Squats FAQs – Answers To The Most Commonly Asked Questions

Introduction To The Squat Exercise

The squat is one of the most effective compound exercises that you can do because it works many different muscle groups, including your quads, hamstrings, calves, glutes and hips, as well as your core abdominal muscles.

Bodyweight squats are often performed to tone up and strengthen these muscle groups, but this exercise can also be performed using a pair of dumbbells or a weighted barbell to increase the intensity and build more muscle.

The only real drawback of this exercise is that it is quite hard to perform with correct form, which obviously increases the risk of injury, and is not always a lot of fun because it really pushes you hard.

As a result of this, many people choose not to include squats in their training program, and so in this article I want to answer some of the most common questions people have about squats, and reinforce some of the key benefits in order to encourage more people to start doing this particular exercise.

How Many Squats Do You Need To Do A Day To See Results?

This largely depends on what your end goal is. If you want to burn fat, tone up your whole body and increase your core strength, then 30-100 bodyweight squats per day could be enough to produce visible results over time, but if you are looking to build bigger legs, then you want to be doing shorter sets of 10-20 reps with heavy weights, and reduce your training to 1 or 2 times per week to give your legs a chance to recover.

Can Squats Give You A Bigger Bum?

Yes, but in a good way. If you perform squats regularly, you will get a bigger and rounder butt with more muscle definition (especially if you use weights), and it will look so much better than a fat and wobbly butt or a small butt that has no shape or definition.

How Effective Are The 30 Day Squat Challenges?

30 day squat challenges can be quite effective, but you have to be realistic about what you can hope to achieve in such a short space of time. Many of these squat challenges require you to do an increasing number of bodyweight squats as the days go by, and will therefore help to promote fat burning, tone up your legs and give you a firmer and rounder butt to some degree, but you will see more noticeable results by doing weighted squats with a barbell or a pair of dumbbells.

Do Squats Make You Shorter?

Yes, squats can make you shorter due to a slight compression of the spine, but the effect is only temporary and is completely reversible by doing stretching exercises or lying down flat, according to fitness experts.

Can You Lose Weight By Doing Squats?

Yes, absolutely. The squat exercise is a high intensity compound exercise that engages many different muscles and burns a lot of calories, and if you use heavy weights when squatting, it will have an even greater weight loss effect.

What Do Squats Do For A Woman’s Body?

Squats can help tone up a woman’s quads, hamstrings, calves and glutes, resulting in toned legs and a rounder butt, and because they help to promote fat burning and strengthen the core, they can also help women develop their six pack abs muscles as well.

Do Squats Make Your Thighs Bigger Or Smaller?

This largely depends on the type of squats that you do. If you perform lots of bodyweight squats on a regular basis, then it may help to burn fat from your whole body, including your thighs, but if you prefer to do weighted squats with heavy weights, you are more likely to experience more muscle growth, and subsequently bigger thighs.

Why Do I Fall Forward When Squatting?

If you find yourself falling forwards sometimes when doing the squat exercise, it is usually because you are transferring the weight to the balls of your feet or pushing the bar forward during the squat movement. So to correct this, you should stick your chest out, engage your abs and focus on driving through your heels instead.

Why Do I Fall Backwards When Squatting?

This is usually due to poor form or a lack of balance. To correct this problem, you should practice doing bodyweight squats over and over again until you are able to do them with perfect form, asking for guidance if necessary, and then slowly start to increase the weight once you feel comfortable.

Why Can’t I Squat All The Way Down?

Many people have difficulty squatting all the way down. It may be because you have very long legs, for example, or it may be because you have a lack of mobility in your ankles, knees or hips, for instance, in which case you should try to do exercises that will improve your overall flexibility in these areas.

Why Do My Knees Hurt When Doing Squats?

If you are experiencing pain in your knees, either during or after squats, it’s probably because your knees are being engaged more than your hips, either because of poor form or a lack of mobility in your hips or ankles.

Can Squats Improve Your Posture?

Yes, absolutely. If you are performing squats regularly, and are using perfect form throughout the entire movement, your posture should start to improve over time. Front squats are even more beneficial because they will force you to pull your shoulders back and will enable you to go deeper.

How Often Should I Do Squats?

If you combine squats with other leg exercises, you can achieve some excellent results over time by training your legs just once a week. However if you prefer to do bodyweight squats and are not using heavy weights, you can do squats a lot more often, particularly if fat loss is one of your goals and you just want a little more definition in your legs and butt.

What Are The Best Alternatives To Squats?

If you have trouble performing regular squats with correct form, you can work the same muscle groups by doing front squats, Bulgarian split squats, Zercher squats, goblet squats or Smith machine squats, for example. You can also achieve some good results by using the leg press machine and performing front and back lunges with dumbbells.