Of all the lifts that you can do with a barbell, squatting is one of the most beneficial exercises in terms of gaining size, strength, and physiological health. Many people try to avoid leg day in the gym – simply because it’s hard – but the serious lifters know that squats are not something to skimp on. Unfortunately, it becomes very difficult to add weight to your squat once you hit a certain “sticking point.” Luckily for you, I’m going to explain a technique that help you get over that plateau and skyrocket your squatting ability!
During a squat, you will automatically tighten your stomach, because your body knows that this is the best way for it to balance itself when it’s put in an awkward weight-bearing situation. Tightening your abdominal muscles creates a cinch-like effect for your torso so that it is able to maintain its rigidity and not collapse forward.
This is a great way to start out if you are learning the fundamentals of the exercise. However, there comes a time when it will start to inhibit your gains.
In order to overcome this hindrance, you can perform “breathing squats.” There’s really not a whole lot to it, and you can probably guess how they are performed just after reading the title.
Basically, you just squat like usual, but then take several breaths at the bottom before coming back up. This will be hard at first because your abdominal muscles are so used to being tense and tight during this movement.
The benefit of this exercise is two-fold. First, you are removing the intra-abdominal pressure within your stomach that has been keeping your torso stabilized. By getting rid of this pressure, your body needs to compensate some other way so that you don’t fall over. In order to accomplish this pelvic stabilization, your nervous system will recruit other muscle fibers that are generally inactive during the movement. By getting more neuromuscular recruitment, you are building a stronger torso and pelvic floor.
Second, you are increasing the time under tension during the exercise. Time under tension is just an indication of how long your muscles are working to move a weight against the pull of gravity. So, by taking a few breaths, you’re increasing how long your muscles are working, which therefore increases the intensity of the workout.
There you have it. By implementing breathing squats into your workout routine, you will see improvements in the muscular development of your legs and the strength of your squat. Be forewarned, these are not easy, but they are worth it!
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