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To solve problems caused by sitting, learn to squat (2017)

312 points by ValentineC 9y ago

grondilu 9y ago
I'm forty and I can't do it. Like at all. I don't remember ever being able to do it. The main problem is that my ankles are not flexible enough. When I try to squat, my heels inevitably raise above the ground so that I find myself resting on my tiptoes, struggling to keep my balance.
- grzm 9y ago
  It might be your ankles, but it's likely your hips are the major contributor here. Inadequate hip flexibility will force you to lean too far forward, lifting your heels off the ground. If it's something you're willing to work at, from personal experience I know it can be improved.
  - loverofthings 9y ago
    It might also be hamstrings. For example, while sitting on the chair try lifting one of your legs so you make L shape with your torso (without flexing your lower back). I can't do that, my leg can't stretch fully. This prevents me from squatting properly. I've been slowly stretching the hamstrings but I'm still not there. I remember having the same issues when I was a teenager.
    - balfirevic 9y ago
      It is very unlikely that hamstring is preventing you from squatting properly. Hamstring is nowhere near the end of it's range of motion in squat because it crosses both knee and hip joint and knee is bent during the squat - therefore hamstring is not considerably stretched. Ankle flexibility is more frequent cause of not being able to squat properly. Hips also, but not because of hamstring.
- newnewpdro 9y ago
  You just need to work on your flexibility. Fortunately, if you wanted to, it's a fairly easy thing to improve upon and doesn't require much time, space, or any equipment. Just do some stretches every day, pushing a little bit against your limits, every day. You'd probably be surprised by what happens after years of this.
- greenpresident 9y ago
  (I am not a physical therapist.) The ankle part can be trained separately by flexing them, I would believe. If your heels keep raising and you really want to be able to do it, have someone take a video of your attempt and study where your center of gravity travels. It should move towards the floor in a straight line. Chances are, you are simply not extending your behind outwards enough because there are other parts of your core muscles that are not flexible enough. It's an exercise worth practicing and should be much more popular than the typical "pushups/crunches" routine that many non-athletes do at home. (This is where I will be taken apart by someone who knows more details:) Pushups and crunches train precisely the muscles that will pull your back and shoulders forward. A complex exercise such as squats and a good extension-stretch for your back will go a long way of making office dwellers feel better.
- hwang89 9y ago
  https://www.reddit.com/r/flexibility/comments/2j8sup/dont_know_where_to_start_click_here/ https://www.reddit.com/r/flexibility/comments/2j8sup/dont_kn... How about timeboxing 15 minutes a day for body maintenance? Start out just reading some articles, then watching videos, then try out your first stretch, feel sore the next day, take a week off, then try out a different stretch routine, then progress, then increase your time per day because you see improvement, and one day, out of the blue, you're squatting. What do you think?
  - grondilu 9y ago
    It so happens that I was interested in increasing my flexibility anyway. So yeah, I'll definitely look into this.
- pmoriarty 9y ago
  Here's a good video on improving flexibility for squats: [1] and then the first part of of a series of more general ankle flexibility exercises you can do: [2] [1] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJBLDJMJiDE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJBLDJMJiDE [2] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apCIhoPmHW8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apCIhoPmHW8
- krsdcbl 9y ago
  I was almost in the same situation after years and years of bad sitting. A year of light but daily stretching and a little exercise got me to the point where i can squat comfortably and almost touch my toes standing. But I can't emphasize how important the point of daily routine in the article is - it doesn't take much to get quite an amount of flexibility back, but habit
- PakG1 9y ago
  Don't keep your feet parallel. Keep them in a V-shape, with heels pointing towards each other. Much easier.
  - cperciva 9y ago
    Be careful about this. My doctor pointed out to me last year that I was pointing my feet outwards (or my heels together, as your say), and suggested that I try not doing that. Within a few weeks, decade-old problems with my right knee had vanished -- the angle of my feet when I was walking had been straining the inner side of my knee.
    - vidarh 9y ago
      The angle of the feet is not so much a risk as whether or not your knees move in the direction your feet are pointing. If you feet are at an angle to your knee movement, then, yes, you will very much hurt your knee. Your doctor was probably right to give that advise for walking. But when lifting weights it is a much more stable position for many, and as long as you ensure your knees track a line over your feet rather than at an angle it's not generally a problem.
  - marinacalado 9y ago
    Yap! In a squat position, the feet should be in the same line as the knee. So if the knees open out to the side, the feet should follow :)
- Jach 9y ago
  Try doing lunges. Anecdotally from a friend (32 yo) who also couldn't do squats at all, after doing lunges for a while that enabled him to squat without either going on his toes or falling backwards trying to keep his feet flat.
- cup-of-tea 9y ago
  Practise. Having a weight on your back actually makes it easier as it literally forces you down. Unless you have a known severe mobility problem, you can definitely squat.
rukuu_001 9y ago
I remember the profound shock during a study exchange to east Asia when I realised I'd have to spend a year on squat toilets. Took a couple months to feel 'safe', and not have to constantly check my pants weren't in the way. Never got comfortable enough to read on the toilet.
- fyfy18 9y ago
  > not have to constantly check my pants weren't in the way My issue was my trousers kept falling on the wet floor. In the end I just took them off whenever I needed to go :D
- Kagerjay 9y ago
  I remember this as well. I simply just avoided going to the bathroom until I got to the hotel, they usually have western toilets inside. You haven't really experienced a squat toilet until you've had diahrrea though (pretty common for people travelling abroad for first time / not used to differences in bacteria culture / not taking food medication). I had some terrible experiences
drewnoakes 9y ago
In my travels I've gone from fear of a latrine-style loo to enjoying them enough to consider installing one in my home in England. I'm not exactly sure what it is, but it just feels better for my body somehow to hold a more folded posture. My challenge is flexibility. I did yoga for three years, twice a week, and while the whole of my body became much more flexible (amongst other benefits) my ankles did not yield very much at all. If I try to squat on a level surface, I have to force my arms forward to maintain balance, and it's not comfortable at all. In Iran several toilets had slightly angled surfaces for the feet. With the toes pointing downwards just a few degrees from level, it was very comfortable. My wife is from South Korea, a country where squatting in the home is still practiced regularly, especially by the older generations. It always struck me as a very relaxing way of passing the time, though I couldn't quite do it. Perhaps there is a physiological aspect to this too. Japanese and Korean people appear to have different skeletal proportions to Europeans. I'm curious if this changes anything, or whether it's just a matter of culture/practice.
- sdrothrock 9y ago
  > but it just feels better for my body somehow to hold a more folded posture. Have you tried putting a stool or something in front of your toilet so you can bend your legs in a squat-esque position? It's a bit more practical and feels much the same to me.
  - rmetzler 9y ago
    There are even stools marketed for squatted position on western style toilets. One is the "Squatty Potty". As a German Kraut, I feel, the name must appeal to a Brit.
    - sdrothrock 9y ago
      > German Kraut Is there another kind? ;) > There are even stools marketed for squatted position on western style toilets. I've seen these -- of all places -- in Costco here in Japan. They seem moderately popular since they're sold out sometimes. Personally, I think it's a bit overkill and would rather just plop my feet on a pack of toilet paper. :)
roystonvassey 9y ago
