Three Signs of a Bad Squat

As personal trainers, we all find ourselves dealing with clients that have greater, equal, or lesser physical capabilities than ourselves. Clients with all different levels of physical capabilities have one issue – they cannot perform a proper squat.

After spending countless hours in the gym, one of the biggest problems I have noticed amongst the general population is a lack of flexibility and the know-how to perform a quality squat. There are three signs to spotting this: Knees bowing in or out, heels lifting off the floor, and knees that bend far over their feet.

We build relationships with these clients, and over time, training them is just clock-work to us. However, it is VERY important to recognize, even if it’s your client of two years, it’s time to study a proper squat and make sure that every client can execute it. Feet are hip-width and pointed forward, knees bend over your feet, and the first motion is sitting back, making sure the glutes are activated. Clients unable to execute the perfect squat generally have inflexibility in their legs (specifically their calves) and are forcing their knees too far over their feet – causing a tremendous amount of pressure on their knees and a squat that only works the quadriceps. 

It is time for us to stop getting so comfortable with our clients and start making sure that we are ALWAYS working toward making them a more physically-able and athletic specimen. Correct their squats and help them improve their walks, runs, everyday lifestyle, and more.