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"Half" Squats vs. Going all the way down

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pray4mojo

pray4mojo

Diamond Member
What's the pros and cons of each? I've heard going all the way down reduces stress on the knees. Is that true?
 
I find definitely going no more than 90 degree to be better on the knee and this makes sense mechanically as well. The other may strengthen quads better but the more flex in the knee the more aggressive all angles are on everything from the patellar tendon to the menisci. The only way it could possibly be better is that if you do a full squat you cannot do nearly as much weight. I know in my case with my questionable patellar tendon I do much better going down no more than 90 degree bend at the knee.
 
i'm gonna go with the competitors on this one:

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i believe the modertator does the same.
 
Skoorb said:
I find definitely going no more than 90 degree to be better on the knee and this makes sense mechanically as well. The other may strengthen quads better but the more flex in the knee the more aggressive all angles are on everything from the patellar tendon to the menisci. The only way it could possibly be better is that if you do a full squat you cannot do nearly as much weight. I know in my case with my questionable patellar tendon I do much better going down no more than 90 degree bend at the knee.
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Most exercise physiologists agree that extreme points of flexion and extension are harmful to the knee. However, if you have trained your muscles to be stronger in that full range of motion, much of the force is taken off of your ligaments and tendons. Physiologists can't conclude that a low squat is bad for this exact reason. They see trained individuals who have no knee problems and get very, very low. It all depends on your genetics and the way you train. Most people don't need a squat much lower than perpendicular for their activities. If you do though, the important thing is to take the time, get flexible, keep tension in the muscles throughout the whole range, and don't lift more weight than you can.
 
SociallyChallenged said:
Most exercise physiologists agree that extreme points of flexion and extension are harmful to the knee. However, if you have trained your muscles to be stronger in that full range of motion, much of the force is taken off of your ligaments and tendons. Physiologists can't conclude that a low squat is bad for this exact reason. They see trained individuals who have no knee problems and get very, very low. It all depends on your genetics and the way you train. Most people don't need a squat much lower than perpendicular for their activities. If you do though, the important thing is to take the time, get flexible, keep tension in the muscles throughout the whole range, and don't lift more weight than you can.
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I dont exactly do a whole lot of athletic activies, simply looking to pack on more muscle. I've been doing half squats for over a year now and wondering if I should or shouldn't change over.
 
pray4mojo said:
I dont exactly do a whole lot of athletic activies, simply looking to pack on more muscle. I've been doing half squats for over a year now and wondering if I should or shouldn't change over.
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Don't do half squats. You increase your risk of injury in normal ranges of motion due to extra strength in some ROMs and less in others. Research squat form and get it down. If you're gonna squat, you need to squat right. To be perfectly honest, I'd say it's safer for you to not squat rather than do half squats.
 
Full for me no question. With full squats I don't feel like the knee is under any pressure at all and when pushing upward I feel the pressure entirely in my back/legs (hope all that is normal/correct). When not going full the feeling of stopping and then starting the weight from half way is awkward and unnatural.
 
ATG
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-cocMMTB-tM

Go as low as your flexibility allows you. Having poor flexibility isn't an excuse to not squat all the way down if your not working on your flexibility.

I rarely see people stretch at the gym so it's no wonder why they can't squat deep.

And when I hear you people say 'half' thats on the VERY generous side also, it's more like a one third squat...

Work your range of movement and BUILD THE WEIGHTS UP. DON'T USE THE SAME WEIGHTS THAT YOU *WERE* using to do half squats to go deep, you'll blow yourself up. You haven't conditioned your knee, tendons and ligaments to do it yet. It's like trying to sprint from cold you'll break yourself to pieces.

Take your time and increase 10lbs every other week, start with say 60% of your 'training weight'. People are in too far a rush to stack on the weight. Train smart and careful.

Koing
 
Turin39789 said:
best stretches for squat flexibility?
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Depends on your limitations. Almost everybody has tight hamstrings initially. Also, there are people with hip tightness qhich effects the internal/external rotation of their femur. I, personally, have a really hard time with increasing flexibility in my glutes. I'm working on it, but man, it's a pain.
 
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Alright I did some full squats at the gym yesterday and I must say they are much harder (obviously) and they target the core muscles a LOT better than half squats. It really hits the quads and glutes more too. Never going back to half assed squats again. Thanks for the advice!
 
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