Since the beginning of this year, I have begun to squat (and sit on my haunches) for 15 minutes daily. The target is to do this comfortably for at least 30 minutes by the end of the year. In my country (India), in the villages, you are likely to see people sit like this, even into their 90s. Meanwhile, here I am, in mid 30s, unable to do this even for 5 minutes, complaining of knee and back problems.
- singularity2001 9y ago
  I wonder how it can be healthy for knees and bloodflow at all, given the squashed and torqued position of the knees
  - oblio 9y ago
    I assume that people who do this have an active lifestyle anyway. So they might be physically fit not because of the squats, but despite the squats :)
  - peteretep 9y ago
    If the knees are taking a lot of strain, you're not distributing your weight properly
    - singularity2001 9y ago
      the angle remains the same
psergeant 9y ago
I live in Thailand. People can squat here. People have all sorts of sitting and office injuries just like in the West.
- Mithaldu 9y ago
  Similar. I do powerlifting, i have a great squat and regularly use it for relaxing or doing things at home in a comfortable pose. My back still has issues from sitting all day to program.
  - smichel17 9y ago
    Take breaks to rest your back! Humans aren't "designed" to hold the same position for hours on end. Even short (20 second, even) breaks can be extremely helpful: Lie on your back. Knees bent / legs up, so your back is fully supported by the floor. Arms at your sides, hands on your stomach or whatever the most neutral position is. Small pillow / book under your head to keep that portion of your spine properly curved. Source: family member is an Alexander Technique teacher, also personal experience.
    - Mithaldu 9y ago
      That's useful info, thank you. :) I'm actually surprised by the legs part since i would've thought proper pose is legs down.
- pan69 9y ago
  My wife is Thai. She often squats while "sitting" on a chair at the table.
- lazyjones 9y ago
  Perhaps we need squatting tables, not toilets. Apparently standing desks won't fix all health problems ... https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/mar/28/is-a-stand-up-desk-really-healthier https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/mar/28/is-a-st...
vog 9y ago
I wasn't aware that squatting is such a big deal. I often find myself squatting while working at my laptop. Frankly, it's just for a few minutes, because at some point my feet will hurt. I wonder whether this is just a matter of exercise, or whether squatting for too long (in that position, with a laptop on the thighs) is unhealthy. Most often I do this while in public transport, where I don't always find a seat. It happens rarely within the train but more often at the station, where the seats are even more limited. In the beginning, I often looked for a wall to lean my back against. But I soon discovered that I don't really need it. Walls are cold and, in the end, they are just a help for balancing.
- unicornporn 9y ago
  May I ask how you are able to rest your laptop on your thighs and work on it while sitting like this: https://shootstreetphotography.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/asian-squat.jpg https://shootstreetphotography.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/a... ?
  - vog 9y ago
    Good point. It's not exactly that pose. I move my centroid more to the front, so the thighs are horizontal. Unfortunately, I found just one good picture of that kind of squatting position, which is NRSFW (not-really-safe-for-work): https://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/woman-weight-scales-checking-diet-results-5451533.jpg https://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/woman-weight-scales-checking...
    - unicornporn 9y ago
      Ah. That's the type of squat you do when you don't have the ankle mobility required to do a real squat. :) It is a very stressful position for your feet and it's probably not possible to sit that way for prolonged periods of time.
jbaudanza 9y ago
I used to have terrible "programmer" posture. It's still not great, but it's way better. I credit a regular routine of loaded barbell squats with an experienced trainer. I think part of the progress is because I got stronger, but part of the progress is because the squat would point out quirks in my body that simply had to be fixed in order to continue progressing. There's only so much of "try to sit up straight" before you just go back to sitting the way your body has adapted to sit. In general, your body doesn't want to change. You need to provide some sort of external stress that forces an adaptation. Squats are great for this.
- ehnto 9y ago
  Likewise. I have been powerlifting for over 7 years now and there are things about my body I would have never realised until they had gotten much worse. Like that I always leaned slightly to the left because of how I had my mouse, and I had a way overdeveloped right spinal erector and funky core because of it. Likewise still not perfect, but simply leagues ahead of my former physical self. I wouldn't recommend powerlifting to everyone, but some kind of weight training and especially the squat and deadlift. You can pick a weight training style to suit your goals though. I have moved to a more powerlifting / bodybuilding regiment as I have reached the strength level I am happy with at my current bodyweight.
  - dvtv75 9y ago
    If someone reading this is going to use resistance training to "fix" their weaknesses, it's important to have a trainer assist as they can pick poor technique when you think you're doing it perfectly. For example, I used to be a fencer, and as a result my left leg was much stronger than my right. I thought I was doing squats correctly, but a trainer spotted that I was tilting my hips as I was doing the exercise.
    - jbaudanza 9y ago
      This is definitely true. And finding a good trainer is difficult. For my SF friends, I've worked with Linda Chungchootairong at www.opengymsf.com before. She's an accomplished competitive powerlifter and olympic lifter. She can make sure your squat is on point. She also has a sick deadlift.
grondilu 9y ago
I'm genuinely starting to think people should just lay down when working with a computer. That's what I do all day long anyway.
- icantdrive55 9y ago
  I think they should put a twin bed in cubicles. It might sound crazy, but if the person is productive who cares? My left elbow, is larger than my right. I believe it's from my leaning on it, while working, and wasting time on the internet. My neck tightens up once a year, but it goes away within a day. My point is I have congestive heart failure, or I just like working in bed? (I have no outward symptoms of heart failure.). The desk, and chair never felt great for myself, even when I was a young buck.
- nottorp 9y ago
  Can't do that when you type a lot... or can you?
  - grondilu 9y ago
    It is indeed not ideal, so there is a drawback, but imho it's worth it.
unicornporn 9y ago
https://www.t-nation.com/training/third-world-squat https://www.t-nation.com/training/third-world-squat
whiddershins 9y ago
This idea that it requires lots of flexibility to squat is actually a pernicious myth. It is really about the angle of your feet and the width of your stance, most anyone without a debilitating injury can learn to squat in a few minutes when given correct instruction.
- scottishfiction 9y ago
  Regardless of stance width or foot angle, it seems that ankle mobility is still a limiting factor for most people. Simply raising the heel on a 1" block seems to allow most people to achieve a full squat. However, there's still a huge difference between getting your hip crease below your knee for a moment, and being able to sit in the bottom of a squat for a prolonged period in comfort.
- bhrgunatha 9y ago
  However some people (me!) definitely have some bio-mechanical impediment. I can clearly remember at school, 10 -12 years old, during winter after heavy snow, my friends all sliding downhill, feet absolutely flat on the floor, sat hunched as low as possible. Absolutely impossible for me - I couldn't get my backside within 30-40 cm off the ground no matter what I tried.
- vidarh 9y ago
  This depends what you consider "lots of flexibility" and what you consider "squat". No, you don't need to be a gymnast but there are still plenty of people for whom the angle of feet and width of stance is totally insufficient to do a squat below parallel because they lack the necessary hip flexibility. If you can touch your toes with straight legs, you can probably squat below parallel for at least a short while - it's not like it takes a huge amount of flexibility. But that too still requires weeks of training for a surprising number of people. It's not hard to get there, but to write it off as a myth is not helpful.
krzat 9y ago
For lazy/shy people like me I recommend bodyweight fitness. Reddit has some nice community for that. Various core drills and stretching (back bends, lounges, squat) cured my back pain.
- 2muchcoffeeman 9y ago
