Box Squats are a great way to train your lower body. Your upper body gets some action too as you'll have to work to maintain a tight core.
Basically they work the same muscles as you would in a typical barbell back squat, only in a smaller range of motion. Normally you descend until the crease of your hips is parallel (or just below) the height of your knee.
With the box squat, you want a firm box or bench to prevent you from going quite as low. This is useful for a few reasons.
If you've never done squats as part of a training routine you'll find there's a learning curve. You may be a little apprehensive to lower yourself for fear you may fall. Having the box there means you can be confident you're not going to hit the floor.
Box squats are a great way to ingrain the proper movement pattern for a squat. It's kind of weird. As toddlers, we intuitively know how to squat perfectly. Toes pointed slightly out, knees out, hips sink. Somewhere along the line we tend to lose it. At least, this is the case in the U.S. As we grow up, we tend to lean over at the waist to lower ourselves to pick something from the ground. Box squats re-teach that fundamental movement.
If you have knee pain or injury that prevents you from squatting to depth without pain, box squats may be a lower-body exercise you can do without discomfort. Please follow the directions of your doctor and/or physical therapist before trying them.
How do you do box squats? You can see the video above to get a good idea how it should look. Set the box to a proper height. More than likely, this is going to be the same height as a comfortable chair. At the bottom position your upper legs will be about parallel with the ground. However, you may need to start with a higher box initially. In time you can use lower ones.
Let's talk about body weight box squats first. Your feet will be about shoulder width apart. Make sure the box is in the right place for your descent. Set your hips back first, then bend your knees to lower yourself down. Keep your torso mostly upright. You can raise your arms straight in front of you to help you balance. Lower yourself under control so you don't smash into the box. Hold at the bottom position for half a beat. Drive through your whole foot to rise to the starting position. That's all there is to it.
When you're comfortable with that, you can progress to using resistance. If you use a dumbbell or a kettlebell, hold it up against your chest for all the repetitions. This will help you stay balanced by keeping the weight close to your center of gravity.
Another option is to use a barbell. Set the bar about shoulder height. Dip your knees to get under the bar and stand up to get it in proper position. You want to have it on your upper back muscles, not on your neck. Squeeze your shoulder blades together to provide a stable shelf for the bar.
Take a couple steps back towards the box. Take a deep breath in and fill your belly to really brace your core. From there, it's the same movement as the unweighted version. Your feet are about shoulder-width apart. Set your hips back, bend your knees. Descend under control until you reach the box.
Think about setting 90% of your weight on the box. This way you won't slam into the box. And you won't just barely touch the box. You'll keep your lower body engaged throughout. Hold for about half a beat. Drive through your whole foot to ascend to the starting position. Repeat for the desired number of reps.
As you get stronger, you can gradually increase the weight on the bar. Other ways you can progress include doing more reps, doing more sets, using a lower box.
You can add box squats to your workouts once or twice a week. 3-5 sets are plenty. There's a wide variety of reps you can do. You might do as few as 3 per set or as many as 15-20. The important thing is to make sure each reps is a quality rep.
With some exercises it's difficult to see how they translate to your life outside the gym. But the truth is, you do a box squat every time you sit on the toilet and get up.
There's a good chance you'll be doing that for the rest of you life. So you may as well make sure you're able to do it correctly, right?
Box squats are the perfect way to build and maintain the strength and coordination necessary.
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