Fix Your Deep Resting Squat in a Few Minutes a Day!

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The deep resting squat is a position that everyone should be able to get into.

I'm not talking about doing a back squat to parallel at the gym with a heavy weight on your back and weightlifting shoes. That's an entirely different thing! Rather, squatting low to the ground with no weight should come effortlessly and we should be able to hold that position for a long time.

In fact, it is how we likely would have rested, prior to the ubiquity of chairs. The position is still useful today, too. We squat when we go to pick something up, when we're playing with our kids, and when we're winding up for a vertical jump.

The problem is that many of us have lost the ability to squat. This is not only due to sitting in chairs all day, but also due to wearing shoes with big heels that keep us in a constant state of plantar flexion (feet pointing downward).

This leads to so many unwanted knock-on effects. From tight hips, to a tight lower back, to rounding of the spine, to a general loss of athleticism. And it can result in injury.

How do we get the deep squat back? I've discussed several methods before - such as holding a weight in the goblet squat, or pulling yourself to the ground. Since then, I've started using what I think is a better method. And this method can be applied to all kinds of mobility in order to help you achieve your goals more quickly and with less risk of injury.

Don't ego stretch!

[FitOneswithVarun]

Doing timestamps will make me more functional

0:00 - Intro: Fixing the Deep Resting Squat
0:07 - Importance of the Deep Resting Squat
0:42 - Benefits of being able to squat deeply
1:09 - Impact on everyday tasks
2:47 - Issues with forcing the squat position
3:16 - Problems with weighted stretches
5:06 - Personal experience with injury from forced stretching
6:00 - Limitations of physical proportions
9:00 - Steps to improve squat mobility
11:41 - Holding the deep squat position
12:45 - Tip to practice barefoot
15:29 - Conclusion: Summary of the approach

[nniaho]

Tip for all the gym goers: you can practice your deep squat position in between sets of bench. You can also use the bench to hold on to

[chria]

I'm very sorry to hear about your lower back, Adam. I wish you the best recovery.

[ItsaLaz]

Heels on ground, comrade found. Heels in sky, western spy.

[cranebeg]

I respect this advice and what's covered here but I went after ankles/calves for years and got nowhere. It wasn't until I truly began the battle with my hips and lower back. I do this exact move 4:46 no weight and it's an absolute killer to start with. I even have a difficult time breathing properly. I combine holding relaxed-ish with more active "sets" of pushing forwards, really crushing the hip region. It's (for me) the massive restriction here that is slowly being addressed. The counterbalance weight below is good but only if you can already keep it close to your centre of mass. I too have hurt my back and needed to stop for a while, disconcerting when it happens. But steady progress with bodyweight alone. You demonstrate an upright torso by the bench, it's definitely my preferred practice. Oh, I do also go either barefoot or wearing zero drop shoes.

[fineline]

I'll be really honest. I discovered your channel today and found a deep desire of mine finally being satiated. Every time I thought of modern fitness, I always wondered why every discipline has a such a narrow vision. No one really thinks of incorporating training methods to improve their brain function and using new technology to enhance old principles. It's like very little has changed in the ways of these disciplines. I always envisioned the ideal human physique is one that is capable of all feats of the body. Not disregarding the mind, not solely focused on strength or hypertrophy but training every single component of the human body. But when I thought of looking for all of these methods seperately from the overwhelming amount of information on the internet and compiling them after reviewing each one, it gave me a headache so I like others thought it's just better to train one thing as long as it keeps me healthy who cares. Finding your channel gave me new found hope and enthusiasm to start training. Love and a sub for this.

[AlexandreLollini]

in my mind it is necessary to wiggle a little the feet finding the right position, when deep in the squat pay attention to the weight distribution between different parts of each foot, left/right and heel, if all is equal then you have the right position and it is real resting position. Failure is when feet are too close or if the angle is not right. It is also important to find this sweet spot before working the rotations, it's nice in the conversation when you have to speak to different people in the circle.

[TheTacticalBatman]

I want to thank you for what you do, I know you'll probably never see this comment. But you really have motivated me at times.I am going to start to do the beginner work out and eventually I want to be as fit as you. I know no one can be perfect at everything like Batman, and I don't force that expectation on myself, but as chubby guy who avoids mirrors and being shirtless as much as possible I think I would really benefit from at least building aesthetics, and I like looking good, but I want more than to just look great, I want to feel great, I want to be able to work for a day without feeling a lot of pain for the ensuing three days. I used to do 10 situps and 5 pushups on that order to failure which helped but I think you can help me :)

[CrispyCircuits]

When I privately trained in Kung Fu in High School, we had to stretch tremendously. He taught us to stay in each position, not come out of the position for about 5 minutes. If you are stretching, keep in the position. After a while, you will suddenly feel your nervous system (not the muscles relaxing) relax and remove that tension. At that point, you are really getting the benefit. Give that a try next time you stretch. Just gently maintain the position for a while and it's quite a surprise when it finally happens. At school, during our PE classes, they were all astounded by how far I could stretch. It wasn't that I was stretching a lot, it was all in the technique.

[nabbycoyg]

lol good timing, I was working on this the past month or so. Noticed my mobility, posture and lower back pain and tightness has improved. Very helpful!

[northeastwoodsman]

This is just what I’ve been waiting for!!

[pablogonzalez]

Hi, I just want to thank you for this video, I've already seen progress 1 month in, where I can now rest in the squat without feeling like I'm falling back for a few seconds, while beforehand, I would immediately fall backwards.

[panagiothsstaurou]

My bottom squat position improved by doing empty olimpic bar overhead squats for many reps

[richard]

Good advice, I had a hip replacement because of using kettlebell to practice deep squats and forcing myself down, I will now try the bio needs method as I want as near as full mobility as I’m getting older

[Pyromaniac]

For me personally, doing it the way people showed me, with that stiff and upright position, was always painful and messed up my back when I was told to do it anyway.

I don’t recommend staying still at all, I don’t recommend using the same form every time, I don’t recommend worrying about where your knees, ankles, shoulders, hip and back are in relation to each other. That’s way too much.

I recommend: listen to your body over absolutely everything else. If doing the “perfect stretch” hurts then stop. God I wish I hadn’t listened to my idiot coaches who thought they were doctors.

I stretch every day and I am more flexible, and in much less pain, than I have ever been in my life. Thanks to corrective exercises that I learned myself and then altered to fit my body, and listening to my body over everything else.

The advice I followed to the letter was wrong for me, and my body will never be the same because I followed it obediently. Don’t do what I did.

[MrJohnNinja]

Well done, Adam! I have been struggling with the "deep resting squat", and look forward to implementing the strategy noted. Best, John R.

[asg]

Best fitness YouTuber. And there are a lot of great ones.

[petemarron]

I appreciate that you said "5'8"" instead of using the metric system.

[LatimusChadimus]

I do this every day for 5-10+ minutes, as well as a horse stance everyday for 2+ minutes, oftentimes training something else while standing in the horse stance like TaiChi, or war yoga, or using kettlebells, clubbells, even holding a bar in my elbows. Sitting at the bottom of a squat for more than 5 minutes a day will lead to a lot more stability than training the low bar squat twice a week, even more so if you train both

[ItsMeloki]

I do it a lot in the gym, logging each set on my phone and checking the next one in my plan, and sometimes really just resting a little extra. Adds up to a couple minutes per day.