  I'd still recommend learning to squat under load. I'm fine under my own body weight. Put a bar on my back and problems show themselves again.
  - freeloop3 9y ago
    As the article states: > At best, we might undertake ［squatting］ during Crossfit, pilates or while lifting at the gym, but only partially and often with weights (a repetitive maneuver that’s hard to imagine being useful 2.5 million years ago) I kind of go along with that. Squatting with a bar on your back is a weird maneuver.
    - sudhirj 9y ago
      Squats under load are pretty fundamental. Carrying a killed deer on your back, or stone, clay, or a mate or a child all require effective loaded squats.
      - freeloop3 9y ago
        Where is the rest of the movement, then? Why not pick a big bag of sand and place it on your back, walk around with it, and set it back down again? Wouldn't our ancestors carry far less, maybe max 90kg, then people do today? It doesnt make sense to brutally punish your joints with much more than that for part of that action and completely ignore the other part of it.
        sethammons 9y ago
        Sandbag carries and farmer walks do just that :). As for the idea that you are brutally punishing your joints, I don't believe that to be the case. Controlled squats vs running? Yeah, controlled squats will be way better on the knee. I do weighted exercises regularly and have a marketed reduction in joint pain from before. A barbell squat with good form will not put undue stress on the knee joint and builds muscle that supports it. For me, the added muscle also removed my lower back pain. This also comes with the caveat that you need to stretch and mobilize too.
marinacalado 9y ago
Squatting requires a lot of flexibility, and not only on your hips. Your ankles need to be supple enough to support that degree. That said, a lot of "office problems" with posture take time to become minor. Squatting is an option that works your legs and glutes. But your back needs work too. Complete sports such as swimming, along with yoga for example could provide good balance! :)
freeloop3 9y ago
This article doesn't really make a case in my opinion. The only two justifications seem to be: > So if a joint doesn’t go through its full range—if the hips and knees never go past 90 degrees—the body says ‘I’m not being used’ and starts to degenerate and stops the production of synovial fluid.” And, > A 2014 study in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology found that test subjects who showed difficulty getting up off the floor without support of hands, or an elbow, or leg (what’s called the “sitting-rising test”) resulted in a three-year-shorter life expectancy than subjects who got up with ease. (Study here https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23242910 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23242910) As far as the first one, I'd say, so what? More fluid means healthier? Why? As far as the second one, correlation doesn't prove causation. We should stop pretending this is the case with everything.
- tathougies 9y ago
  I mean if you're fat, you can't do that, and that's a pretty large risk factor for dying early.
stef25 9y ago
Any position maintained for long periods of time is a stress on your muscles (sitting, squatting, ...). People tend to think that sitting is "not doing anything" but your muscles ARE working to keep you upright. The wonkier you're sitting, the worse the effects will be. I struggled with lower back pain for over 5 years, visited lots of doctors / physios / chiropractors and nobody could give any decent advice. "You're too old" (at 38!), "it's the electromagnetic rays from your computer screen!". In the end what helped me was a routine of body strength exercises that I developed myself from online research and with the help of a young physio who finally knew what he was doing. I'm now basically pain free, as long as I do my routine 2 or ideally 3x per week. I highly recommend anyone struggling with lower back pain to build up a simple routing of core strengthening exercises.
- maccard 9y ago
  > I highly recommend anyone struggling with lower back pain to build up a simple routing of core strengthening exercises. As someone who tried this, I'd recommend seeing a medical professional to ensure it's actually going to help first. I made things far far worse before getting help and making them better.
  - sethammons 9y ago
    Can you go into more detail? What made things worse? What made them better? Obviously what worked for you might not work for others, but concrete X's and Y's could inspire someone to follow the advice of talking to a medical professional. My knee jerk reaction is that I don't trust the family doctor to really know much bio-mechanical stuff and will trust a well-referred fitness coach. Maybe you meant you saw a physical therapist?
    - maccard 9y ago
      Sure - but caveating this with "Don't take medical advice from strangers on the internet" (Which was kind of my point). I've had lower back pain on and off my entire adult life. When I started investigating how to fix it, I came to the (same) conclusion that strengthening my core muscles would help - as someone who trained quite heavily I was confident in my ability to perform basic core exercises without injuring myself [0]. These only exacerbated the problem, and after 2 weeks of doing them I was bed ridden, and in agony. I had been to a GP who referred me to a neurosurgeon that I was able to get temporary relief from by multiple epidurals, and some severe pain relief medication. Got better again after a few weeks, and I ignored it for 18 months until it came back. Took an experimental procedure that bought me another 18 months. I then saw a physiotherapist who walked me through some of the basic exercises that they give to people who are recovering from spinal fusion (which I had been referred for but held off on). I still get waves of lower back pain every few months, but I'm aware of the early symptoms, and can begin with the PT exercises for a few weeks at a time, until they subside (which they have done every time so far). Overall, it was about finding what worked for me, as you said, but I definitely wouldn't recommend making that journey on your own. [0] offhand, cannot remember exactly what I did, but would have been some basic version of some of the exercises from https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/fitness/multimedia/core-strength/sls-20076575 https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/fitness/multime...
z3t4 9y ago
The best cure for stiff muscles is to trick them to relax. For example doing concentric movements using the antagonist muscles using light load. For example pushing water.
truculation 9y ago
Our poor posture and use of the body in the West is partly a side-effect of our mental activities, in my opinion. Not merely due to sitting. Rather sitting and performing mental activities whilst partially tranquilised: e.g. playing video games at a desk whilst sipping coffee/soda/alcohol. I can't explain why this is but intuitively I think it's to do with our locus of attention being out of the body and into abstract ideas. In the developing world their locus is more 'in the body'.
a3n 9y ago
I want a squatting desk.
eggy 9y ago
I lived in SE Asia for 8 years, and I learned to squat again. It does open up your hips. At first I couldn't do it without almost falling backwards, but then I worked up to where I could squat for over 5 minutes in ease. Now that I am back to the US, I have gained 25 lb. in one year. I am vegetarian, and still eat healthy, no junk, but I eat more. I had to start my exercise program up again, since I am back to an office job whereas in SE Asia I was doing 50-50 office/physical labor. Squatting loosens my hips, and generally seems to make me feel better if done more often. I go outside at work and walk a half mile, and squat at lunch for 10 minutes in the sun if it's out.
eof 9y ago
Really interesting. I've always been a squatter for no apparent reason (white, raised by middle class republicans in california). I often sit semi-squatted at my computer; basically my feet on the seat and thighs against my chest. I've actually avoided this consciously since it seemed like 'bad posture'. I wonder if I have actually been actively avoiding something I should be doing more of. It's always felt more comfortable this way.
- tathougies 9y ago
  Am I missing something? -- what would political affiliation have to do with squatting? Are republicans against squatting?
exodust 9y ago
Lots of comments here saying "yeh squats are great, do squats." But the article is not talking about exercise squats! It's talking about "deep squatting as a form of active rest". Personally I think squatting as a form of sitting is not going to be happening too much with larger framed people. Smaller and slimmer people will obviously have a much easier time of sustaining a sitting squat comfortably.
pknerd 9y ago
