Squats are essential. They’re essential to CrossFit, but more importantly they’re important to your well being. They’ll increase your athleticism and keep your hips, back and knees sound in your senior years.
If you’re not squatting you need to. If you are squatting, you need to focus on full depth. If you can’t hit full depth, keep squatting and fighting for the proper position until you get to it.
ALWAYS DO FULL SQUATS
Partial squats are never good. They neglect the hips and hamstrings. When an athlete stops above parallel his knee joints are forced to halt the downward momentum.
But once the athlete goes below parallel that stress is transferred to the more powerful groups in the hips, hamstrings and adductors.
Full squats keep all these muscle groups proportionately strong.
Bill Starr
Strength Coach
John Hopkins University
Sept. 1997
