That's Fit

If you're not doing squats during your workout, start today. Hell, start now. Stand up from your computer, lock your hands behind your head, and bang out a set of squats. Finished? Good. Now ask yourself, Do I perform this superb muscle-building and calorie-burning exercise properly?

A proper squat -- whether performed with a barbell bent from a Herculean load of 45 pound plates planted across your back, or with nothing more than your own body weight -- requires keeping your head up and a natural arch to your back. It also means lowering yourself to the correct position at the bottom of the movement. Thighs parallel to the floor is the way it's commonly described, but this isn't exactly clear enough.

Squat down right now. Look at your thighs. Are they parallel to the floor? If so, which part is -- the bottom or the top of your thighs? Ahh ... therein may very well lie the problem. Most times, people go by the position of the bottom of their thighs (nearest the knee) when determining that their legs are parallel to the floor. However, in this position you'll notice that the tops of your thighs are still somewhat angled and therefore not parallel with the floor.

The easiest way to ensure that your squatting low enough (but not too low) is to place a small box or a large medicine ball underneath you. As you squat down, your butt should tap -- but not sit -- on the ball. Once your butt has made contact, press back up to the starting position. Do not confuse this with an exercise known as Box Squats, which involve slowly lowering your body onto a box or bench, sitting for a moment, and the exploding upward. Our box or medicine ball is used solely as a frame of reference.

This slight modification will provide you with a greater range of motion, thereby activating more muscle fibers and burning more calories.