Sitting like this is pretty common in sub-continent as majority of people prefer WC over commode system. Beside that home maids and house women sit in squat position when cleaning home. We are also being exploited by modern luxuries hence more and more people suffering from knee and joints problems.
- zaqplm 9y ago
  I am from one of the poorest countries in the world and women no longer squat to clean houses. There are brooms.
orasis 9y ago
For body weight animal movement stuff I’m loving https://gmb.io https://gmb.io I can hold a low squat indefinitely now because of it and my neck and back feel amazing!
- dustinlocke 9y ago
  How long have you been doing this? Looks interesting.
  - orasis 9y ago
    9 months. 3 thumbs up!
deleted 9y ago
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katzgrau 9y ago
I'm a fairly built 190lb person and I was a baseball catcher as a kid and in high school. It definitely took a toll on my knees - I wonder if squatting as rest is also somewhat dependent on humans being a little more wiry than they are today.
turc1656 9y ago
Thanks for this. I've been wondering how to better help my legs and general body health. I go to the gym regularly and I'm in pretty good shape, but I know there is some ongoing issue with my legs related to sitting all day. Wasn't sure how to tackle it - I started doing more leg exercises and even squats (but only up to 90 degrees). This article make it clear that I need to do a few different types of squats to get the real benefit. My legs have been scrawny chicken legs for years because of sitting at a desk all damn day. And it surely doesn't help that I cross one leg under the other half the time and alternate throughout the day. My legs feel slightly numb sometimes which I know is terrible. My leg muscles have atrophied to a large extent and I suspect that there is even a blood flow / circulation issue all surrounding the "use it or lose it" concept. I'm not sure if it's possible, but maybe my veins or arteries also got smaller from lack of use. I've noticed my legs get fatigued much quicker and take longer to recover. It's been very difficult to get full function back, so for anyone reading this - try to avoid making the same mistake I did. I overlooked the issue for too long. I will certainly overcome it, in time, but it sucks and it's a long process because my body has become used to not needing my legs 95% of the time.
soyiuz 9y ago
I am a life-long squatter. It has ruined my knees. Also their expert is an osteopath.
- goda90 9y ago
  From the article: "So should we replace sitting with squatting and say goodbye to our office chairs forever? Beach points out that “any posture held for too long causes problems” and there are studies to suggest that populations that spend excessive time in a deep squat (hours per day), do have a higher incidence of knee and osteoarthritis issues. But for those of us who have largely abandoned squatting, Beach says, “you can’t really overdo this stuff.”"
b0rsuk 9y ago
I have both bad back and runner's knee. Once I found out the most effective treatment for my bad back is regular exercise (40min a day, 4 days of the week... but I can't afford to skip it), I started thinking about other problems I could solve this way. I thought about runner's knee. I started googling around. I found some contradictory info initially, but in the end there seems to be consensus squats not only don't harm a knee, they make it stronger! You're essentially building your exoskeleton. What I found gives me best results is wall-facing squat. It's difficult to start. It took me weeks, perhaps even months to feel benefits, but now I'm a squat addict. Wall facing squat is very good because it makes it impossible to cheat. You have to develop better stance, balance, and flexibility. And you have to think how to get there. As a nerd who played computer games A LOT, I was so inflexible I could only straighten my leg about 120 degrees when lying on my back and raising the leg vertically. Now I can grab my heel with leg perfectly straight, or touch my forehead with my knee. So don't think you can't do that. You just need to be persistent, systematic and don't force it (especially if you're starting to feel pain). Nowadays I try to incorporate those wide wall-facing squats into every raising movement I make. I get some odd looks (I don't do it at work, though), but I don't care. When I raise from bed, I don't use my hands. Same for couch, chair, and other platforms. Don't get obsessed with numbers. Numbers don't mean a squat if they come at the price of bad technique. Bad technique is like building a tower on skewed foundation. Repeat that movement enough times, and the tower will start leaning, then fall (injury). So once in a while I lower my weekly number of squats, when I feel I can get even closer to wall. At first I thought I'd never manage it, but every couple of weeks I can exercising closer to wall. It's better to perform smaller sets of perfect exercise than lots of bad. Too bad I learned it the hard way. Aside from feeling very flexible at thighs and legs in general, it's rewarding because my knee feels very stable. A few years ago, when I was shifting my weight while standing, I could feel it rotate in various ways. Now I feel more confident because I feel it supports me better. My balance also got a lot better and I'm leaning over tables and other objects in ways that seemed impossible before. I naturally adjust my stance when walking upstairs, downstairs, or running downhill. It feels like my entire leg works through the entire range of motion. I get bonus points when cycling, I can power through some smaller hills at full speed where previously I would be soaked with sweat. In general, anaerobic exercise like squats gives your body more HP (Hit Points), making you more resistant to injury, increasing bone density etc. The last one is especially important for women, who are prone to osteoporosis when getting older. I'm getting the itch to resume long distance running, and now I could probably pull it off. I learned to listen to my body, and prevent injury in advance by adjusting my stance and movement until I feel no pain or discomfort of any sort. I dig the endorphin, the runner's high. I don't know if i will find enough time, but worst case scenario is I will just focus on cycling.
richardknop 9y ago
And don't forget dead lifts and pull ups. I see a lot of people at the gym focusing on chest and upper body (biceps, arms, torso) but you need to focus more on centre of your body and lower back (dead lift), legs (squats, leg press) and upper back (pull ups). Bench press is also good but that's it for chest, I wouldn't do more. Squats, bench press and dead lift as a core of your routine is a good idea. You can add some other minor components but you should keep focus on the big three.
- kawfey 9y ago
  This article is talking about squatting as an alternative to sitting, not the exercise. But to be fair, one should not skip leg day.
  - mtberatwork 9y ago
    I'll also add that before embarking on a serious squat regimen one should work first with a trainer (or friend with good technique) to develop proper squat form. Squatting is one of those gym exercises that is often underestimated in its difficulty and is routinely done incorrectly, leading to injury.
nkrisc 9y ago
This is something I do normally as an adult in the West, but only because for whatever reason I never got out of the habit from doing it as a child. It was my default position playing outside in the dirt or the sandbox. I didn't like getting my clothes dirty so squatting, as opposed to sitting on my behind or knees, made sense. These days when I'm working on anything below waist height I'm usually squatting. People always remark how child-like it looks and I remark how comfortable and easy on the knees it is.
tomxor 9y ago
Interesting, I sit cross-legged quite a bit at work purely because I find sitting for long periods to be uncomfortable, nice to know it's also better than sitting for health reasons, i guess it pays to listen to your body.
squarefoot 9y ago
I also have back problems. Weight, age and other problems prevent me to squat or do most exercises, but I found immediate beneficial effects by consuming meals standing when I'm alone.
ibdf 9y ago
my goal for this year is to stay more active during work. I'm your typical American working in small cubicle 8 hours a day in a boring looking office. Soon January I started doing push ups 6 times during my work day. I start a set number so, for example 4. And set I add one. So first set is 4 and last set of the day is 10. Once I'm comfortable doing 9. Then I add one to my starting point. So start 5 and then end at 10. It has been now nearly two months and I am starting at 10 and ending at 15. That adds up to 75 push ups in one day. It's incredible but I couldn't do more than 4 when I first started and now I can do 15 at once. Next month I plan to add one other excersise. Either squats or crunches.

