⚡️How to do Squats in The Active Resistance Training® tech study 

Tech Study 1 has one set of 20 squats (okay sometimes I do 40 because why not?)

Once you finish your push ups you’ll hold a plank for 10 seconds and then you’ll step in to stand up, lining your toes up behind your blocks.

Pressing your shoulders down towards your hips and engaging them while keeping your ribs closed and pulling the navel back serves to engage 3 of your four active resistance points.

Your last AR point is your feet and we focus on pressing down into the floor so we can connect to the torso active resistance. You’ll descend towards the floor until your hamstrings are parallel to the floor. Or get as close as you can get to parallel. Pushing the feet down, pulling the navel back start to stand up to complete the rep.

The most important part at the top of the rep is to actually know and feel that you’re entirely upright. When you’re entirely upright your glutes will be RELAXED and your navel and ribs engaged bringing your hips fully underneath your ribcage. This also lengthens you’re lower back and you should have fully extended hip flexors in the front where your hip creases.

Do not – I repeat do NOT squeeze your glutes at the top. It’s a nothing useful thing that in no way facilitates any kind of natural human movement.

Your goal during squats to deepen them and remain entirely engaged throughout each rep. If you remain engaged you’ll feel your lower back lengthen and there should be no knee pain. You’re definitely sweating by now, as we’re raising your heart rate.

A great mental cue is the think of sitting in a chair like you might do 100x a day. Tap the chair and stand up. Oh, and do not shift your feet between reps. Keep your feet lined up hip width apart – ankles under your hips and maintain the pressure downward. Find – engage – and maintain the active resistance. Don’t break your focus.

Now let’s practice your squats & do 20 reps. Oh but seriously – do 40 – because they feel good now!

What are the benefits of squats?
The benefits of squats are many! Squats strengthen your gluteus maximus, minimus, and medius, quadriceps, hamstrings, adductor, hip flexors, and calves. I can’t say enough about how vital squats are to your core and lower body strength. Squats are one of the fundamental pillars of human movement, and as such, I have included them in the Active Resistance Training® Technique Study because they are THAT important.

Squats are necessary for full-body resilience, lower body endurance, and full-body mobility. There are so many variations that you can never get bored with them. Here though, you’ll find the basic old-school squat in our Technique Study.

How many squats should I do in a day?
Basic bodyweight squats, like presented here, a minimum of 10 per day. There is no upper limit; as your strength improves, you can continue to add repetitions. For purposes of this discussion, let’s suggest a goal of 30 bodyweight squats per day. Start with a few reps, and every day add a few reps. Simple!

Are squats good for women?
Squats are GREAT for women; besides the obvious aesthetic benefits of a shapely bum, it is crucial to realize the real-life bonuses to squatting every day. Durability! Squats keep your glutes toned and healthy and enable you to power throughout your day without getting tired.

How often should a woman do squats?
We believe women should squat everyday 5-7 times per week. Make sure you use different variations and aim for a 30-50/squat per day target.

Do squats make your butt bigger?
No. Not in the rep range we are discussing here (30 reps+). Muscle growth and hypertrophy requires heavy loads and multiple sets of limited repetitions to induce muscle growth and size increases.

Muscles develop according to how you use them. Sprinters have great butts! Glutes are a prime mover in explosive power. If you want glute growth, training for explosive power will get you there.

Regular bodyweight squats will give you the firm relative size and muscle development that your genetic predisposition allows.

How deep should squats be?
The squats’ depth discussed here is measured with your hamstrings (back of the legs) parallel to the floor. However, the many squat variations have as many different depth requirements as there are variations.

Can I lose belly fat by doing squats?
No. Not as a direct correlation to the number of squats performed. Squats as a full-body exercise can contribute to belly fat loss as they can raise your heart rate and help enable belly fat loss if done in the context of a regular workout and healthy eating routine.

Do squats make your thighs bigger?
No. Not in the context that we are discussing squats here, with the basic bodyweight squat. The basic bodyweight squat builds lean muscle mass and firms the muscle through an endurance-based repetition.

Squats can increase the thigh muscles’ size when loaded repeatedly, over time, with ever-growing weighted loads. Adaptation creates hypertrophy in response to the training protocol.

Are squats bad for knees?
No. Squats are not bad for the knees if performed correctly. It’s best to seek professional guidance when beginning any new strength training regimen.

What muscles do squats work?
* gluteus maximus,
* minimus, and
* medius,
* quadriceps,
* hamstrings,
* adductor,
* hip flexors,
* and calves.

Try our A.R.T. Fundamentals Zoom Classes to get you started. Not sure how to use zoom? Click this link How Do I Join a Zoom Fitness Class to get started on a healthy lifestyle from the comfort and safety of your own home.