Smash Your Guts For A Better Squat

Utilizing Kettlebells

When looking to improve the depth and position of the squat there are a few things all athletes should be working on.

• Ankles
• Hips
• Guts.

There are a number of different mobility protocols you can do to improve the arches in your feet, dorsiflexion in your ankles, and rotation and flexion in your hip and hip capsule, which are either linked or will have a blog post all of their own, but assuming you have decent ROM (Range of Motion) in all of those joints, the last thing you want to look at is your guts.

Specifically the psoas and iliacus (located in your abdomen), are two muscles that can become tight while sitting down for long periods of time, and pull on the musculature surrounding them and on the lower back region. This tension can lead to the infamous “Butt Wink” and stop athletes from achieving not only proper depth, but positional integrity and overall work capacity during training.  

Luckily there is a fairly simple, albeit uncomfortable, way out of the tension and towards proper movement. Adam White, Vaughn Weightlifting Mobility Coach and Athlete, demos in the video below how to properly “smash your guts” using a OneFitWonder Kettlebell.