Squats Challenge 30 Days
Cecelia Seiner
Complaints of loose skin, flabby bellies, and stubborn extra pounds are common after giving birth. What no one talks about is your sad, sad ass. After a lengthy bed rest, six weeks recovering from a C-section, and a sedentary winter, my once healthy bottom was an embarrassment. Don't feel too sorry for me - I also ended up ten pounds lighter and with a smaller waist postpartum - but after two very, very focused years in the gym pre-pregnancy, it was hard to watch all my hard work disappear.
At 20 months postpartum, I've ALMOST worked my butt back into it's previous condition. Along the way I reached a long sought-after goal: 145 pound back squats for reps (parallel - not quite "in the bucket" with as little as 65 pounds, but I digress). And then something happened: the last time I got under the bar, it felt more like work than fun. Moreover, I didn't feel anything in my glutes the next day, and my left knee seemed a bit ticked off.
I've been following the Glute Guy for several years and am a HUGE fan. Between the promising science behind the thrust and my enthusiasm for glute accessory work, I predict that my hip circumference will remain the same, if not larger, at the end of the challenge. Just to make things a little more interesting, I'm also eliminating deadlifts from my training protocol. So, what does that leave me with besides hip thrusts, you may ask? Here's a little taste of what you could do to build glutes in the absence of squats and deadlifts:
...and the list goes on. Mind you, the first two items on the list, hipthrusts and bridges, can each be performed in numerous ways - unilaterally, with bands, with feel elevated, with a mini band around the knees...again, the list goes on.
With all other things remaining more or less the same as far as nutrition, sleep, and cardio, I'm curious to see the affect of this 30 day no squat challenge on my waist and hip circumference. Moreover, I'm looking forward to assessing my squat strength upon reintroducing it to my training regimen.
First, I have to note: I also walk eight to 10 kilometres on most days. So my legs are getting a workout. But squats are a good starting point to begin challenging the lower body. But will I see any physical changes?
Many muscles, which is probably why these trainers love squats so damn much. Squats work the hip extensors (gluteus maximus, hamstrings), hip adductors (inner thighs), gastrocnemius (calf), quadriceps and erector spinae (lower back), says Tam.
What about the back of my thighs? She recommends Stiff-Legged Deadlifts which work your hamstrings and spinal extensors, or The Bulgarian Split Squat (or split squats) also work the hamstrings, glutes, and thighs.
Plus, strong glutes help you perform better, enabling you to complete other exercises much more efficiently such as being able to perform plyometric movements, jumps, running and improving agility and speed.
But first, look at my calendar filled with stars! I only missed 2 days. A couple days have an extra red star. Those are days that I did other exercise besides squats. I really only focused on squats and no other exercise. I just needed to see if I could do the challenge for myself. And yes, yes I did!
How is it going? You are just past day 15 now. I did notice a slight change by day 15 in my booty and by the end of the challenge a little bit more. But not a significant change. I think it depends on how deep you go into the squat. Also, what other exercise you are doing and healthy eating. It all factors together. Good luck and keep it up!
Thirty days later, my glutes are stronger and the muscular endurance in my arms definitely improved from all that kettlebell holding. I also built up quite a bit of core strength doing 600 weighted squats over a month. The front and back squats I have to do during CrossFit are also easier since I focused on my form and keeping my heels down.
Alena Luciani, MS, CSCS, Pn1, founder of Training2xl made it clear that adding weights is the way to upgrade your regular squats. Strengthening your booty comes with some real benefits. Strong glutes do so much more than make your waist look smaller and your booty look amazing in a pair of leggings or jeans. They also improve speed, agility, power, and prevent risk of injuries related to your back, says Luciani.
The goblet squats pointed out how weak and inflexible my inner thighs, hip flexors, and ankles were. My tight hips made it challenging to be parallel with the floor, so the first week I had to get used to the comfortable soreness.
And after sending Luciani a video for a form check after my first day, she pointed out that my heels often came off the ground when I pushed up. She recommended that I really focus on pushing off the floor with my heels when I drive upwards to remedy the situation. After toying around with positioning, I actually found it easier to keep good form when I did the squats barefoot, which Luciani assures is totally safe.