312 points by ValentineC 9y ago

I'm forty and I can't do it. Like at all. I don't remember ever being able to do it. The main problem is that my ankles are not flexible enough. When I try to squat, my heels inevitably raise above the ground so that I find myself resting on my tiptoes, struggling to keep my balance.

grzm 9y ago
It might be your ankles, but it's likely your hips are the major contributor here. Inadequate hip flexibility will force you to lean too far forward, lifting your heels off the ground. If it's something you're willing to work at, from personal experience I know it can be improved.
- loverofthings 9y ago
  It might also be hamstrings. For example, while sitting on the chair try lifting one of your legs so you make L shape with your torso (without flexing your lower back). I can't do that, my leg can't stretch fully. This prevents me from squatting properly. I've been slowly stretching the hamstrings but I'm still not there. I remember having the same issues when I was a teenager.
  - balfirevic 9y ago
    It is very unlikely that hamstring is preventing you from squatting properly. Hamstring is nowhere near the end of it's range of motion in squat because it crosses both knee and hip joint and knee is bent during the squat - therefore hamstring is not considerably stretched. Ankle flexibility is more frequent cause of not being able to squat properly. Hips also, but not because of hamstring.
newnewpdro 9y ago
You just need to work on your flexibility. Fortunately, if you wanted to, it's a fairly easy thing to improve upon and doesn't require much time, space, or any equipment. Just do some stretches every day, pushing a little bit against your limits, every day. You'd probably be surprised by what happens after years of this.
greenpresident 9y ago
(I am not a physical therapist.) The ankle part can be trained separately by flexing them, I would believe. If your heels keep raising and you really want to be able to do it, have someone take a video of your attempt and study where your center of gravity travels. It should move towards the floor in a straight line. Chances are, you are simply not extending your behind outwards enough because there are other parts of your core muscles that are not flexible enough. It's an exercise worth practicing and should be much more popular than the typical "pushups/crunches" routine that many non-athletes do at home. (This is where I will be taken apart by someone who knows more details:) Pushups and crunches train precisely the muscles that will pull your back and shoulders forward. A complex exercise such as squats and a good extension-stretch for your back will go a long way of making office dwellers feel better.
hwang89 9y ago
https://www.reddit.com/r/flexibility/comments/2j8sup/dont_know_where_to_start_click_here/ https://www.reddit.com/r/flexibility/comments/2j8sup/dont_kn... How about timeboxing 15 minutes a day for body maintenance? Start out just reading some articles, then watching videos, then try out your first stretch, feel sore the next day, take a week off, then try out a different stretch routine, then progress, then increase your time per day because you see improvement, and one day, out of the blue, you're squatting. What do you think?
- grondilu 9y ago
  It so happens that I was interested in increasing my flexibility anyway. So yeah, I'll definitely look into this.
pmoriarty 9y ago
Here's a good video on improving flexibility for squats: [1] and then the first part of of a series of more general ankle flexibility exercises you can do: [2] [1] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJBLDJMJiDE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJBLDJMJiDE [2] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apCIhoPmHW8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apCIhoPmHW8
krsdcbl 9y ago
I was almost in the same situation after years and years of bad sitting. A year of light but daily stretching and a little exercise got me to the point where i can squat comfortably and almost touch my toes standing. But I can't emphasize how important the point of daily routine in the article is - it doesn't take much to get quite an amount of flexibility back, but habit
PakG1 9y ago
Don't keep your feet parallel. Keep them in a V-shape, with heels pointing towards each other. Much easier.
- cperciva 9y ago
  Be careful about this. My doctor pointed out to me last year that I was pointing my feet outwards (or my heels together, as your say), and suggested that I try not doing that. Within a few weeks, decade-old problems with my right knee had vanished -- the angle of my feet when I was walking had been straining the inner side of my knee.
  - vidarh 9y ago
    The angle of the feet is not so much a risk as whether or not your knees move in the direction your feet are pointing. If you feet are at an angle to your knee movement, then, yes, you will very much hurt your knee. Your doctor was probably right to give that advise for walking. But when lifting weights it is a much more stable position for many, and as long as you ensure your knees track a line over your feet rather than at an angle it's not generally a problem.
- marinacalado 9y ago
  Yap! In a squat position, the feet should be in the same line as the knee. So if the knees open out to the side, the feet should follow :)
Jach 9y ago
Try doing lunges. Anecdotally from a friend (32 yo) who also couldn't do squats at all, after doing lunges for a while that enabled him to squat without either going on his toes or falling backwards trying to keep his feet flat.
cup-of-tea 9y ago
Practise. Having a weight on your back actually makes it easier as it literally forces you down. Unless you have a known severe mobility problem, you can definitely squat.

rukuu_001 9y ago

I remember the profound shock during a study exchange to east Asia when I realised I'd have to spend a year on squat toilets. Took a couple months to feel 'safe', and not have to constantly check my pants weren't in the way. Never got comfortable enough to read on the toilet.

fyfy18 9y ago
> not have to constantly check my pants weren't in the way My issue was my trousers kept falling on the wet floor. In the end I just took them off whenever I needed to go :D
Kagerjay 9y ago
I remember this as well. I simply just avoided going to the bathroom until I got to the hotel, they usually have western toilets inside. You haven't really experienced a squat toilet until you've had diahrrea though (pretty common for people travelling abroad for first time / not used to differences in bacteria culture / not taking food medication). I had some terrible experiences

drewnoakes 9y ago

In my travels I've gone from fear of a latrine-style loo to enjoying them enough to consider installing one in my home in England. I'm not exactly sure what it is, but it just feels better for my body somehow to hold a more folded posture. My challenge is flexibility. I did yoga for three years, twice a week, and while the whole of my body became much more flexible (amongst other benefits) my ankles did not yield very much at all. If I try to squat on a level surface, I have to force my arms forward to maintain balance, and it's not comfortable at all. In Iran several toilets had slightly angled surfaces for the feet. With the toes pointing downwards just a few degrees from level, it was very comfortable. My wife is from South Korea, a country where squatting in the home is still practiced regularly, especially by the older generations. It always struck me as a very relaxing way of passing the time, though I couldn't quite do it. Perhaps there is a physiological aspect to this too. Japanese and Korean people appear to have different skeletal proportions to Europeans. I'm curious if this changes anything, or whether it's just a matter of culture/practice.

sdrothrock 9y ago
> but it just feels better for my body somehow to hold a more folded posture. Have you tried putting a stool or something in front of your toilet so you can bend your legs in a squat-esque position? It's a bit more practical and feels much the same to me.
- rmetzler 9y ago
  There are even stools marketed for squatted position on western style toilets. One is the "Squatty Potty". As a German Kraut, I feel, the name must appeal to a Brit.
  - sdrothrock 9y ago
    > German Kraut Is there another kind? ;) > There are even stools marketed for squatted position on western style toilets. I've seen these -- of all places -- in Costco here in Japan. They seem moderately popular since they're sold out sometimes. Personally, I think it's a bit overkill and would rather just plop my feet on a pack of toilet paper. :)

roystonvassey 9y ago

Since the beginning of this year, I have begun to squat (and sit on my haunches) for 15 minutes daily. The target is to do this comfortably for at least 30 minutes by the end of the year. In my country (India), in the villages, you are likely to see people sit like this, even into their 90s. Meanwhile, here I am, in mid 30s, unable to do this even for 5 minutes, complaining of knee and back problems.

singularity2001 9y ago
I wonder how it can be healthy for knees and bloodflow at all, given the squashed and torqued position of the knees
- oblio 9y ago
  I assume that people who do this have an active lifestyle anyway. So they might be physically fit not because of the squats, but despite the squats :)
- peteretep 9y ago
  If the knees are taking a lot of strain, you're not distributing your weight properly
  - singularity2001 9y ago
    the angle remains the same

psergeant 9y ago

I live in Thailand. People can squat here. People have all sorts of sitting and office injuries just like in the West.

