How to Squat Properly | Chiropractor for Low Back Pain in Fishers, IN

One of the most common questions we get in our clinic is in regard to injuries in the gym and low back pain that’s associated with one of the most common exercise programs involving a squat.

The Improper “Wink” In a Squat

So we’re going to demonstrate something called a wink in your squat, which is not good. It will load the low back muscles and will cause a lot of potential low back pain. It can even bulge a disc and rupture it. So Hannah is going to demonstrate by going down and she’s going to start with her back going forward, this motion that’s called a wink.
Where there’s no support to low back muscles, and she’s starting to take her body weight forward. Rather than that, as you’ll stand up, she has to then load her back before she comes back up.

Proper Squat Form

The proper way to avoid the injury in the gym, is to get the heels shoulder width apart, and you want to have pressure on the heels, not the toes as you squat down. So as you’ll notice, if she goes down, we want to get past 90 and all possible weight on the heels, not the toe. Then she wants to come back up with the pressure again, on the heels and not the toes, keeping the pressure off the low back and engaging the leg muscles and not the low back. Well done.

Come see us for a low back pain consultation!