Squats, along with deadlifts, are fundamental movement patterns that we all use on a day-to-day basis. Be it sitting down and standing up from a chair or simply lifting up small objects from ground, like children or travel luggage, those patterns are utilised.
There are competitive versions of these movements, often completed by powerlifters or gym goers where the weights that are lifted can be very imposing. I’ve had many conversations with patients that have a fear of or simply avoid doing these movements. When in reality, they are falling into a comparison trap looking at ‘trained lifters’ rather than looking to progress their body with the correct squat or deadlift lift variation for them.
There are lots of different squat and deadlifting variations that you can learn. While figuring out which movements work best for your body can require a bit of trial and error (we all start somewhere), I’m hopeful that a little advice can put you on the right path.
Tips, tricks and techniques…
If lifting the heaviest load possible is your desired outcome, then yes, there are technique pointers that will make a big difference. If not, you need to just get moving. The more you move away from competitive lifts to the ‘daily lifting’ we all do in life, technique is far less important than just getting up and moving with gradual exposure to more load to help improve our capacity.
The length of our limbs (arms & legs) will have an impact on how we might set up for these movements. Long thigh’s? Try taking your feet slightly further apart. Long torso relative to legs? Try different bar positions (low v high).
Do I need to squat until my legs are parallel with the ground? No! Some people don’t have hips or ankles that will allow this. Simple, put a box behind you so you don’t sit so deep or trial using a Trap bar.
I’m getting old, should I still squat and deadlift? Absolutely! Maintaining lower limb strength along with grip strength is critical in helping maintain balance and independence as we age.
Lifting is about gradually exposing our bodies to loads so that it has enough capacity to deal with the task that we might encounter on any given day. Squat and deadlift movements are a great way of getting the different joints and muscles to work at the same time to help achieve these outcomes. Helping you to find the right lift for your needs, that’s where we can help.
And for those of you that are lifting heavy, if your bar path is ugly or you’re finding you’re getting stuck in the hole because you have sneaky butt-wink or a shift going on, we can help you too!
Book an appointment with Lifecare today and take the next step toward a healthier, more active lifestyle!
Written by Warwick Gordan, Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist – Lifecare Joondalup Physiotherapy.
Warwick loves treating patients and athletes of all abilities, shapes and sizes. This is no better demonstrated by his two areas of clinical specialty – running and powerlifting.