1-legged Box Squats

Doing 1-legged squats off a box is an exceptional way to get strong while improving balance and mobility. You can do this exercise with or without weight. 

Benefits:

– You can scale the difficulty of the exercise by varying box height 

– Sitting onto something gets you moving right 

– 1-legged box squats are safer than pistols because less flexibility is needed for proper positioning 

– It’s safer to add weight because you’re spine is more likely to be neutral 

–  You’ll learn to maintain neutral hip rotation while hip hinging, which means keeping your toes and knees pointing straight ahead

– If you use a front loaded weight, you’ll have to lift your chest, which helps with posture 

Here’s how:

Find something to sit onto that’s about knee height. Stand in front of it with a tall posture and your arms to the front, zombie style. Your feet should be together with your toes pointing straight ahead. Push your hips back and slowly sink onto the platform while keeping your chest up. Sit back a bit, and then reverse the movement by leading with your head. In the standing position, your hips lead by going straight back. In  the seated position, your head leads by moving forward. Play around with this exercise and try different height platforms. If you use a weight, hold it to your chest as shown in the video. 

I plan to do a lot of these over the coming months. I’ll be reporting my results via the Weekly Training Newsletter. Hooya!