Speaker 1: Welcome to Brainstuff, a production of iHeartRadio. Hey brain Stuff,
Speaker 1: Lauren vogel Bomb here with another classic episode for you.
Speaker 1: We try not to do too many episodes here that
Speaker 1: verge into health and wellness advice, because health and wellness
Speaker 1: are really complicated and everybody's body is different, so it's
Speaker 1: hard to make generalizations. But this episode is one that
Speaker 1: I feel pretty good about for many humans anyway, It's
Speaker 1: about squatting. Hey brain Stuff, Lauren vocal bomb here. We've
Speaker 1: all heard the grim news sitting is the new smoking.
Speaker 1: It's a troubling statement to see repeated in the headlines,
Speaker 1: especially since the average office worker sits for about ten
Speaker 1: hours every day and Netflix, we love you, but you're
Speaker 1: not helping. Not only has excessive sitting been associated with
Speaker 1: everything from strained muscles to spinal damage, but research has
Speaker 1: shown prolonged sedentary time is associated with harmful health outcomes
Speaker 1: regardless of his activity. And while we all put our
Speaker 1: faith into standing desks as the obvious antidote, it turns
Speaker 1: out that strategy might be doing more harm than good.
Speaker 1: There might be a simpler solution that doesn't involve a
Speaker 1: fancy office successory or swollen ankles. Squatting. We spoke with
Speaker 1: Aria Matlock, a New York based nurse practitioner. She said,
Speaker 1: when it comes to the human body, spending too much
Speaker 1: time in any single position has a cost. In the West,
Speaker 1: today we sit a lot, so it would do us
Speaker 1: good to squat a bit more. Jessica Gilbert, a California
Speaker 1: based certified personal trainer and group fitness instructor, agrees. She
Speaker 1: said we should most definitely be squatting more in our
Speaker 1: everyday lives for many reasons. The first and most important
Speaker 1: is that most people struggle from inactive gluteal muscles glutes
Speaker 1: and that can cause low back pain, knee pain, throw
Speaker 1: off your posture, and affect your everyday workouts. She says
Speaker 1: that squatting for just thirty seconds a few times a
Speaker 1: day can strengthen those inactive muscle groups. So why squatting?
Speaker 1: You might instead want to ask why not squatting? While
Speaker 1: you may not typically see people in the United States
Speaker 1: crouching with bent knees butts hovering above their heels, you'll
Speaker 1: see that pose on the regular in other countries, particularly
Speaker 1: in places where squat toilets where the pan or bowls
Speaker 1: at floor level are common, like throughout Asia, India, and Africa,
Speaker 1: but people in other parts of the world also commonly
Speaker 1: issue chairs to squat when eating, talking, and just generally
Speaker 1: hanging out. And while the super low squat you'll see
Speaker 1: abroad may look much different than the standard issued gym
Speaker 1: move common in the United States, Gilbert says they both
Speaker 1: have their rightful place and booty building perks. She said
Speaker 1: a typical gym squat and squats in other countries are
Speaker 1: all fairly the same, but the depth, range of motion
Speaker 1: and uses are different. She explained that a jim squat
Speaker 1: will build strength, where squatting in daily life can build endurance.
Speaker 1: Mattlock explained that it used to be more common for
Speaker 1: people all over the world to give birth and use
Speaker 1: the toilet in a squatting position. She said, the less
Speaker 1: we squat, the weaker the muscle that make squatting possible
Speaker 1: become a lot of fitness routines in yogic practices include
Speaker 1: squatting exercises for good reason. Squatting increases leg strength and stability,
Speaker 1: gets the blood flowing, warms up the body, and improves
Speaker 1: muscle tone without putting excessive pressure on the joints. And
Speaker 1: while no one really likes to talk about it that
Speaker 1: toilet thing is important, hence the success of the squatty potty.
Speaker 1: Victoria Albana, another New York based nurse practitioner and health coach, said,
Speaker 1: we definitely should all be squatting to have a bowel movement.
Speaker 1: When we're in a fully squatted position, it's a more
Speaker 1: natural position for our colon. When the Victorians came up
Speaker 1: with the concept of the throne toilet, it was a
Speaker 1: big step backward for bowel health. But beyond the bathroom,
Speaker 1: squatting has a ton of benefits that non practitioners are
Speaker 1: missing out on. Albina said, I also think when we're
Speaker 1: squatting all the time to do all sorts of things,
Speaker 1: we're engaging our core in our back and engaging a
Speaker 1: series of muscles that the average American is no longer engaging.
Speaker 1: We're having more back pain than ever before. I don't
Speaker 1: think it's a one to one correlation, but we're definitely
Speaker 1: sitting more and commuting more, and it's one part of
Speaker 1: the picture. While it's a good idea to get your
Speaker 1: squad on more often, it's also important to remember that
Speaker 1: not all squats are created equal. Mattlck said, rapid, careless
Speaker 1: squatting can easily lead to back injuries, so it's important
Speaker 1: to engage the core muscles and keep the back straight.
Speaker 1: When adding squats to your daily routine, start with slow
Speaker 1: movements for one to three minutes and work up to
Speaker 1: a faster pace and longer duration. Whether you're squeezing more
Speaker 1: squats in for overall health and mobility, or you're really
Speaker 1: looking to build some muscle, Gilbert has a few takeaway tips.
Speaker 1: She said, always keep the weight of your squats in
Speaker 1: your heels, keep your chest up and shoulder blades back.
Speaker 1: When you're doing a squat and coming up to the
Speaker 1: standing position, always squeeze your butt. If you're leaning forward
Speaker 1: or backward in your squats, you're more likely to injure yourself.
Speaker 1: So if you're new to working out or just want
Speaker 1: to improve your squatting technique, I recommend finding a bench
Speaker 1: and practice the sitting and standing technique. Even just taking
Speaker 1: a seat and then stay ending up fifteen to twenty
Speaker 1: times in a row once a day can make a difference.
Speaker 1: It's almost the same idea as the gym technique. Today's
Speaker 1: episode is based on the article You Need to Get
Speaker 1: your Squad on on how Stuffworks dot Com, written by
Speaker 1: Michelle Constantinofsky Brain Stuff is production of iHeartRadio in partnership
Speaker 1: with how Stuffworks dot Com, and it's produced by Tyler Klang.
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