Mithaldu 9y ago
Similar. I do powerlifting, i have a great squat and regularly use it for relaxing or doing things at home in a comfortable pose. My back still has issues from sitting all day to program.
- smichel17 9y ago
  Take breaks to rest your back! Humans aren't "designed" to hold the same position for hours on end. Even short (20 second, even) breaks can be extremely helpful: Lie on your back. Knees bent / legs up, so your back is fully supported by the floor. Arms at your sides, hands on your stomach or whatever the most neutral position is. Small pillow / book under your head to keep that portion of your spine properly curved. Source: family member is an Alexander Technique teacher, also personal experience.
  - Mithaldu 9y ago
    That's useful info, thank you. :) I'm actually surprised by the legs part since i would've thought proper pose is legs down.
pan69 9y ago
My wife is Thai. She often squats while "sitting" on a chair at the table.
lazyjones 9y ago
Perhaps we need squatting tables, not toilets. Apparently standing desks won't fix all health problems ... https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/mar/28/is-a-stand-up-desk-really-healthier https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/mar/28/is-a-st...

vog 9y ago

I wasn't aware that squatting is such a big deal. I often find myself squatting while working at my laptop. Frankly, it's just for a few minutes, because at some point my feet will hurt. I wonder whether this is just a matter of exercise, or whether squatting for too long (in that position, with a laptop on the thighs) is unhealthy. Most often I do this while in public transport, where I don't always find a seat. It happens rarely within the train but more often at the station, where the seats are even more limited. In the beginning, I often looked for a wall to lean my back against. But I soon discovered that I don't really need it. Walls are cold and, in the end, they are just a help for balancing.

unicornporn 9y ago
May I ask how you are able to rest your laptop on your thighs and work on it while sitting like this: https://shootstreetphotography.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/asian-squat.jpg https://shootstreetphotography.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/a... ?
- vog 9y ago
  Good point. It's not exactly that pose. I move my centroid more to the front, so the thighs are horizontal. Unfortunately, I found just one good picture of that kind of squatting position, which is NRSFW (not-really-safe-for-work): https://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/woman-weight-scales-checking-diet-results-5451533.jpg https://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/woman-weight-scales-checking...
  - unicornporn 9y ago
    Ah. That's the type of squat you do when you don't have the ankle mobility required to do a real squat. :) It is a very stressful position for your feet and it's probably not possible to sit that way for prolonged periods of time.

jbaudanza 9y ago

I used to have terrible "programmer" posture. It's still not great, but it's way better. I credit a regular routine of loaded barbell squats with an experienced trainer. I think part of the progress is because I got stronger, but part of the progress is because the squat would point out quirks in my body that simply had to be fixed in order to continue progressing. There's only so much of "try to sit up straight" before you just go back to sitting the way your body has adapted to sit. In general, your body doesn't want to change. You need to provide some sort of external stress that forces an adaptation. Squats are great for this.

ehnto 9y ago
Likewise. I have been powerlifting for over 7 years now and there are things about my body I would have never realised until they had gotten much worse. Like that I always leaned slightly to the left because of how I had my mouse, and I had a way overdeveloped right spinal erector and funky core because of it. Likewise still not perfect, but simply leagues ahead of my former physical self. I wouldn't recommend powerlifting to everyone, but some kind of weight training and especially the squat and deadlift. You can pick a weight training style to suit your goals though. I have moved to a more powerlifting / bodybuilding regiment as I have reached the strength level I am happy with at my current bodyweight.
- dvtv75 9y ago
  If someone reading this is going to use resistance training to "fix" their weaknesses, it's important to have a trainer assist as they can pick poor technique when you think you're doing it perfectly. For example, I used to be a fencer, and as a result my left leg was much stronger than my right. I thought I was doing squats correctly, but a trainer spotted that I was tilting my hips as I was doing the exercise.
  - jbaudanza 9y ago
    This is definitely true. And finding a good trainer is difficult. For my SF friends, I've worked with Linda Chungchootairong at www.opengymsf.com before. She's an accomplished competitive powerlifter and olympic lifter. She can make sure your squat is on point. She also has a sick deadlift.

grondilu 9y ago

I'm genuinely starting to think people should just lay down when working with a computer. That's what I do all day long anyway.

icantdrive55 9y ago
I think they should put a twin bed in cubicles. It might sound crazy, but if the person is productive who cares? My left elbow, is larger than my right. I believe it's from my leaning on it, while working, and wasting time on the internet. My neck tightens up once a year, but it goes away within a day. My point is I have congestive heart failure, or I just like working in bed? (I have no outward symptoms of heart failure.). The desk, and chair never felt great for myself, even when I was a young buck.
nottorp 9y ago
Can't do that when you type a lot... or can you?
- grondilu 9y ago
  It is indeed not ideal, so there is a drawback, but imho it's worth it.

unicornporn 9y ago

https://www.t-nation.com/training/third-world-squat https://www.t-nation.com/training/third-world-squat

whiddershins 9y ago

This idea that it requires lots of flexibility to squat is actually a pernicious myth. It is really about the angle of your feet and the width of your stance, most anyone without a debilitating injury can learn to squat in a few minutes when given correct instruction.

scottishfiction 9y ago
Regardless of stance width or foot angle, it seems that ankle mobility is still a limiting factor for most people. Simply raising the heel on a 1" block seems to allow most people to achieve a full squat. However, there's still a huge difference between getting your hip crease below your knee for a moment, and being able to sit in the bottom of a squat for a prolonged period in comfort.
bhrgunatha 9y ago
However some people (me!) definitely have some bio-mechanical impediment. I can clearly remember at school, 10 -12 years old, during winter after heavy snow, my friends all sliding downhill, feet absolutely flat on the floor, sat hunched as low as possible. Absolutely impossible for me - I couldn't get my backside within 30-40 cm off the ground no matter what I tried.
vidarh 9y ago
This depends what you consider "lots of flexibility" and what you consider "squat". No, you don't need to be a gymnast but there are still plenty of people for whom the angle of feet and width of stance is totally insufficient to do a squat below parallel because they lack the necessary hip flexibility. If you can touch your toes with straight legs, you can probably squat below parallel for at least a short while - it's not like it takes a huge amount of flexibility. But that too still requires weeks of training for a surprising number of people. It's not hard to get there, but to write it off as a myth is not helpful.

krzat 9y ago

For lazy/shy people like me I recommend bodyweight fitness. Reddit has some nice community for that. Various core drills and stretching (back bends, lounges, squat) cured my back pain.

