MASTERING SINGLE LEG EXERCISES CAN BE HARD. To strengthen your lower body, whether you’re lunging or doing the dreaded Bulgarian split squat, balance, strength and focus are essential to completing the repetitions without losing your balance. Start with the split squat, which is the most basic unilateral leg exercise, if you are having trouble.
You’re building the groundwork for future, more difficult exercises when you perform split squats. The split squat is a great exercise for beginners as well because of its simple setup, which lets you add a lot of weight to build unilateral strength and muscle.
However, simple does not equate to easy and before moving on to greater loads you must comprehend the form. It’s crucial to pay close attention to this movement before you step forward, grab some dumbbells and begin forcing your knee into the floor.Let us show you how to perform the split squat correctly.
How to Do the Split Squat
- Start by setting down two dumbbells, one on each side of your body.Lower yourself to one knee, bending both legs to a 90-degree angle. Lean a little forward.
- Your back foot’s toes and midfoot should be on the ground. Your feet should be parallel to one another or on “train tracks.” Maintain a neutral posture with your neck by looking directly ahead.
- Squeeze your glutes, abs and shoulder blades. Tightly grasp the dumbbells.
- To get up, fire your glutes in the back.
- Do not bang your knee into the floor when lowering yourself back down. Rather maintain your equilibrium and hover slightly above the ground before leaping back to a standing position.
Additional cues to shore up your split squat form:
Set Up
Fitbulk states: Underestimating the setup is the main issue people have with split squats and this applies to all of them not just this beginner kit move including Bulgarians. They mistakenly believe they can simply spread their feet apart and dive into the motion aimlessly resulting in a clumsy downward push-up.
To begin the split squat, allow your body to tell you where to stop: Assume the bottom position, ensuring that the angles of your front and rear knees are equally ninety degrees. Squeeze your hamstrings, quadriceps, and glutes to help you stand up from this pose. Many misjudge the amount of continuous stress at the top of a split squat. Recognize that your legs won’t be perfectly straight at the top, but that’s good.
Glutes Tight
Fitbulk advises: Tighten your glutes when rising from a split squat as well as at the bottom. Like a typical squat, the split squat requires a strong, focused glute squeeze because you want to keep your knee tracking outwards, away from your body’s core, to protect your ligaments and soft tissue.
Load It Up
Fitbulk states: You’ll probably think of the split squat as a step backward for unilateral leg training exercises and believe that Bulgarian split squats and lunges are better for your entire body. That is untrue. When you get the split squat down pat, it may be a really effective strength exercise that you can employ to increase your overall strength, power and athleticism can lose your balance if you extend your torso too far forward. Leaning back and extending your lower back is a problem as well.
Slamming the Knee
With each repetition, control the weight and avoid slamming your knee onto the floor. Long-term, you’ll spare your knees and maintain your full-body tension.
How to Include Split Squats in Your Exercise Routine
Include this fundamental leg day exercise in your lower body training days after larger compound lifts, such as bilateral squats, to help you hone your single-leg work. Begin with three to four sets of eight to ten repetitions, emphasizing slow, deliberate movements.
As a seasoned content writer specialized in the fitness and health niche, Arun Bhagat has always wanted to promote wellness. After gaining proper certification as a gym trainer with in-depth knowledge of virtually all the information related to it, he exercised his flair for writing interesting, informative content to advise readers on their healthier lifestyle. His topics range from workout routines, nutrition, and mental health to strategies on how to be more fit in general. His writing is informative but inspiring for people to achieve their wellness goals as well. Arun is committed to equipping those he reaches with the insights and knowledge gained through fitness.