Wellness Positive

The Actual Exercises.. Exercise 3: Squats

  This is THE ultimate bodybuilding exercise for triggering the production of the body's natural growth hormones. Squats are an exhausting exercise, but the best and most rewarding muscle development and bodybuilding exercise known. Increase the amount you lift when you squat and you trigger the growth of every muscle in your body..

  Directly, this exercise works the muscles of the legs and lower back, and most especially the thighs...

Procedure:

• Have a friend help you raise the weight over your head and on to your shoulders (or you can take it off a squat rack if you're in a gym). Be careful to rest the weight on your shoulders as shown in the picture and not your neck. This is crucial - do NOT rest the weight on your neck.
• Get in a comfortable upright stance with your feet shoulder width apart or slightly wider. Your toes should be pointed slightly outward. They should NEVER be pointed inward.

Now do the squat:

  Step 1:

• Keeping your heels planted firmly on the floor and your back straight at all times, go down into a 'sitting position' with the weight on your shoulders.

  Step 2:

• Slowly, smoothly, straighten your legs to stand up again. Imagine that you are pushing the earth away with your feet, and you'll get the movement right. When pushing back up, always push through the heels, not the toes.

• Note: The movement is up and down. There should be no sideways movement of any kind during the squat. Keep your back straight and chest up at all times.
• Breathe IN as you go down, breathe OUT as you rise up again. Keep your back as straight as you can when you do this exercise.

  You have now done one repetition of this exercise.

  Work up to ten sets of ten repetitions each, as outlined in the section 'The Basics of Weight Training', given in the beginning of this routine.

  Start out with as much weight as you can handle (DON'T injure yourself) - your ultimate aim (over several months) should be to slowly increase the weight to at least 300 to 600 pounds for the squats.