Fitness

The lowdown on the staple exercise.

The air squats exercise is a go-to move in pretty much every workout class and fitness routine ever.

While a squat is obviously a greatlower body exercise, theres way more to it than meets the eye.

Try mini squats to strengthen your legs without straining your knees.

Thats why its recommended to nail the air squat first if you plan to do more complicated moves.

An air squat effectively worksglutes, hamstrings, and quads, making themtheessential lower body exercise, Steele says.

Your core and calves also help out to keep you balanced and in proper alignment, she adds.

How to modify an air squat.

Its also an ideal way to squeeze in some cardio.

Read on below for more info on the all-important squat, including how to do it.

  • Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your toes pointed directly forward.

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  • Reach your arms out in front of you or hold your hands at your chest.

  • Bend your knees and hinge your hips back.

  • Keep your lower back neutral.

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  • Lower down as if youre sitting in a chair.

  • Keep your weight evenly distributed through the center of both feet.

  • Be careful not to shift back into your heels or too far forward onto your toes.

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  • To stand up, extend your knees and bring your hips back underneath you.

  • For beginners, aim for 3 sets of 10.

  • For advanced squatters, do 1 to 2 sets of 15 as part ofa warm-up routine.

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Sit down and, right before your butt hits the cushion, stand back up again.

Or you could add pulses at the bottom of your squat to boost the intensity.

you’re free to also alwaysadd weights or a resistance bandto increase the challenge even more.

Its also super common to do a squat without engaging the core.

Instead, maintain a bit of core engagement the entire time to protect your lower back.

The more your hold your abs in front of you, the less likely you are to over-extend it.

Studies referenced:

Marchetti, P. (2016).

Muscle Activation Differs between Three Different Knee Joint-Angle Positions during a Maximal Isometric Back Squat Exercise.

J Sports med.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4967668/

Mazzetti, S. 2007.

Effect of explosive versus slow contractions and exercise intensity on energy expenditure.

Med Sci Sports Exerc.