You don't know SQUAT!

When examining patients, I have found that many people don’t have enough strength to sit up out of a chair. Even young people will use momentum or their arms to sit up from a seat. I am not talking about people in tremendous pain. These people have difficulty getting out of their car seat, off the couch, and out of low seats.

For those of you that can remember, we used to have a couch in the waiting room years ago. About 2-3 times per week, I would be called to help them out of the chair. They didn't have the leg strength to lift themselves up.

When asked to demonstrate a squat, you get all types of crazy movements due to weakness in the thighs, buttocks or core. Some patients even refuse to do a squat. They fear that their kneecaps will be instantly destroyed. They fear that they will never walk again. They fear instant and sudden surgery.

Patients will sometimes even say that squatting is bad and that they don't want to do it.

Then I ask them in my characteristically sarcastic tone, “well how do you get off the toilet seat, or a chair, or the seat in your car?”

Of course the answer is that you must squat.

While there are some people that probably shouldn't squat, most people can if they squat properly. The key is to do it so that it’s less stressful on your knees. The main point is that squatting is a natural movement that we should train. It's an exercise that should be done, not avoided.

In our website, there is a link to another website called crossfit. It has videos on how to properly perform squatting movements without barbells. My favorite squatting exercise is the "tabata" squats. This is where you squat down multiple times for 20 seconds, then rest for 10 seconds and then repeat the cycle for 8 times. It's a killer!

Check out the “links” section. If you have any questions just let me know. Some people have had a hard time getting to the website. Remember to not type www. prior to the name.

http://adamstorychiropracticcorp.chiroweb.com/

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