Bodyweight basics

As part of a warm up, a bodyweight squat can prepare the joints and muscles involved before adding more load.  A good bodyweight squat should be the foundation for any loading and the ‘prisoner squat’ and ‘stick’ squats on the following pages form solid staples as general conditioning exercises, as a warm up for loaded squats, or as part of circuit training.

Both exercises teach correct alignment appropriate for loading, that is maintaining a ‘neutral’ or inwards curve in the lower back, and an upright or extended upper back.  The other key points are maintenance of correct knee and shoulder alignment, by way of keeping the knees in line with the toes, and engaging the shoulder girdle/rotator cuff muscles to keep the shoulder joints in the safe and correct position. Some bodyweight squats can be performed without this emphasis (such as the ‘ass-to-the-grass’ ‘primal’ squat) but for the purposes of loading these technique points are important.