How to Do Squats Without Hurting Your Knees and Low Back

Squats are one of the most functional exercises you can train your body to perform. Think of how many times our bodies execute this movement during the day: Getting into a car, sitting down at a desk, using the restroom, picking something up from the floor. Follow the steps and you’ll be on your way to safely teaching your body how to perform a squat without hurting your knees and low back.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

1. Start with a ball squat against the wall. Using a physioball behind your back is like having a built-in safety net and a spotter at the same time. Place a ball (any size will do) behind you at waist level. Walk your feet forward about 6 to 10 inches in front of your hips. Lean back into the ball and slowly lower down to a comfortable depth. Focus on the form tips given in #2 and #3 below.
2. Always keep weight in the heels. This is the true key to avoid aggravating your knees during a squat. Before you begin the squat, pick your toes up inside your shoes and drive the weight down into your heels. Keep those toes up throughout the entire squat and your body will be forced into a position that does not allow the knees to extend behind the toes.
3. Pull your shoulder blades back and keep your chest high. Retracting the shoulder blades and not letting the chest collapse are the two elements of protecting the lower back (along with engaging the core, of course). A good way to practice this is to actually clasp your hands together behind your back and pull your shoulder blades together as you execute the squat. You won’t be able to get much depth with your hands clasped, so try incorporating tip #4 to insure that you don’t fall on the ground.
4. Use a chair or bench as a guide. Placing a chair or bench behind you is a great way to analyze your daily squat form. Try to sit down on the chair while incorporating all of the form guidelines given above, and then stand up using the final tip #5. You’ll quickly realize how much work you need to do. Eventually work into tapping the chair lightly with your glutes and then not touching the chair at all.
5. Use the gluts and hamstrings as you stand up. Using good form to lower down into a squat is critical, but so is maintaining that good form as you return to standing. Many people don’t realize that squats--when performed correctly--utilize the gluts and hamstrings just as much as the quadriceps. As you stand up out of a squat, think of firing your gluts (think butt squeeze) and pushing your hips up and forward. You’ll be surprised at how much of the work load will be taken off the knees and low back when you let these larger, stronger muscle groups do the work.