May 10, 2014
Written by
Ray Dente
Owner/Fitness Coach
Get Fit With Ray
The SQUAT and PRESS
One of my favorite exercises hands down is the “squat & press”. Why? It’s one of those fundamental exercises that when done right has many benefits for both beginner and the advanced. The “squat and press” is just that, a compounding movement which requires you to combine both a body squat with an overhead press all within one movement. For beginners, the press can be done with a light medicine ball so to develop both cardio and muscular endurance, especially if you are new o fitness. And as you develop, become more comfortable after progressing, you can start adding weight with light dumbbells, body bars, even move up to olympic bars as you become stronger. The “squat and press” is one of those core exercises I incorporate into both my fitness assessments with potential clients, and is also included as a warmup my clients do prior to our workouts so to warm up shoulder and knee joints, and to warm up the cardio engine.
What parts of the body does the squat and press work?
Many muscles at one time in fact, this is why it is also a great way to work your cardio engine. Because the heart needs to pumps oxygen to muscle fiber from head-to-toe. Expect to work your entire lower body meaning your legs (thighs, hamstrings, calves) and glutes (the butt, aka: backyard) when dropping down for the squat portion of this exercise. Upon the time you begin to squat upwards back to a standing position, your body then starts to recruit and contract its core muscles, engages your spinal erectors as well as your cardio engine given the effort and exertion within the movement. As you elevate upwards and back into the standing position, your body then start the press portion of the exercise which is shown in the video. Additional to shoulder work, the body also recruits the triceps (back of the arm) and upper pec’s (chest muscles).
What are the benefits?
Lets start with total body conditioning, improvement of leg strength, upper body press strength, core strength, low back/butt and mental strength. For those who do not have hours to train and need to maximize their time and effort, this is the exercise for you. Additionally, the “squat and press” helps to develop your individual squat routines as well as any press movements if you choose to do them separately. The “squat and press” because it recruits lots of muscle fiber will also force the body to burn more calories, which also means calories from fat. And given you are training head-to-toe vs. isolating body parts while training, your body will need to feed much more muscle for recovery, so your need to eat/feed the body better will improve. As will your ability to sleep. I call the “squat and press” a sleeping pill. Give them a try, you’ll understand what I mean.
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