2muchcoffeeman 9y ago
I'd still recommend learning to squat under load. I'm fine under my own body weight. Put a bar on my back and problems show themselves again.
- freeloop3 9y ago
  As the article states: > At best, we might undertake ［squatting］ during Crossfit, pilates or while lifting at the gym, but only partially and often with weights (a repetitive maneuver that’s hard to imagine being useful 2.5 million years ago) I kind of go along with that. Squatting with a bar on your back is a weird maneuver.
  - sudhirj 9y ago
    Squats under load are pretty fundamental. Carrying a killed deer on your back, or stone, clay, or a mate or a child all require effective loaded squats.
    - freeloop3 9y ago
      Where is the rest of the movement, then? Why not pick a big bag of sand and place it on your back, walk around with it, and set it back down again? Wouldn't our ancestors carry far less, maybe max 90kg, then people do today? It doesnt make sense to brutally punish your joints with much more than that for part of that action and completely ignore the other part of it.
      - sethammons 9y ago
        Sandbag carries and farmer walks do just that :). As for the idea that you are brutally punishing your joints, I don't believe that to be the case. Controlled squats vs running? Yeah, controlled squats will be way better on the knee. I do weighted exercises regularly and have a marketed reduction in joint pain from before. A barbell squat with good form will not put undue stress on the knee joint and builds muscle that supports it. For me, the added muscle also removed my lower back pain. This also comes with the caveat that you need to stretch and mobilize too.

marinacalado 9y ago

Squatting requires a lot of flexibility, and not only on your hips. Your ankles need to be supple enough to support that degree. That said, a lot of "office problems" with posture take time to become minor. Squatting is an option that works your legs and glutes. But your back needs work too. Complete sports such as swimming, along with yoga for example could provide good balance! :)

freeloop3 9y ago

This article doesn't really make a case in my opinion. The only two justifications seem to be: > So if a joint doesn’t go through its full range—if the hips and knees never go past 90 degrees—the body says ‘I’m not being used’ and starts to degenerate and stops the production of synovial fluid.” And, > A 2014 study in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology found that test subjects who showed difficulty getting up off the floor without support of hands, or an elbow, or leg (what’s called the “sitting-rising test”) resulted in a three-year-shorter life expectancy than subjects who got up with ease. (Study here https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23242910 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23242910) As far as the first one, I'd say, so what? More fluid means healthier? Why? As far as the second one, correlation doesn't prove causation. We should stop pretending this is the case with everything.

tathougies 9y ago
I mean if you're fat, you can't do that, and that's a pretty large risk factor for dying early.

stef25 9y ago

Any position maintained for long periods of time is a stress on your muscles (sitting, squatting, ...). People tend to think that sitting is "not doing anything" but your muscles ARE working to keep you upright. The wonkier you're sitting, the worse the effects will be. I struggled with lower back pain for over 5 years, visited lots of doctors / physios / chiropractors and nobody could give any decent advice. "You're too old" (at 38!), "it's the electromagnetic rays from your computer screen!". In the end what helped me was a routine of body strength exercises that I developed myself from online research and with the help of a young physio who finally knew what he was doing. I'm now basically pain free, as long as I do my routine 2 or ideally 3x per week. I highly recommend anyone struggling with lower back pain to build up a simple routing of core strengthening exercises.

maccard 9y ago
> I highly recommend anyone struggling with lower back pain to build up a simple routing of core strengthening exercises. As someone who tried this, I'd recommend seeing a medical professional to ensure it's actually going to help first. I made things far far worse before getting help and making them better.
- sethammons 9y ago
  Can you go into more detail? What made things worse? What made them better? Obviously what worked for you might not work for others, but concrete X's and Y's could inspire someone to follow the advice of talking to a medical professional. My knee jerk reaction is that I don't trust the family doctor to really know much bio-mechanical stuff and will trust a well-referred fitness coach. Maybe you meant you saw a physical therapist?
  - maccard 9y ago
    Sure - but caveating this with "Don't take medical advice from strangers on the internet" (Which was kind of my point). I've had lower back pain on and off my entire adult life. When I started investigating how to fix it, I came to the (same) conclusion that strengthening my core muscles would help - as someone who trained quite heavily I was confident in my ability to perform basic core exercises without injuring myself [0]. These only exacerbated the problem, and after 2 weeks of doing them I was bed ridden, and in agony. I had been to a GP who referred me to a neurosurgeon that I was able to get temporary relief from by multiple epidurals, and some severe pain relief medication. Got better again after a few weeks, and I ignored it for 18 months until it came back. Took an experimental procedure that bought me another 18 months. I then saw a physiotherapist who walked me through some of the basic exercises that they give to people who are recovering from spinal fusion (which I had been referred for but held off on). I still get waves of lower back pain every few months, but I'm aware of the early symptoms, and can begin with the PT exercises for a few weeks at a time, until they subside (which they have done every time so far). Overall, it was about finding what worked for me, as you said, but I definitely wouldn't recommend making that journey on your own. [0] offhand, cannot remember exactly what I did, but would have been some basic version of some of the exercises from https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/fitness/multimedia/core-strength/sls-20076575 https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/fitness/multime...

z3t4 9y ago

The best cure for stiff muscles is to trick them to relax. For example doing concentric movements using the antagonist muscles using light load. For example pushing water.

truculation 9y ago

Our poor posture and use of the body in the West is partly a side-effect of our mental activities, in my opinion. Not merely due to sitting. Rather sitting and performing mental activities whilst partially tranquilised: e.g. playing video games at a desk whilst sipping coffee/soda/alcohol. I can't explain why this is but intuitively I think it's to do with our locus of attention being out of the body and into abstract ideas. In the developing world their locus is more 'in the body'.

a3n 9y ago

I want a squatting desk.

eggy 9y ago

I lived in SE Asia for 8 years, and I learned to squat again. It does open up your hips. At first I couldn't do it without almost falling backwards, but then I worked up to where I could squat for over 5 minutes in ease. Now that I am back to the US, I have gained 25 lb. in one year. I am vegetarian, and still eat healthy, no junk, but I eat more. I had to start my exercise program up again, since I am back to an office job whereas in SE Asia I was doing 50-50 office/physical labor. Squatting loosens my hips, and generally seems to make me feel better if done more often. I go outside at work and walk a half mile, and squat at lunch for 10 minutes in the sun if it's out.

eof 9y ago

Really interesting. I've always been a squatter for no apparent reason (white, raised by middle class republicans in california). I often sit semi-squatted at my computer; basically my feet on the seat and thighs against my chest. I've actually avoided this consciously since it seemed like 'bad posture'. I wonder if I have actually been actively avoiding something I should be doing more of. It's always felt more comfortable this way.

tathougies 9y ago
Am I missing something? -- what would political affiliation have to do with squatting? Are republicans against squatting?

exodust 9y ago

Lots of comments here saying "yeh squats are great, do squats." But the article is not talking about exercise squats! It's talking about "deep squatting as a form of active rest". Personally I think squatting as a form of sitting is not going to be happening too much with larger framed people. Smaller and slimmer people will obviously have a much easier time of sustaining a sitting squat comfortably.

