Introduction to the Squat, Part 2 Print E-mail



The first way to improve your upright posture in the squat is to use a wider stance (when we say wider, we typically mean a stance in which your feet are placed approximately 4 to 6 inches outside your shoulders). The reason that a wider stance allows you to remain more upright is that it essentially shortens the distance the bar and your body must travel by reducing the amount of hip displacement relative to your feet and the weight. Think of it this way: If you were to stand to the side of someone and analyze the "parallel" position of their squat, you should be able to draw a straight line from the center of the barbell, right through the center of the foot. During a normal squat, in relation to this line, the hips and butt will be shifted back behind the bar and foot position to a pretty significant degree. Now, if you're an ectomorph and have long upper legs, the popular narrow/shoulder width stance will require an even greater displacement of the hips and butt. It should come as no surprise that as the hips and butt shift back, the more forward lean you're going to have. With a big load on your back and a big forward lean, you're going to be subjected to what's called a "shearing force" in the lower back. Sections of the lumbar spine (L4 and L5, to be exact) located right around the waist level will be particularly prone to this stress if you've got a big forward lean going on. So, to reduce your forward lean, squat with a bit wider stance.

As for what role the position of the feet play in all of this, adopting a slight toe out position (where the left foot would be pointing to 11 o'clock and the right at 1 o'clock on an imaginary clock) changes the position of the head of the femur (thigh bone) in the hip socket. This position allows for greater range of motion and will often feel more comfortable to those with longer femurs. Ectomorphs love this little trick because it allows them to squat down lower without the hips feeling so restricted. It should be mentioned, however, that this increased freedom of movement should in no way act as a substitute for increasing flexibility in those muscles around the hips that may be tight, most specifically in this instance, the hip flexors and TFL (tensor fascia latae). Tightness in these muscles can lead to a restricted range of motion in the squat exercise and an excessive forward lean. Add this newfound flexibility and an altered stance (a bit wider than normal) and foot position (slightly turned out), and the squat becomes magically transformed into a more ectomorph-friendly exercise.

Since we're on the topic of flexibility, perhaps now would be a good time to address another major concern of you long-legged lifters. Namely, the flexibility (or lack thereof) around the ankle joint. It's been argued by some that people with long femurs in relation to their torso quickly begin to exhaust range of motion at the ankle as they descend into a squat, especially during a typical high-bar bodybuilding-style squat. This means that as they squat down, their ankle flexibility begins to become the limiting factor for the depth of their squat. When this happens, the only way to get lower is to lean farther forward, something we've been cautioning you against. Once the forward lean is pronounced enough, the heels have to come off the ground, and this is a major no-no. If you find yourself excessively leaning forward when you squat, or you find your heels coming up off the ground consistently, you might need to perform some flexibility work at the hips and certainly at the ankle. Most ectomorphs do. How much flexibility work depends on how you squat and how long your femurs are.

If your femurs are only slightly longer than your torso, and you're diligent about stretching to increase the range of motion in both your ankles and hips, so long as you don't squat much deeper than parallel, you should be fine. On the other hand, if your physique has more of that "man on stilts" look to it, regardless of how good you are about stretching, you'll likely need to cut your squats somewhat short of this position when performing the traditional back squat. Of course, you could always place a couple of weight plates, or a wooden block underneath your heels, but this really just serves as a crutch for inadequate flexibility. Besides, as you'll soon read, there are other options at your disposal.


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