What are pistol squats and why are they so difficult.
What are gun squats and why are they so difficult?
Pistol squats are one—sided exercises, meaning they work one leg at a time. Squats-pistols, in fact, consist in the fact that you squat on one leg until you sit on the heel, and then push-ups, rising to the starting position, with the same leg. Your non-working leg should be roughly parallel to the ground at all times. Squat guns challenge the strength of your glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps, feet and calves, not to mention mobility and balance.
What you can learn
Many people think that squat guns are designed for gymnasts and jocks, and not for "normal people". But when knee pains begin, therapists can indicate that it is worth training your knees in squats with a pistol. When done correctly, all squats should involve the gluteal muscles. But many people spend their days on chairs, thereby shortening the hip flexor muscles and stretching the gluteal muscles. When squatting with a gun, you must use your buttocks correctly to achieve the best results.
Pistol squats are especially cool because they reveal a lot of inefficiency, motor dysfunctions and mobility limitations. When performed correctly, the muscles of the foot, ankle, shin, thigh, buttocks and pelvic floor work together to create a powerful movement. The gluteal muscles of many people tend to be lazy even during such squats, so doing the right thing can be a great way to reactivate the gluteal muscles.
A plan has been devised to finally master the squat gun.
Three times a week, you need to warm up by activating the gluteal muscles and performing exercises for the mobility of the thoracic spine (that is, the upper back), hips and ankles. Then do three sets of five squats with a "pistol", while sitting down at the end of the movement on the box, so that it is not so difficult, and then, as it develops, abandon it.
Learning how to squat "pistol" correctly was a humiliating experience even for a personal trainer who practices five times a week. However, this is a difficult exercise that makes people sweat, while it gives great benefits. It's clearly worth it.
How to work on a Squat gun
If you also want to learn how to do gun squats, include this sequence of movements in your existing training program three times a week. You can do this on your own or after a workout.
Warm-up: Do a 10-15-minute cardio workout (if you haven't trained before), and then warm up the squat muscles — perform three sets of 10 air squats with your own weight, glute bridges and one minute of ankle joint mobility for each leg.
Modified squat gun: Find a chair, a plio-box or a bench (somewhere between hip and shin level) on which you can get down and stand on one leg without much difficulty. Do 3 sets of 5 repetitions of squat guns on each leg, lowering the buttocks to touch the chair / box / bench. If you feel ready after a few exercises, sit down on a lower platform.
Isometric Hold: Finish each workout with three isometric squats on each leg for 30 seconds.
Remember that it takes a lot of strength of the gluteal muscles and it will probably take a long time to perform a full range of movements, but trust the process, make an effort, and you will definitely achieve results.
