Pistol squats for a booty that pops like a cap

November 29, 2016 Ashley 0 Comments

So, you lost the weight…

But, now, you wanna step up your gains game and fine-tune that booty. That’s why you’ve started your squats, gotten a strength training routine, and are even working on some unilateral strengthening to hone your somatic focus to one side of your body at a time. That’s all fabulous. But you know what a beautiful yes-and all of this is? Refining your balance and going a little deeper… with something I tried the other day myself, called… the pistol squat.

And, FYI, yes, it’s every centimeter as daunting as it sounds.

(Showing off on a kettlebell for photo op, optional. #challengeaccepted.)

Why’s the pistol squat so great? Because you’re asking a lot more of all your muscles – like your hips, hammies, quads, glutes, and calves. What’s more, your core also gets in on the action. Add it all together, and that’s how you get the luscious rump plus a minus-sign sized waist. And, don’t forget your biceps, which also get a workout as your arms move forward to balance your body out. Actually, that – balance – is another habit that’ll massively help you out. First, you gain better connection to your body and next level proprioceptive awareness. Why’s that matter? Because, when you’re more tuned into your movements, you can correct poor form and improve what you’re doing. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve recorded myself doing what I thought were proper squats, only to realize that my butt was tucked in or my knees were floating over my toes. By working one side of your body and challenging it on a balance level with something like pistol squats, your awareness goes 100% into being a somatic captain and steering your rear in the right direction. And, speaking of balance, that’s another epic benefit of doing this move. By working all those often neglected muscles that help keep you upright, you’re investing in preventing injury during other athletic ventures later.

Alright, you might be sold by now…

But how do you do it?

Well, though this is how it looks…

…very few of us are going to be able to do that on the first try.

So here’s a nice progression montage to work toward that:

(That plyo, tho…..)

Tips?

Make sure to keep with that bodily connection element and perform your most proper squat form the whole time. Don’t let the knee come over the toe and don’t let the hip pop out to one side (a real problem for me, thanks to a scoliosis). Not sure if you’re doing it right? Recruit a trainer for guidance. Or even just do what I do – and take a video of yourself doing it. In fact, I kind of do a combo of both of those things – recording myself and then popping it on Snapchat or Instagram and asking one of my many trainer friends what it is that I can improve. The result? Well, yesterday just happened to be leg and butt day – and I just tried these for the first time. (Granted, I only got down three quarters of the way). Even so, after a few pointers and more than a few reps, I’m finally understanding why they called ’em pistol squats. ’cause I definitely feel like I just caught a bullet in the biscuits. But don’t let that deter you. ’cause, where I come from, that’s a fantastic sign for your fanny.

It just means you’re pistol whipping that backside into a booty uzi.

#terriblemetaphor