For such a natural human movement the squat get's an unfair and often bad rep for being a movement that impact our knees negatively. However squats are in fact not bad for your knees and can actually have a lot of benefits for knee strength.
Just like our muscles, the structures within your knee (cartilage, ligaments, tendons, and meniscus) all have the capacity to adapt and become stronger. As we slowly expose them to increased loading over time, they get stronger, making them less prone to injury. For this reason squats are one of the best exercises on the planet for improving knee joint health.
However like other exercises there are a couple of considerations that need to be accounted for:
1) Your squat technique needs to be good.
2) The increases in weight and loading must occur in a gradual and safe manner
**Technique is important - How to perform a body weight squat**
1) Stand with your feet slightly wider than your hips. Your toes should be pointed slightly outward – about 5 to 20 degrees outward (the wider your stance, the more you’ll want to rotate your feet outward).
2) Put your arms straight out in front of you, parallel to the ground. Keep your chest up and your spine in a neutral position.
3) Make sure your weight is on your feet and evenly distributed between the whole foot.
4) Keep your entire body tight, your core flexed like you’re bracing to be punched in the stomach!
5) Breathe deep into your diaphragm, break at the hips and push your butt back behind you
6) As you squat down, focus on keeping your knees in line with your feet driving them out laterally as you squat
7) Squat down until your hip joint is lower than your knees (mobility dependent)
8) Keeping everything tight, breathe out and drive through your heels
9) Drive your knees outward (away from each other) the same way you did on the way down, and squeeze your glutes at the top of the squat.
How to progress your squat
- Bodyweight
- Goblet Squat
- Back Squat
The take home message is that squats are in fact not bad for your knees and actually have a lot of benefits. If you are new to exercise or have had an injury then it is best to learn or have your squat retrained by a qualified professional.
