Box squats

[Rambodian]

OK, so I was having a chat to a my cousin the other day over the phone and he has started doing some strength training. I was telling him about how I was thinking of building some adjustable deadlift boxes etc, so we started talking about box squats, we were wondering whether a box should be initially set up so that the person should be just below parallel, at parallel or above parallel when first doing them.
My train of thought was that the box squat is used to teach numerous things, but mainly to get glute and hamstring activation in your squat, so parallel would be best. My cousin agreed but his train of thought was that it would be primarily used to teach depth, so the same but below parallel a bit, maybe an inch or so.

I don't really know TBH, so which is it?
Both? either or? or activate glute/ham? or primarily depth?

Just wondering really
Graeme

 

[wingman]

I'd vote 100% on the side of learning / developing muscle activation.

In people that have never squatted before, we used to put down a box or medicine ball to help them remember depth, but they'd only tap it and be back up. In box squats, you actually sit back on it, which is a world of difference.

 

[Rambodian]

I'd vote 100% on the side of learning / developing muscle activation.

In people that have never squatted before, we used to put down a box or medicine ball to help them remember depth, but they'd only tap it and be back up. In box squats, you actually sit back on it, which is a world of difference.

Yes this was my thinking Wingers.

 

[haz]

If you are training a sit back shins vertical squat, then It should be to the point that they don't loose form. this will stop people from plopping on the box. You then lower the box as they are capable. Once you can do a good box squat it should almost always be slightly below parallel unless purposely doing a high box squat for an overload/weak-point training.

A proper westside box squat is a squat/deadlift assistance exercise. and shouldn't be confused with a proper squat.

 

[Bazza20]

A proper westside box squat is a squat/deadlift assistance exercise. and shouldn't be confused with a proper squat.

I think this is a very important point. Some people say box squats don't work when they only do box squats and then go back to normal squats and it hasn't helped.

Use them like any other assistance exercise but continue to squat.

 

[Goosey]

Well done haz and baz

Heed this advice

 

[bull]

To my knowledge they develop power out of the bottom of the squat by releasing the elastic energy stored in the muscle. This forces the contraction to do all of the work rather than getting a head start.

If you are building a box it can have three different heights anyway so one box can accommodate all three positions if you put a bit of thought into it.

 

[0ni]

When I was doing them it got me very good at box squatting
I think I was doing what Haz was saying though about going down so far, plopping on it then going back up
In fact the only thing that has EVER increased my squat was squatting and I'm still trying to figure out what this means (apart from squat more and never stop)

 

[Figjam Brah]

Anymore on this?
Aren't box squats also to stop 'reversal pressure'' or whatever it is??


Could I get a few bits of wood, enough to be a few inches off the ground, and 'box squat' onto them? Or are they generally just so a bit below or above parallel

Starting to get worried about my knees/knees going over foot, so want to correct that..

 

[Bazza20]

Anymore on this?
Aren't box squats also to stop 'reversal pressure'' or whatever it is??


Could I get a few bits of wood, enough to be a few inches off the ground, and 'box squat' onto them? Or are they generally just so a bit below or above parallel

Starting to get worried about my knees/knees going over foot, so want to correct that..

Depending on the type of squat you do and you body shape but for most people your knees should be going over your foot when you squat correctly.

 

[adamklam]

Knees going over the foot is ok

Knees going out of alignment is bad.

I.e if you look down and you knees are pointing the same way as your toes it's all good.

If not.....

 

[Rambodian]

Yep, my knees do slightly go forward of foot, not to much but a bit. They probably go end of my toes when i squat low bar and wider stance because I sit back a bit more. Adamklam is right, keep knees inline with toes.

 

[Figjam Brah]

Thank fuck for that, cheers heaps guys. Was getting worried, cos was doing body weight squats before, and knees would go over, though i was doing something terribly wrong.

Depending on the type of squat you do and you body shape but for most people your knees should be going over your foot when you squat correctly.

Middle one, high bar squat, the others feel awkward lol.


Cheers one again guys.

 

[Sumo]

Yep, my knees do slightly go forward of foot, not to much but a bit. They probably go end of my toes when i squat low bar and wider stance because I sit back a bit more. Adamklam is right, keep knees inline with toes.

To get the most out of box squatting you want your shins to be vertical or past vertical and you need to sit back (breaking at the hips not the knees) on to the box not squat down. This forces your hamstring and glutes to do most of the work rather than your quads and takes the pressure off your knees.

 

[0ni]

I guess it depends why you're doing box squats
As SPP for the raw squat or as a glute/hamstring builder
Both would require different form

 

[Sumo]

I guess it depends why you're doing box squats
As SPP for the raw squat or as a glute/hamstring builder
Both would require different form

No - the whole point of performing a box squat is to put emphasis on the posterior chain and build dynamic strength (or special physical preparedness if you want to call it that). If you perform the box squat with a knees over toes or just behind toes you tend to defeat the whole point of doing them - it may help to determine depth but not much else and depth is only important to a powerlifter. Box squatting is terribly misunderstood and unless you perform them correctly they are pretty much a waste of time.

 

[Goosey]

I'd say box squats are good for learning how to squat on a box FFS.

What is this.

 

[Rambodian]

I'd say box squats are good for learning how to squat on a box FFS.

What is this.

LOL .....love your cut the shit approach Andy

 

[0ni]

I don't see how overloading any exercise would be considered a waste of time. A benefit of box squatting is breaking up the eccentric/concentric chain and you'd get a similar training effect from squatting with regular form onto it. Maybe it's not the training effect you're after or what the most common training effect is. I suspect that squatting with vastly different form onto a box for a raw squatter would change the movement pattern too much. Don't for get that at Westside they box squat the way they do to bring up their multi-ply squat and not their raw squat.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xo3VJg5670U#t=33s

(ok maybe Hercules curls and tricep kickbacks)

 

[Sumo]

I don't see how overloading any exercise would be considered a waste of time. A benefit of box squatting is breaking up the eccentric/concentric chain and you'd get a similar training effect from squatting with regular form onto it. Maybe it's not the training effect you're after or what the most common training effect is. I suspect that squatting with vastly different form onto a box for a raw squatter would change the movement pattern too much. Don't for get that at Westside they box squat the way they do to bring up their multi-ply squat and not their raw squat.

Squat max effort day from KK - YouTube

(ok maybe Hercules curls and tricep kickbacks)

Correct on the breaking eccentric/concentric chain but wrong on everything else