When was the last time you squatted all the way down from a standing position? By yourself - on purpose? My two-year-old daughter just did it 20 plus times in less than 10 minutes at the beach. I am in my mid thirties and I cannot squat all the way without concentrating on my balance the whole time. The old man in this picture can do it. Why can't we?

Because we never do it anymore. When I say we, I mean a mostly Western, developed nation culture that never requires us to move into a deep squat. A deep squat is classified as a squat where the hips go below the knees. Many of you will say you cannot squat like this because you have bad knees or a bad back. Do you know how you got those bad knees and bad back? This gentleman might have a bad back too, but he can still fully squat comfortably. The difference is this man has likely never been required to sit on a raised toilet or been required to sit at a school desk for hours during the day. I know my daughter has done neither, yet. Our old friend probably does not watch TV or sit in front of a computer all day either.

Isn't deep squatting painful and bad for your knees? If so, we better tell our babies and the billions of people on the other side of the world to stop doing it so they can end up getting knee replacements and herniated discs just like we do. The answer is a qualified "no." We are built to squat. Our anatomy provides us with hinges and pulleys in all the right spots to be able to assume this position efficiently. We have created a world that does not ask us to use it.

So what is the big deal? What if I cannot squat all the way down? Epidemiological studies have shown that diseases like irritable bowel syndrome, colitis, appendicitis, degenerative disc disease, hip osteoarthritis, knee osteoarthritis, and common low back pain, to name a few, are more prevalent in Western cultures. Not being able to deep squat has an extremely high correlation to being unable to maintain your posture through the golf swing. (I am sure that caught someone's attention) Certainly diet and genetics have a strong influence on pathology. And in no way does this article suggest the deep squat as being an antidote to these diseases. Just some food for thought. Unfortunately, being able to deep squat is not like riding a bike. But you can teach an old dog new tricks.

If you want the sweet looking comfort of being able to deep squat and get back to feeling like a two year old again, seek the help of one of Personally Fit's qualified personal trainers.  See below for our exercise this month - the overhead squat to get you started.