The variations of squats allow for us to perform the move every day, allowing for proper recovery between workouts and won't lead to burnout. The exercise can help us meet any goal, including a faster sprint and leaner legs!
Here are just a few reasons why we should be performing squats everyday:
1. Increase strength and power.
Squats build strength and power in glutes, hamstrings and quads, which are primarily stabilizers when moving on the field. The move also improves hip extension power, which is essential to increase vertical jump. Squats stimulate muscle-building hormones, which strengthen the entire body. Weighted squats will challenge the body to overcome a force and reap the anabolic benefits.
2. Get major definition in the legs and butt.
Squats target the quadriceps, hamstrings and glutes. The basic movement is a fast way to build lean muscle, which results in tight, toned limbs. We know it's a myth that you'll "bulk up" by lifting weights, so don't be afraid to squat a challenging weight.
3. Improve mobility in hips and ankles.
Body-weight squats are a great way to increase range of motion in hips and ankles, which will help reduce lower back and knee pain. It's a safe and effective way to improve mobility without taxing the joints.
4. Strengthen and tone the core.
Performing weighted squats challenges the core to stabilize the body throughout the entire range of motion. The transverse and rectus abominus are deeply engaged the entire time, resulting in a stronger, flatter stomach! A strong, solid core will also help prevent the risk of injury.
5. Improve posture.
Whether you're performing a weighted or body weight squat, you'll be engaging the upper back (lower/upper trapezius and rhomboids) to help stabilize the body through the movement. This strengthens the muscles responsible for proper posture.
Squatting Every day Is Great Practice
One massive benefit to squatting every day is that the more often you squat, the more practice you get at squatting. It’d be comparable to a baseball player going to the batting cage every day. The more he does it, the better hitter he’ll become. The more often you squat, the better and more efficient your form will get. This is because you’re employing the Grease the Groove (GTG) method.
Take Advantage of Frequency
Squatting every day could let you take advantage of benefits that some are anecdotally finding come with more frequency. In other words, instead of doing more training on one day, spread it out across multiple days. For example, instead of squatting for 6 sets of 5 reps with 300lbs in one workout, do 3 sets of 5 reps with 300lbs on two days. Or spread it out further by doing 2 sets of 5 reps over 3 days. Doing this lets you minimize fatigue specific to the squat, allowing you to push your workouts harder.
A Word of Caution
If you are going to take up squatting every day, you have to be smart about it. Squatting too much, too often won’t let you recover and your body is going to get banged up. Not only will you succumb to overtraining (and even possibly get injured), but you’ll experience massive CNS burnout. This can take even longer to recover from than overtraining, and you often don’t know you’re a victim of it until it’s too late.
This is why if you are going to squat every day, then you need drastically back off from what a normal squat workout would look like. Either choose a much lighter weight that allows you to practice more often with (a la the GTG method), or spread your normal squat routine across multiple days as described above.
Ensure Proper Recovery
Even if you are backing off on the squat volume and intensity, it can still take a toll on the body. Until you adjust to squatting every day, take extra care to ensure proper recovery. As always, make sure you’re eating right, getting enough sleep, and supplementing as necessary.
Beyond that, you may wish to take your recovery to the next level with cold showers, epsom salt baths, and deep tissue massages. You’ll also want to ensure you’re doing some sort of lower body prehab/stretching work, as this much squatting can be tough on the hips, knees, and ankles when you’re not used to it.
Squatting every (or at least most) days can be beneficial, but it has to be done the right way. You can GTG your CNS to maximum efficiency, as well as take physical advantage of frequency training. However, if you squat too hard, too often, and too soon, then you could risk injury. Be sure to keep your recovery on point and you could be seeing all new squat gains in short order.