Squatters! I have a couple of questions! :)

kmuree

I've been doing plenty of research but I would like some serious advice and opinions!

I would like to begin heavily squatting - squats always give me the best burn I practically crawl around on the floor the next day, my muscles are so sore) and I notice a slight difference after regularly doing them.

My question is how to begin? Should I simply do traditional, unweighted squats for a period of time, followed by small weights? Should I invest in a weighted barbell (I'm not into the idea of going to a gym at this point - can't afford it and not comfortable with it at my level yet) set or simply use dumbbells, kettlebells ..? If so, how heavy?

I'd like to tone up my legs and behind. I'd like to do this in a productive way rather than risking injury or wasting time. Any and all advice is appreciated. I've never lifted weights before, so I'm clueless. :laugh:

SergeiKay

opinion:

warm up your muscles and joints before squats. you can do that with cardio and/or light weight squats.
you can do sets of body weight squats anywhere. once (or if it is already) it is too easy, you can try one legged squats. too easy, add weight, pretty much anything really, a backpack, dumbbells, a person! lol

personally, i think you will run out of things to squat with and will have to get access to a barbell fairly quickly, if you want to lift heavy.

pay really close attention to your form!

also, if you haven't seen anything about this, incremental sets are really good for some people. let's say you have 5 sets of squats, you start with a lower weight, and on each set you increase the weight.

just some more food for thought.

kmuree

Thank you! :bigsmile: That's a really great help. That was my concern - I'm very familiar with form and I do squats often but now I'm at that point where I have to ask, "What's the next step?"

DanaDark

I am guessing when you say you do squats that you mean you do squats at home without weights.

I am also guessing that when you say squatting heavy that you wish to do weighted squats.

If you have a gym membership, you should check out the power racks. Hopefully they'll have one with an Olympic bar (large bar, 2" diameter ends for putting the weights on). From there, you could pick up a weight lifting program like Strong Lifts 5X5 or if you specifically and solely want to do squats, can choose to start with just the bar and add 5 pounds (2.5 pounds each side) each time you do them.

If at home with no access to the gym, using a backpack with books inside might be a good idea. Just be sure to have some sort of way of tracking how much you are squatting with.

jesz124

Unless you get a squat rack at home you will struggle to squat really heavy in safety.