Sentences that start with the phrase “A guru once told me…” are, more often than not, eye-roll-inducing. But recently, while resting in malasana, or a deep squat, in an East London yoga class, I was struck by the second half of the instructor’s sentence: “A guru once told me that the problem with the West is they don’t squat.”
  • came_apart_at_Kmart [he/him, comrade/them]@hexbear.netEnglish
    28·
    11 days ago

    I read something about this years ago for improving posture. I use it when doing low/floor work that I would have got on my knees or sat down for, previously. I used to use it when I lived in this illegal housing/barn situation where I had to wash my dishes at a low spigot in an animal stall. it worked great and I remember it feeling so much easier on my low back than any alternative.

    I’m in my mid 40s now and it’s been a game changer… the muscles in the legs/thighs/butt feel like they have infinite stamina compared to the low back. it’s like once the flexibility is there, it’s much easier and does feel like a resting position. you definitely get looks if you’re standing in line for something and switch to it to “rest” lol.

    I recommend everybody in the west try some fundamentals with yoga, tai chi, and squatting just to get an idea of conceptualizing your body mechanics outside the westoidian default. not even anything intense… like I took a tai chi class where I was the youngest one in it by far and it was profoundly altering for being more conscious/deliberate in how I stand still and walk, which I am doing all the time so I get a lot of opportunities to “practice”.

  • CommunistBear [he/him]@hexbear.netEnglish
    21·
    11 days ago

    I have been squatting for years and I’m constantly amazed by how little other Americans can do it. It’s such a comfortable rest position for me that I’ll actively choose to squat versus sitting on a particularly shitty chair. So much so that I wish I had a squat toilet because they’re wildly more comfortable for me.

  • queermunist she/her@lemmy.mlEnglish
    20·
    11 days ago

    Working my way up to a full squat was extremely rewarding, now I basically use it to skirt around “no sitting” rules at work. 😏

  • StillNoLeftLeft [none/use name, she/her]@hexbear.netEnglish
    18·
    11 days ago

    Years ago there was this natural movement thing, right when I was doing my coaching studies, and I got into the whole rest squat movement. Before that I was doing all sorts of high intensity exercises and always had problems with my lower back (I do have a disorder in my spine that causes that), up to almost ending up in surgery with it.

    When I started to relearn the rest squat it was miserable at first, even though it’s the most basic position people exist in as kids. The burn in my shins was incredible. But I got to the 30 minutes pretty fast and after that it has never disappeared again. I am well over 40 now, fat and often spoonless, but I can just squat all the way down and get up like it’s nothing. Even when I slack on my lifting. Even when I sometimes forget about it for months on end, it never goes away again.

    My lower back rarely gives me grief these days and if it does, hanging out in the squat usually helps. I do a lot of on-the-go client work where there often isn’t places to sit and I can just hang out in the squat instead.

    5/5, would recommend to everyone who is able to do this.

    • Paradachshund@lemmy.todayEnglish
      6·
      11 days ago

      I find when I try to squat I just can’t get down all the way unless my legs are very wide apart. There’s a lot of tension? Resistance? From the area around my ankle tendons.

      Is that something goes away with practice? I know that tendons aren’t supposed to be stretched, so I’ve been a little hesitant to try and stretch where I feel the resistance.

      • StillNoLeftLeft [none/use name, she/her]@hexbear.netEnglish
        3·
        10 days ago

        Part of it goes away, but a part is probably just the way your hip bones etc. are aligned. I used to teach people to squat and the alignments we all have are very individual. Some need a wider squat while others can get tucked in a very tight squat “naturally”. Things like your femur lenght, back lenght etc. also impact this.

        I would aim to find a squat width where you can go with relative ease. Over time it might change too, but it’s a good strategy to start wider if that’s what you need. Strech is fine, but discomfort and pain is not. The position will get easier over time and I’d also do some work on the shoulder girdle and general hip mobility as these impact the squat quite a bit.

        I’ll add a video link here for some of this mobility work that I’ve found useful in the past: Link, this is pretty advanced if new to rest squatting, but do the things on your own level, eventually your range of motion grows.

