Here is a post I found from Mel Siff’s Supertraining Yahoo! Group floating around the web:
Planks or blocks of the typical thickness used under the heels during
squatting have a far more pronounced effect on leverages and location of
component forces acting on the body than on the typical EMGs recorded from
the extensors or flexors of the knee and hip. Any changes also depend on
the depth of the squat, foot spacing and rate of descent and ascent used by
the individual.
Higher blocks tend to increase the patello-femoral force. This may be
counteracted to a certain degree by using the well-known powerlifting
strategy of pushing the buttocks backwards, instead of allowing the knees to
thrust strongly forwards.
There are several ways of increasing the depth of one’s squat:
-
Use progressively thinner blocks to gradually squat deeper and deeper
over a period of several weeks or months. Later, one can even use planks
under the balls of the feet to take one’s flexibility even further (for many
years I have used this corrective strategy with weightlifters who tend to
lean forwards during the dip phase of the jerk - or had them curl the toes
upwards to achieve the same effect).
-
Squat as far down as you can without heel planks without weights, then
shift your feet a small distance apart and try again. Squat depth will
invariably increase and this process may be continued until you can full
squat without blocks. This strategy, however, can place increased stress on
the leg adductors (which sometimes is not a bad thing, since this largely
eliminates the need for specialised leg adduction exercises).
So, you can do deep squats with a wide foot spacing, then gradually work your
feet closer until they are about shoulder width apart - and thus you can
quite easily achieve the desired deep squat position. Begin without weights
and progressively add more resistance in controlled movements without
pronounced forward body lean.
- Squat as far down as you can without heel planks without weights, then
add light weights and gently allow the added load to force you into a
slightly deeper squat. Use a standard progressive loading method over the
weeks to force you into a comfortable low squat position. Holding the lowest
squat position for a quasi-isometric stretch is important - one can even do
gentle up and down ballistic oscillations about this low position to enhance
range of movement safely (for those who have doubts about this ballistic
method, consult Basmajian ‘Muscles Alive’).
I have found all of the above methods to be highly successful, even with some
older men who could not squat as far as thighs parallel to the ground, yet
after a few months of using these strategies at least twice a week, they have
eventually managed to do overhead squats (snatch style) and full squat
snatches without knee injury.
Interestingly, three of these older men, a Masters tennis player, a former
sprinter and a bodybuilder had all been receiving physio treatment for more
than 3 months to resolve knee pain (chondromalacia patellae or peripatellar
pain syndrome) and were warned against any form of squatting. Instead they
had to do the usual isokinetic knee extensions to little avail - one even
used transdermal anti-inflammatory patches to handle the pain.
After following the above strategies, all of them managed to do full range
squats without pain or any medical treatment and return to fairly vigorous
competition, so, at least in their case, full range, pain-free squatting
(with something like 50% more than bodyweight) not only became possible, but
it enabled them to improve on previous sporting achievements without further
recourse to medical treatment. Obviously, the use of such methods should be
done carefully and intelligently on the basis of a good understanding of the
underlying pathology and medical feedback, but the potential rewards can be
great.
So, don’t discard any exercise out of hand, discard any method of doing that
exercise which may be causing the problem.
Dr Mel C Siff
Denver, USA
