As toddlers we learned to squat. Watch any small child at the beach or playground—they move up and down effortlessly. Most teenagers, and certainly almost all adults, have already lost this functional movement. They need to hang on to something for both strength and balance. However, the muscles that straighten the knees (quadriceps) are the most powerful in the entire human body! We have been both spoiled and ruined by chairs.
In most of the world—especially Asia and Africa—people squat to rest, to eliminate, and to perform many tasks. Squatting is the easiest position for birth; the pelvis is at its widest and the power of the abdominal muscles and gravity can be well utilized.
Let’s look at the many other benefits of this position:
Squatting stretches some of your calf muscles and makes your ankles more flexible.
Squatting stretches out tight muscles in your lower back, helping to relieve any pain in that area.
Squatting keeps your knee joints mobile and pain-free. There are several facets on the inside of your kneecap they are all used only in individuals who squat. Cartilage has no blood supply: exchange of nutrients and waste products depends on compressive forces. Disuse leads to joint stiffness—osteoathritis. Strangely, some exercise instructors are very concerned that the knee "never bends more than 90 degrees over the ankle". This is absurd!
Squatting helps prevent and improve pelvic floor problems. The invisible, internal pelvic muscles are exercised automatically when arising from a squat. For men, squatting keeps the prostate healthy and of normal size. For women, squatting reduces or eliminates bladder control problems and the descent of the uterus, bladder, and bowel.
Squatting facilitates emptying. Constipation and incontinence are epidemic in our culture. Although other factors may co-exist, such problems rarely occur in physically-active cultures whose toilets are at ground-level.
PARTNER SQUATS: Squatting with a partner makes this exercise easier and fun!
Position: Both stand with feet placed flat and wide apart for a steady base. Hold hands with arms outstretched in front.
. Action: Gradually bend your knees to squat down slowly, keeping both feet flat on the floor, counterbalanced by each other’s weight and outstretched arms. Remain squatting for a couple of minutes. Hold your arms straight because bending your elbows will tire your muscles. Keep your feet flat or there’ll be too much weight on the forefeet, which also makes you less stable. If your heels do not reach the floor (and for most people they won’t) place a book or a piece of wood under each heel. Keep the weight on the outer borders of your feet, lest the inner borders roll over and strain your knees and arches.
Take every opportunity throughout your day to squat. Choose an inclined surface to begin with—the edge of a low step, the side of a small hill, or the beach where your feet can sink into the sand.
When you need to pick up something you have a choice: bend at the waist and risk a back injury or SQUAT and do your lower body some good!
In the video clip below you can view Marie Osmond demonstrating squatting when she was pregnant with her first child. I was the consultant for the video Marie Osmond's Exercises for Mothers-to-Be, produced by MGM/UA.
