Yes half squats and no the title of this blog isn’t a joke. Half squats really do have a lot of training value, although by no means should they replace full depth squats (So the hip knee joint is parallel or below).
Full squats should always be the main course of any athletes program, regardless of what their trying to achieve, unless of course certain conditions/injuries prohibit that movement effectively and safely. It is with deep pain in my heart that when most people squat, they are half squatting without even realising, completely missing out on all that extra potential, or maybe in fact they do realise because they can’t check their ego and make the weight lighter for a full rep.
Anyway, that’s a whole other ball game. Half squats rotated into a training program every so often, can give the athlete the fresh taste of variety without taking away too much from what’s usually hailed as the king of all exercises. This deliberated half range exercise has one major attraction, handling more weight, which will in turn lead to a higher surge of GH (Growth Hormone) and stimulate all the many muscles used in the squat even more by overloading. This will in term yield even more gains in certain muscle groups but it is not this is not the only trick up this exercises sleeve.
A popular method used by many powerlifters and strength athletes is what’s known as a rack lockout or a heavy walkout, all this entails is the lifter loads up a heavy weight, 95% 1RM – 140%, get tight under the bar, set up as if about to do the lift, then either stand the bar up for a few seconds or walk the bar out of the rack before placing it back in. This helps to build confidence in the athletes feel for the heavier weight, which you would naturally be doing with half squats, it also achieves a core overload, the ability to keep the core and body stable under heavy weight.
So there you have it, a quick blog on the benefits of half squatting. Do use this fantastic exercise to your advantage, just be prepared to explain your self when people start looking at your range of motion with that ‘Do you even lift?’ face. Chances are your half squat reps are twice their half rep max so don’t worry about it!