Squats for weight loss: features, techniques and recommendations

Want to have beautiful legs, elastic buttocks and a toned silhouette? Squat!

Squats are the easiest and most effective exercise to change the shape of your legs and buttocks in no time. Read the article to the end, and you will find out what squats give to the body, what muscles they develop and what should be taken into account when doing squats for weight loss.

Exercise Features

Any training program, both men and women, necessarily includes squats. Why? Let's get it right.

Squats is one of the best basic exercises that actively affects the whole body as a whole. When doing squats, several muscle groups are included in the work at the same time. Not only the hips and buttocks work, but also the lower leg, back muscles and abs. This provides increased energy intensity of the exercise, which allows you to burn more calories.

This is a great base for any training program. Squats are found in complexes of general physical preparation, as well as an auxiliary exercise in many sports (athletics, soccer, figure skating and others). Performing them, you increase the functionality of your body.

Squats are not only power, but also aerobic in nature. This is an excellent training for the heart and blood vessels, subject to proper breathing during the exercise and maintaining the heart rate in a given area.

Expected effect

Given all the features of squats, as a result you get:

• Tight hips.
• Elastic buttocks.
• Decrease in body fat.
• Strengthening the muscles of the back and abs.
• Development coordination.
• Improving the work of the heart.

Execution technique

Proper weight loss squats begin with mastering the technique. Let us dwell on this in more detail. We list the main points on which you should focus your attention when doing the exercise:

1. Back position.
2. Setting the stop.
3. The direction of the knees.
4. The movement of the pelvis.
5. Breath.
6. Direction of sight.

The back should not be rounded. Violation of this rule may result in lumbar injury. In order to keep your back level, you need to take a deep breath before starting the exercise and tighten your abdominal muscles. Air in the lungs will lock your chest, it will become motionless and "stiff." This will prevent the body from tilting forward and arching its back. In sports, this technique is called "blocking."

The position of the legs and feet depends on the specific type of squats. If we talk about the usual, classic look, it’s right when the socks are looking forward. It is necessary to press the floor with the entire surface of the foot. In some cases, it is recommended to transfer body weight to the heels in order to strengthen the buttocks. Do not move the weight forward, this can lead to knee injury.

Knees and feet should be on the same line. Do not roll your knees inward, control their position, especially when lifting from a squat.

When doing squats, the movement should begin with the work of the hip joint, and not bending the knees. Imagine you are sitting on a chair. Sometimes this technique really helps to understand the technique. Place a short stool or stool behind you and squat until your buttocks touch the surface. Lowering and lifting should be smooth, without jerking.

Be sure to watch how you breathe when doing the exercise. Breathing should be uniform, do not hold it. Inhalation is performed before the start of movement (remember about the "blocking" of the chest), exhale - when lifting, by effort.

When squats, you do not need to throw your head up, it will also be wrong to lower it down. Look straight ahead, fix your gaze at one point.

Squat to parallel with the floor or below?

A controversial issue that has spawned many discussions around itself. Adherents of deep squats (below the parallel to the floor) scream that this is the only way to make the gluteus muscle work. Skeptics say this is a direct path to knee injury.

The most important thing to understand: deep squat is not an exercise for everyone! To perform it technically correct, it is necessary to have a good level of preparation, coordination and flexibility of the hip and ankle joints. At the same time, squats below the parallel with the floor give a more maximum training effect on the muscles of the legs and the body as a whole.

With proper exercise, the risk of injuring your knees is almost zero. Moreover, deep squats serve as a prophylaxis of injury, as with regular training they increase the stability of the knee joint. Choose the most comfortable amplitude for yourself, in which you can work without breaking the technique.

Contraindications

Despite the many advantages that squats give for weight loss, it should be remembered that for its implementation there are a number of limitations and contraindications.

The main ones are:

• injuries to the legs and spine;
• joint diseases;
• the presence of blood clots;
• hernia of the intervertebral disc;
• phlebeurysm;
• high blood pressure;
• excessive overweight.

A specialist consultation is recommended before starting training. In some cases, you can perform squats, but with some limitations. For example, with varicose veins, if there are no blood clots, you will be allowed to perform this exercise using a special compression jersey.

Gym or home workout?

Squats are a universal exercise. It can be performed both in the gym and at home, having only a couple of square meters of free space available. The choice depends on what kind of goal you are pursuing.

