When you squat, we’ll often tell you to “get your knees out”. At the bottom of your squat, you should be actively pushing your knees away from each other. There are at least three very good reasons for this.
First, “knees out” prevents sideways (lateral) forces on your knees and ankles, because the various parts of your legs are nicely lined up (assuming you’ve adopted the correct stance, with your toes angled outward). Your knee and ankle joints are not constructed to withstand lateral forces. Placing excessive amounts of these on your knees and ankles can, over time, degrade the integrity of these joints.
Many people have trouble keeping their lower back arched at the bottom of the squat. Sometimes this occurs because their knees are not pushed out far enough. In short, the pelvis can’t rotate forward past a certain point because it runs into the femurs (the big bones in your upper leg) if they aren’t pushed out far enough.
Finally, pushing your knees out allows you to engage another set of muscles in the squat, called your adductors. Try holding a deep squat with a tight back and chest up while you push your knees out really hard. Then let your knees come in — you’ll feel yourself collapse a bit, because your adductors can no longer engage. When they are engaged, these muscles can make a big difference in your squat.
December 8, 2009 WOD
10 rounds for time:
6x pullup (chest-to-bar)
10x push press (95/65 lb)
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Patrick– you said you wanted to do the lumberjack workout? I want to also, I only watched…call me or text me 916-749-0587 and lets set up a time to do it. I don’t know if i can bring myself to do this one alone…
I want to do the lumber jack workout too. Let me know if you guys set anything up. I’m getting a little healthier each day.
Me toooooooooooooo!
I would like to try it again! Now that I know what I’m in for, I want to improve my time