          • StillNoLeftLeft [none/use name, she/her]@hexbear.netEnglish
            3·
            10 days ago

            Nps. Adding that ankle mobility and your posterior chain (all the way from the head to your toes) being tight might also make it harder.

            A lot of people can make their squat narrower, but then their heels lift up. If this is you, you can use an elevation under the heels at first so you can relax in the squat even in a more narrow position. Then just lower it over time. The idea is to be able to chill in the rest squat.

            It’s also smart to focus on mobilizing your feet and ankles, someone in this thread recommended massaging the soles of your feet with a ball and it’s very good advice. The impact that can have on the entire posterior chain can be huge.

            • Paradachshund@lemmy.todayEnglish
              2·
              10 days ago

              That’s exactly it, my ankles come up. I can do a yoga squat fairly well, but I wouldn’t call it restful!

              • StillNoLeftLeft [none/use name, she/her]@hexbear.netEnglish
                3·
                10 days ago

                If you can get your hands on a foam roll and a ball, it might really help with the posterior chain and heel stuff too. If your hamstrings are very tight, this too can make your heels go up when you squat for example.

                It can be many things, but all are helped by doing the rest squatting and some basic mobility work. You got this.

    • sevenapples@lemmygrad.mlEnglish
      2·
      10 days ago

      Did you follow a training programfotr rest squats, or just try to do it for as long as you could each day? I’m interested in any resources on this you may have

      • StillNoLeftLeft [none/use name, she/her]@hexbear.netEnglish
        2·
        10 days ago

        I did a 30/30 squat challenge on Facebook back in the day. I no longer have FB, but am sure there are many of these available online elsewhere. I definitely wasn’t able to do the whole 30 minutes every day, but it still made me a rest squatter.

        It was pretty difficult at the start eventhough I was a martial arts and lifting person so I’d go gentle with these. Lots of these contain grifty elements as they are adjacent to those sorts of scenes so the best thing to do is listen to your body and not push too hard. You don’t have to do paleo or fast to be able to sit in a squat. :D

        I’d start with small timed squat sessions with mobility work and build from there. If anything starts to hurt, honor that.

        You’ll never lose the ability again or I at least haven’t. I definitely only do these hip mobility things now at the beginning of my lifting sessions or when I feel achy/need a strech. It’s great as a cooldown too or before cardio. Sometimes months pass when I do none and it no longer matters.

  • GoodGuyWithACat [he/him]@hexbear.netEnglish
    15·
    11 days ago

    You ever see a little kid who is just old enough to walk pick something up? They do a perfect squat every time. We unlearn proper squatting and posture because of how he sit.

      • GiorgioBoymoder [none/use name]@hexbear.netEnglish
        8·
        11 days ago

        alright. I’ll practice! I can can dip a good bit below parallel with flat feet but have to put in a lot of effort to lean forward and keep my arms forward. Also I can’t go low enough to actually rest so my quads are flexing the entire time kitty-cri

        • Budwig_v_1337hoven [he/him]@hexbear.netEnglish
          6·
          11 days ago

          try this for ankles, see if it helps you. Whole channel is a big recommend for all things mobility and you’ll definitely find hip stuff on there too, if you need some. Generally, I’d start from the bottom up (so ankles first, then hip), but if you can easily lift your foot off the floor to like 15-20° while you heel is on the ground it may just be a hip issue. Really hard to diagnose without seeing you squat tho, so you gotta kinda figure it out yourself, sry

          Edit2; Your feet may also be making things harder for your ankles, see if massaging the bottoms of your feet does anything for your ankles. Either use your hands or step on a ball (in the beginning a tennis ball, later a squash ball or similar) and roll around a bit, to loosen up the whole foot, but especially that arch

    • Cat_Daddy [any, any]@hexbear.netEnglish
      6·
      11 days ago

      When I was getting started, I had to spread my legs further apart, almost like doing a dumbbell squat. I’m still not to the legs-together version, but I’m getting there.

  • Awoo [she/her]@hexbear.netEnglish
    9·
    11 days ago

    We making physical shibboleths now? I’m down. The world shall be divided by those who say CPC and squat vs those who say CCP and do not.