Assisted Squat – Easy Exercise For Strong And Mobile Legs
The assisted squat is a leg exercise you do while holding onto a sturdy object. This makes it easier to do than regular squats.
The assisted squat will help you boost the strength of your leg muscles. It will work your quads and glutes. This will help you prepare your body for harder skills like your first full squat.
Assisted squats are easy and well suited for beginners.
Equipment
To do an assisted squat you will have to hold onto something. This should be some sort of a sturdy object that is easy to hold with your hands. It can be a pole, a low bar, a desk, or a chair.
So it’s pretty easy to find something to hold onto. Other than that, you won’t need any special piece of equipment.
Assisted squat benefits
Assisted squats will bring you a few benefits including:
- Convenience: Besides something to hold onto, you won’t need any special equipment. So, you will be able to do it almost anywhere. This makes it easily accessible.
- Beginner friendliness: This exercise is easy to do. It can be done when you are just starting out. This makes it a great choice for beginners.
- Improved strength: Assisted squats will help you do more sets and reps. This will help you build your quad and glute strength. It makes you ready for harder skills.
- Better squatting form: This is an easy skill. You will not have to worry about strength and take care of your form only. This will help you improve your form and do harder variants much easier and with more control.
- Improved mobility: Assisted squats can help you increase your range of motion. When working on it you will boost the mobility of your hips, ankles, and knees.
This skill is great to use after injury. After you go through physical therapy, you start with some easy exercises. After you master easier variants, one of the options you may try is the assisted squat.
Remember to always ask your doctor before starting to work out after an injury.
Prerequisites
Before doing assisted squats here are a few things to keep in mind:
- Good mobility: You will have to have decent hip, ankle, and knee mobility before you try this. If you don’t, you won’t be able to go as low as needed. Proper warm up will help you get your body ready for a workout. It will help you improve your mobility before going for the strength part of the workout.
- Adequate strength: If you are able to do half squats for 3 sets of 10 reps you can try to do assisted squats. This is an indicator, your strength is up to speed for this skill.
- Injury free: It’s mostly a bad idea to work out when you are injured. Assisted squats are no different. If you have an injury, you should avoid doing assisted squats.
- Pain free: If you feel pain when you do it you should stop. Pain is a sign that something is not right. If you continue your workout in spite of the pain, you might get injured. It’s better to stop injury before it happens.
Assisted squats muscles worked
Like in all squatting skills, you will mostly work your leg muscles. Your quads and glutes will do most of the work.
Your abs and lower back muscles will make you stable and keep your body straight.
Assisted squats muscles worked:
Primary:
- Quadriceps
- Gluteus
Secondary:
- Hamstrings
- Calves
- Abs
- Lower back
How to do assisted squat
Positioning:
Stand in front of a sturdy object and grab it with your hands. Your hands should be placed low enough to allow you to hold with your arms straight in the middle of the move.
Stand with your legs a bit wider than hip width apart.
Downward movement:
Lower your butt down by bending your legs at your knees. Lower down until the upper part of your legs is parallel to the ground. This move should be done slowly and with control.
Upward movement:
To go back up extend your legs slowly. You will extend your legs by straightening your knees. Keep on raising up until you are standing straight again.
Continue the same moves for reps. When you are able to do 3 sets with 10 reps in each set, you reached mastery.
Assisted squat progression
The assisted squat is a part of a pistol squat progression. Since this is a fairly easy skill, you will have limited easier options.
Here are a few easy options you may try to do before assisted squats:
When assisted squats are easy for you, there are other options for you. You may try some harder skills like:
Key takeaways
The assisted squat is an easy exercise. It’s a beginner friendly option when you are at the start of your fitness journey. It can be also used in the healing process after an injury.
It will improve your leg muscle strength and prepare you for harder skills like a regular squat. Assisted squats are also good for building on your knee, ankle, and hip mobility.