Transitioning from 2 sets of 10 to 1 set of 20 was physically tricky, especially those last four squats in the second set. It was also tough mentally because all those reps began to feel a little repetitive.
To keep myself focused during the exercise, I started counting reps out loud, which helped each squat feel like box I needed to check off my to-do list (and I do love to-do lists). I also made sure to text my friend group each day to help hold myself accountable.
Booty burn Your
body burns more calories to maintain lean muscle tissue than it does to
maintain fat tissue. That means weights can help bring on a stronger butt,
faster metabolism, and more calories burned all day long.
While doing those air squats, perhaps think about and send some good vibes to all the healthcare workers stepping into the front lines every day. And if you are one of those healthcare workers, please accept a huge thank you and a virtual hug from me.
Several years ago, I did a 1,000 squat workout on a cruise ship. That environment made the challenge much more interesting and entertaining to complete. I also did a 2,014 rep challenge once as a New Year celebration.
Reminder and Accountability Apps: I use the iPhone app called Productive to remind me and keep accountable during our challenges. There are others as well. These apps are excellent for accountability.
Yet until now, the Bulgarian split squat is an exercise I often avoided, opting instead to work on the traditional split squat or lunges, keeping both feet on the ground. I tend to wobble in a Bulgarian split squat, and have to really slow down and think about my form. Yet as I return to running from injury, it seemed as good a time as ever to add 50 Bulgarian split squats to my daily routine. Read on to find out what happened.
The main difference between a Bulgarian split squat and a regular split squat is that in the former, your back foot is elevated off the ground, putting more emphasis on the legs and core as you work to stabilize your body.
Engaging your core, slightly bend at the hips so your torso is slightly tilted forwards, and lower down into a lunge, bringing your left knee towards the floor. Think about keeping your right foot pressed into the floor, pushing up through this leg to return to standing. Repeat all of the reps on this leg, before swapping sides.
On day one of the 50-a-day challenge, I opted for bodyweight Bulgarian split squats, slowing the movement down to really think about my form. As a single-leg exercise, it only took a few reps for me to notice that my left, non-dominant side, was a lot weaker than my right. I also found my core was working in overdrive to keep me balanced.
By days three and four, I felt confident enough in the exercise to add dumbbells to the equation. Holding a dumbbell in each hand added intensity to the exercise, and again, forced my core to really engage throughout the exercise. By day five, I felt like I was a lot more balanced in the move, and increased the reps, doing five sets of 10 reps on each side.
On day six, I decided to mix things up, going to the gym and using a barbell instead of dumbbells. I opted for two sets of 15 reps on each leg, alternating my front foot position for each rep to work into the different muscle groups in my leg. By the end of the week, and the final day of my challenge, I returned to bodyweight Bulgarian split squats, performing the exercise in my living room before heading out for my long run.
Jane McGuire is Tom's Guide's Fitness editor, which means she looks after everything fitness related - from running gear to yoga mats. An avid runner, Jane has tested and reviewed fitness products for the past five years, so knows what to look for when finding a good running watch or a pair of shorts with pockets big enough for your smartphone. When she's not pounding the pavements, you'll find Jane striding round the Surrey Hills, taking far too many photos of her puppy. "}), " -0-10/js/authorBio.js"); } else console.error('%c FTE ','background: #9306F9; color: #ffffff','no lazy slice hydration function available'); Jane McGuireSocial Links NavigationFitness editorJane McGuire is Tom's Guide's Fitness editor, which means she looks after everything fitness related - from running gear to yoga mats. An avid runner, Jane has tested and reviewed fitness products for the past five years, so knows what to look for when finding a good running watch or a pair of shorts with pockets big enough for your smartphone. When she's not pounding the pavements, you'll find Jane striding round the Surrey Hills, taking far too many photos of her puppy.
As I soon discovered, these multi-muscle, multi-joint movements can help you advance from a bodyweight squat to a weighted version, increase core strength, grip strength and better your depth and range of motion. Goblet squats can also deliver the many benefits the humble squat is known for, like improving your quad strength and increasing bone mineral density.
With that in mind, I decided to complete 30 goblet squats every day for seven days to see what benefits would play out. To find out what is a goblet squat, how to do one and how I got on, keep scrolling.
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