pknerd 9y ago

Sitting like this is pretty common in sub-continent as majority of people prefer WC over commode system. Beside that home maids and house women sit in squat position when cleaning home. We are also being exploited by modern luxuries hence more and more people suffering from knee and joints problems.

zaqplm 9y ago
I am from one of the poorest countries in the world and women no longer squat to clean houses. There are brooms.

orasis 9y ago

For body weight animal movement stuff I’m loving https://gmb.io https://gmb.io I can hold a low squat indefinitely now because of it and my neck and back feel amazing!

dustinlocke 9y ago
How long have you been doing this? Looks interesting.
- orasis 9y ago
  9 months. 3 thumbs up!

deleted 9y ago

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katzgrau 9y ago

I'm a fairly built 190lb person and I was a baseball catcher as a kid and in high school. It definitely took a toll on my knees - I wonder if squatting as rest is also somewhat dependent on humans being a little more wiry than they are today.

turc1656 9y ago

Thanks for this. I've been wondering how to better help my legs and general body health. I go to the gym regularly and I'm in pretty good shape, but I know there is some ongoing issue with my legs related to sitting all day. Wasn't sure how to tackle it - I started doing more leg exercises and even squats (but only up to 90 degrees). This article make it clear that I need to do a few different types of squats to get the real benefit. My legs have been scrawny chicken legs for years because of sitting at a desk all damn day. And it surely doesn't help that I cross one leg under the other half the time and alternate throughout the day. My legs feel slightly numb sometimes which I know is terrible. My leg muscles have atrophied to a large extent and I suspect that there is even a blood flow / circulation issue all surrounding the "use it or lose it" concept. I'm not sure if it's possible, but maybe my veins or arteries also got smaller from lack of use. I've noticed my legs get fatigued much quicker and take longer to recover. It's been very difficult to get full function back, so for anyone reading this - try to avoid making the same mistake I did. I overlooked the issue for too long. I will certainly overcome it, in time, but it sucks and it's a long process because my body has become used to not needing my legs 95% of the time.

soyiuz 9y ago

I am a life-long squatter. It has ruined my knees. Also their expert is an osteopath.

goda90 9y ago
From the article: "So should we replace sitting with squatting and say goodbye to our office chairs forever? Beach points out that “any posture held for too long causes problems” and there are studies to suggest that populations that spend excessive time in a deep squat (hours per day), do have a higher incidence of knee and osteoarthritis issues. But for those of us who have largely abandoned squatting, Beach says, “you can’t really overdo this stuff.”"

b0rsuk 9y ago

I have both bad back and runner's knee. Once I found out the most effective treatment for my bad back is regular exercise (40min a day, 4 days of the week... but I can't afford to skip it), I started thinking about other problems I could solve this way. I thought about runner's knee. I started googling around. I found some contradictory info initially, but in the end there seems to be consensus squats not only don't harm a knee, they make it stronger! You're essentially building your exoskeleton. What I found gives me best results is wall-facing squat. It's difficult to start. It took me weeks, perhaps even months to feel benefits, but now I'm a squat addict. Wall facing squat is very good because it makes it impossible to cheat. You have to develop better stance, balance, and flexibility. And you have to think how to get there. As a nerd who played computer games A LOT, I was so inflexible I could only straighten my leg about 120 degrees when lying on my back and raising the leg vertically. Now I can grab my heel with leg perfectly straight, or touch my forehead with my knee. So don't think you can't do that. You just need to be persistent, systematic and don't force it (especially if you're starting to feel pain). Nowadays I try to incorporate those wide wall-facing squats into every raising movement I make. I get some odd looks (I don't do it at work, though), but I don't care. When I raise from bed, I don't use my hands. Same for couch, chair, and other platforms. Don't get obsessed with numbers. Numbers don't mean a squat if they come at the price of bad technique. Bad technique is like building a tower on skewed foundation. Repeat that movement enough times, and the tower will start leaning, then fall (injury). So once in a while I lower my weekly number of squats, when I feel I can get even closer to wall. At first I thought I'd never manage it, but every couple of weeks I can exercising closer to wall. It's better to perform smaller sets of perfect exercise than lots of bad. Too bad I learned it the hard way. Aside from feeling very flexible at thighs and legs in general, it's rewarding because my knee feels very stable. A few years ago, when I was shifting my weight while standing, I could feel it rotate in various ways. Now I feel more confident because I feel it supports me better. My balance also got a lot better and I'm leaning over tables and other objects in ways that seemed impossible before. I naturally adjust my stance when walking upstairs, downstairs, or running downhill. It feels like my entire leg works through the entire range of motion. I get bonus points when cycling, I can power through some smaller hills at full speed where previously I would be soaked with sweat. In general, anaerobic exercise like squats gives your body more HP (Hit Points), making you more resistant to injury, increasing bone density etc. The last one is especially important for women, who are prone to osteoporosis when getting older. I'm getting the itch to resume long distance running, and now I could probably pull it off. I learned to listen to my body, and prevent injury in advance by adjusting my stance and movement until I feel no pain or discomfort of any sort. I dig the endorphin, the runner's high. I don't know if i will find enough time, but worst case scenario is I will just focus on cycling.

richardknop 9y ago

And don't forget dead lifts and pull ups. I see a lot of people at the gym focusing on chest and upper body (biceps, arms, torso) but you need to focus more on centre of your body and lower back (dead lift), legs (squats, leg press) and upper back (pull ups). Bench press is also good but that's it for chest, I wouldn't do more. Squats, bench press and dead lift as a core of your routine is a good idea. You can add some other minor components but you should keep focus on the big three.

kawfey 9y ago
This article is talking about squatting as an alternative to sitting, not the exercise. But to be fair, one should not skip leg day.
- mtberatwork 9y ago
  I'll also add that before embarking on a serious squat regimen one should work first with a trainer (or friend with good technique) to develop proper squat form. Squatting is one of those gym exercises that is often underestimated in its difficulty and is routinely done incorrectly, leading to injury.

nkrisc 9y ago

This is something I do normally as an adult in the West, but only because for whatever reason I never got out of the habit from doing it as a child. It was my default position playing outside in the dirt or the sandbox. I didn't like getting my clothes dirty so squatting, as opposed to sitting on my behind or knees, made sense. These days when I'm working on anything below waist height I'm usually squatting. People always remark how child-like it looks and I remark how comfortable and easy on the knees it is.

tomxor 9y ago

Interesting, I sit cross-legged quite a bit at work purely because I find sitting for long periods to be uncomfortable, nice to know it's also better than sitting for health reasons, i guess it pays to listen to your body.

squarefoot 9y ago

I also have back problems. Weight, age and other problems prevent me to squat or do most exercises, but I found immediate beneficial effects by consuming meals standing when I'm alone.

ibdf 9y ago

my goal for this year is to stay more active during work. I'm your typical American working in small cubicle 8 hours a day in a boring looking office. Soon January I started doing push ups 6 times during my work day. I start a set number so, for example 4. And set I add one. So first set is 4 and last set of the day is 10. Once I'm comfortable doing 9. Then I add one to my starting point. So start 5 and then end at 10. It has been now nearly two months and I am starting at 10 and ending at 15. That adds up to 75 push ups in one day. It's incredible but I couldn't do more than 4 when I first started and now I can do 15 at once. Next month I plan to add one other excersise. Either squats or crunches.