Recently updated on October 25th, 2022 at 11:16 am
Although there are various exercises that target your glutes, one of the most popular is a squat. It is a calisthenics exercise, meaning that you don’t need any special equipment to perform it since it uses your body weight as resistance. A squat can be performed anywhere and by anyone, and it is super effective at working your glutes. Therefore, this exercise is an inseparable part of any booty workout.
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All You Need To Know About Squats
Table of Contents
1. Muscles involved
The first thing you need to learn is what muscles do squats work. Although they are often included in a glute workout, they also target other muscles. A basic squat involves your hamstring, quadriceps, abdominals, calves, and, of course, glutes. Due to such a great variety of muscles worked, this exercise is often performed on leg days.
2. Pros of squats
You have already learned that squat is very non-demanding in the matter of experience and skills, and equipment. What you may not know is what benefits it can offer you. The main ones include:
- Strengthened muscles and joints
- Reduced risk of injuries
- Improved balance and stability
- Worked lower body and core
- Great versatility
- Better proportions
How Many Squats A Day Will Help You Achieve Your Body Goals?
Like with any other exercise, the recommended number of squats you should perform a day depends on your initial fitness level and your goals. Let’s take a closer look at how these two factors affect the number of reps you need to do to achieve the desired results.
1. Fitness level
Since exercising requires a challenge, you can’t stick to the same exercise plan and expect constant improvements. Once your body gets used to a certain type and intensity of training, you need to increase the physical load it provides you with. So, the greater your fitness experience is – the higher intensity workout you need to perform to notice improvements. Luckily, there are various types of squats and various adjustments that can help you increase the difficulty level of your workout. You can always add more reps or perform more sets of this exercise to keep your training challenging and effective.
2. Goals
Numerous people perform squats with the only goal of shaping up their buttocks. This practice is especially popular among women. If your goal is to get a bigger booty, then you should know that there is no set number of squats everyone should perform to shape up their peach. Here you also need to plan your workout with one thing in mind: it must be challenging. If you want to achieve any results, make sure to consult a specialist before diving into your workout. Most experts agree that you should try doing three to five sets of ten squats in a week.
Squats and weight loss
If you aim for weight loss and general health improvement, then squats are a great choice. They are effective fat-burners and can significantly boost your daily calorie expenditure. The number of calories you burn performing this exercise depends on such factors as your initial weight, body composition, duration and intensity of your workout, and others. According to the Harvard Medical School, a 155-pound individual can burn 233 calories in 30 minutes of vigorous weight or strength training exercise such as squats.
An average 140-pound (63.5kg) person burns 19 calories during 5 minutes of low-intensity squats, and 44 calories during the 5-minute performance of high-intensity squats. If the same person performs squats of the same intensity for 15 minutes, they will burn 58 and 133 calories respectively. An average 180-pound (81.5kg) and a 220-pound (99kg) person burn 117 and 144 calories respectively during a 15-minute moderate-intensity squat workout.
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How To Perform A Squat Correctly?
A squat is an overall beneficial exercise, which can not only help you tone your body, grow muscle mass and lose weight, but also improve your wellness. However, no matter how many squats you perform, if you don’t do it with a proper form, it will do you no good. Therefore, before diving into squat training, it is essential to learn how to perform this exercise correctly.
There is a great variety of squats, but the one that paved the way for all other variations is a basic squat. To perform a basic squat with a proper form, stand straight with your feet shoulder-width apart, toes pointing slightly out. Bring your hips back and down, bending your knees, and stretching your hands in front of you for greater balance. When your knees are bent at a 90-degree angle, and your thighs are parallel to the ground, pause.
Make sure that your knees point in the same direction as your toes, and don’t cross the invisible vertical line drawn by your toes. Keep your back straight and your core engaged. After a small pause, reverse the movement by extending your knees and returning to a standing position. That is one rep of a basic squat.
Conclusion
A squat is so popular for a reason. It is great for your joints, can strengthen your core and whole lower body, improves your balance and stability, offers you great versatility, and helps you slim down. There is no universal number of squats everyone should perform to sculpt the body of their dreams since it varies depending on many factors. Therefore, the best approach is to consult a specialist and create your personal squat workout plan.
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