Cardio Exercises, Part 3 (Squats)

Cardiovascular exercises include strength training. The more muscular fitness you have, the greater the capacity for you to burn calories. Experts suggest strength-training exercises that target multiple muscle groups. Incorporating squats in your routine exercises will help you burn more calories.

Why should I do squats?

Aside from helping your body to burn more calories, squats work on the hamstrings, quadriceps, and gluteus muscles. In other words, the legs, thigh, and butt muscles.

What is the safe and proper way to do squats?

1. Put your arms straight in front of you, parallel to the ground.

2. Keep you spine in neutral position. Don’t round your back but don’t over extend your back. Keep your back relaxed in a natural or normal position.

3. Think about where your weight is on your feet. It should be on the heels and the balls of your feet, as if you were pasted on the ground. You should be able to wiggle your toes throughout the entire movement.

4. Keep your body tight the entire time.

5. Now breathe in, break at your hip and push you butt back. Keep sending your hips backwards as your knees begin to bend. Think of how you sit down in a chair, only the chair is not there (to those with knee problem, a real chair can help).

6. Just look straight ahead.

7. Keep your back straight with your neutral spine and your chest and shoulders up.

8. As you squat down, focus on keeping your knees in line with your feet.

9. Squat down until your hip is lower than your knees. This is called a parallel squat. Anything less than parallel is a partial squat.

10. Breathe out as you return to your neutral position. Repeat the same motion.

Wisdom from experts

If you have a bad technique, squat is no longer functional. Benefits in squat exercises depend on their proper execution.