Squat assessment at home

You really don't need a physio to tell you where you're locked and why you're not able to go down in your squat or why does your lower back hurt or why does your posture look like Donald duck.

Perform this self-assessment at home and find out where you "lock" so that you can work on it.

Step 1 - "The overhead squat". It is usually done with a stick or a broom maybe. But if that is not available, do it with your hands overhead. Try to squat down keeping your thoracic or upper spine neutral. If everything is right, the hands won't fall ahead and the upper back won't round. If you're successful here, great going, load your bodyweight squat.

Step 2 - "The prisoner squat". Do this if you cannot perform the overhead variation successfully. If you're able to go down with a neutral spine and proper depth(parallel or below) without restrictions, that means you have to work on your thoracic spine mobility and shoulder mobility/external rotation. If you're unsuccessful with this variation, it indicates lack of thoracic spine and scapulae mobility and stability. Regress to step 3.

Step 3 - "The standard bodyweight squat" with hands folded in front. This is the easiest of them all and will expose lower body restrictions. If you're unsuccessful in this one or it is hard to squat down due to pain or tightness, it means you have restrictions with either your ankles or hips or stability issues with the knees or feet.

To work on your mobility restrictions and stability regarding issues, please follow my training related account @outlawrevolution or main account @liftnwander on Instagram.

Here's a mini posture fix that you can do at home to ward off common tightness in the body.