If you need to radically change the shape of the legs and buttocks, then training with weights gives the maximum effect. The easiest way to do this is to work out in the gym. The gym provides the following benefits:

1. The choice of equipment. For example, in addition to squats with a barbell or dumbbells, you can use a hack simulator or Smith's simulator.
2. The ability to use large weight weights. Most often it is necessary when doing squats for weight loss in men. Initially, their strength indicators are higher than that of women, so for productive workouts they need more weight.
3. In the gym, you can always turn to the services of a trainer who will give technical recommendations or draw up an individual program for you.

To monitor your progress, it is recommended that you create a table of squats for weight loss. Celebrate training days, type of squats, weight used, number of reps and sets.

Squats at home are more often chosen for the following reasons:

• You don’t like gym classes;
• You do not have time to go to the gym;
• in general, you are comfortable with the shape of your legs and buttocks, you just want to tone them.

Squats for weight loss at home do not require a large amount of equipment. You can squat both without weights and with dumbbells. The main thing is to focus on technology, use at least two types of squats in one training session and work until muscle fatigue. It is recommended to do at least 15-20 repetitions in 3-4 approaches. Rest between sets should be minimal. If you wish, you can supplement the complex with other exercises for the hips and buttocks. The result will be visible after 2-3 weeks of regular training.

Nowadays, training schemes are also popular when you perform squats for a month daily, starting with a certain number of repetitions and bringing it to 100 (and higher) in one approach. An example of such a scheme is given below.

Squat Options

Today, there are many options for squats for weight loss. These are classic, with a wide setting of legs, with a narrow setting of legs, squats-plie, squats on one leg, curtsy, scissors and others.

We will analyze the most popular and most frequently used ones.

Classic squats

Starting position: legs - shoulder width apart, socks looking forward.

When performing this exercise, you can use your own weight, dumbbells or barbell.

Squats with a barbell for weight loss are also different. The most common when the weight is on the back, on the shoulders.

Less commonly used are squats with a barbell on the chest (front squat). In this position, the front of the thigh is loaded more. This exercise is often used by weightlifters in training.

Squats when the bar is held overhead on outstretched arms. This is an extremely difficult exercise; it requires good coordination and flexibility. The benefit in its implementation is the enhanced work of the muscle-stabilizers of the body and shoulder girdle. Attention: only a trained athlete can do this type of squats!

Wide-leg squats

This species is often confused with plie squats. However, these are different exercises. Squats with a wide setting of the legs are performed in the same way as the classic ones, but you put your legs wider than your shoulders and keep your toes apart. This allows you to open your hips and perform a squat deep enough. The breeding angle is completely individual and depends on your body structure.

This type of squats for weight loss in women is very popular and is performed more often than classic. This is due to the fact that the hips and buttocks are loaded more, especially if you are working with weight and do a fairly deep squat.

Plie Squats

Starting position: the legs are as wide as possible, the feet are turned out toes outward, the knees are looking in the direction of the socks, the back remains in a straight position.

It is in the position of the back that the main difference between plie and squats with a wide setting of legs lies.

These hip squats are very effective, especially for the inside. Follow the execution technique: keep your back as straight as possible, try to avoid tilting the body forward, control the position of the knees, strive to keep the hips in the open position.

Most often, this type of squats is performed without weight or holding a dumbbell between the legs.

Squatting for losing weight is also a great exercise. If you want to increase the load on the abdominal muscles, you can perform any kind of squats with twisting or tilting the body.

General recommendations

To get the most out of squats for weight loss, just follow a few simple rules:

Exercise regularly.

When exercising in the gym, you should include squats in your workout plan at least once a week. You can do at home, without using weights, as often as time and your level of training allow you. Above all, give your muscles time to recover.

Be sure to warm up before training.

The benefits of a workout are often underestimated. The main recommendation is this: the more intense and harder the workout, the more time you should spend to warm up. Spend 5-10 minutes warming up. It is not so much, but your body will say thanks for it.

Follow the technique.

Technology, technology and technology again! Master each type of squats thoughtfully, do exercises without weight first. Remember, if you feel pain in the joints or where it should not be, you are doing something wrong. Watch the training video, listen to reviews about squats for weight loss from professionals, study the issue.

Do not chase the result.

This is another important point that many people forget. You must work with the weight that allows you to perform each repetition of the exercise in compliance with the technique. Even if you want faster progress, do not give in to the temptation to engage to the limit of your abilities. This is a direct path to injury or overtraining.

Stretch out.

Stretching after training is just as necessary as warming up. By focusing on the elasticity of muscles and ligaments, you provide injury prevention. In addition, stretching helps faster relaxation and recovery after a workout.

Follow these recommendations, choose the most suitable type of squats for you, do it with pleasure, monitor your nutrition - and the reflection in the mirror will only please you!