. Mike Boyle has written extensively about this, and while I think he’s a little self absorbed/full of himself, he’s right about this.

  • Increase your hip mobility. When we lack mobility in certain joints, the body will find it in the surrounding joints. If you’re squatting to depth and you lack the hip mobility to get there, your body is going to find that movement from somewhere else, more than likely in the spine.

  • Learn to use your glutes in the squat. Hip extension (which is part of what the squat is in addition to knee extension) is a combination of hamstring, glute and low back firing. If the glutes aren’t carrying their portion of the burden of movement, it will fall to the hamstrings and the lumbar extensors.

  • Use a dumbbell/kettle bell and goblet squat instead. Placing the load on the front part of your body is going to force you to stay more upright which will in turn take some of the load off your spine. Think of your body as a system of levers and fulcrums with your bones being the levers and your joints being the fulcrums. The greater the angle you create with your hips (dropping your chest as you squat) the more force it places into your spine. Being more upright can take that burden off the lumbar extensors.

  • Front squat. This is similar to the goblet squat, however a barbell will allow for a much heavier load.

While the above issues aren’t the only issues you’ll have when it comes to squatting, they’re the most typical. A traditional barbell squat isn’t for everyone, but squat patterning absolutely is.

Don’t Excuse Your Way Out of Squatting

I get it, not everyone likes to squat. But you’re putting yourself at a HUGE disadvantage if you leave this movement pattern out of your programming. When it comes to training for sport you’re leaving a ton of potential on the floor if you don’t utilize squat patterning. From cueing external rotation in decelerating to keep us knee injury free, to increasing ground reaction force and allowing us to sprint faster and jump higher there’s not short of benefits. When it comes to life in general the squat can help increase bone density, helps to increase hip mobility decreasing pain, and can keep our lower extremity strong making sitting down, standing up, and , moving around MUCH easier as we age. One of the biggest indicators of longevity (even more than family history of cancer and heart disease) is lower extremity strength. Losing strength as we age is detrimental to our overall health, so don’t neglect squat patterning in your training! You sit down and stand up multiple times per day and that won’t change as you get older, make it easier by getting stronger!