If you want to work your glutes when doing the split squat you need to adopt a wider (further forward) stance. You can avoid arching your back by leaning your upper body further forward and keeping a neutral spine. Weight still in your front leg.
Thank you!! I recently heard Hanna Oeberg say that a wider stance targets the glutes more, and in practice I found it to be true, so this video really perplexed me at first.
@@leahleachxx ditto..now I'm doing them right by booty brings all the boys to the yard. But im straight so it's a little annoying when all these men show up. But hey attention is attention
O. M. G. I can't believe I've been doing them wrong this entire time! I tried the technique you showed here in this video, and immediately felt a huge difference! Also, the movement was way more fluid and easier to execute. My booty locked up on me at one point, so I can tell I was definitely hitting the right muscles. 😂 Thanks so much for the video. 👏🏾👍🏾👏🏾
Thank you for posting this! I messed up my right hamstring and lower back for 2 months (had to actually do 6 weeks of physical therapy) because my trainer didn’t know what he was doing & basically did the movement wrong! Even after I told him I was feeling discomfort because I had sciatica to begin with! I should have trusted my gut.., it would have saved me time and $$ 😔😔
Thanks for taking this exercise one step further and looking at ways to eliminate injury. I've got roto scoliosis and am really trying to avoid damaging my spine more than it is currently.
I feel your pain as I've suffered from multiple spinal fractures myself, from training incorrectly before I knew better. Trying to help others mitigate those risks and train safely and effectively. Stay safe and keep training hard!
I just discovered these squats the other day, and after 2 days of doing it my lower back hurt so bad! So I’ll try again tomorrow while watching this lol
Props to Christina for holding that squat as long as she did, just watching made my legs burn. Great video, I've been struggling to get these right for some time and I always wondered why my inactive leg always had more of a burn in it then the one I was squatting with.
Dang it, I've been doing it wrong all along! I have one hamstring that is underdeveloped, & I never saw any growth. This is probably the reason why. Thanks for this video it really helps. ☺️
This is not a great exercise to target the hamstrings, the glutes and quads are primarily dominant in this movement. The hamstrings are active and will work but this is not a hamstring dominant movement.
I usually just do normal squats and i tried these for the first time yesterday. My butt cheeks are so sore, its like my first time working out type of sore. I cant even sit down without being in pain!
Same here. Stopped doing them for a while in favor of my new vertical leg press, did 4 x 12 yesterday and I feel like someone beat my glutes with a baseball bat!
I was curious about when the hip dips during these during lunges,. Is a hip dip due to lack of strength? Is a hip dip something that should ALWAYS be avoided, like having a rounded back...its a no no. Is a hip dip during lunges always a no no? Thanks for making the video for us !
Don't put the back foot so high, and you'll have no problem. The back leg for the squat is to high. Use a chair so you can hold yourself straight. I never have a problem. The back leg, should be at half the height it is in the video. Try it for the Bulgarian Squats, and you'll see I am right.
what a beautiful explanation. thank you for emphasizing the distance from the bench, and its effect on the lower back (this is something I was neglecting)
Great video. I'd been wondering why my back leg and foot were hurting constantly during bulgarians. I was doing the exact position at the start. Thanks!
Yes, the toe up on the bench pulls a lot more on the hip flexors, and leads to more anterior pelvic tilt, as well as puts a lot of hyper extension force onto your big toe. I always teach it with shoe laces on the bench
Brockway Babe actually it depends entirely on the height of the bench you're using I struggled with the balance of going "toe down" for months , until I dropped the rear foot to about 6 inches and went toes up,at which point all the balance issues I had disappeared It's subjective to the individual,I have very long toes and short legs, toe down really hurt my rear leg and messed up my balance
You just made this a quad dominant movement. You have to take a wider step and a slight forward lean for qlute activation.....people don’t just use single leg movements for quads.
It is a split squat, any squat pattern is going to work quads and glutes. The slight hinge at the hip along with the deep range of motion into hip flexion will provide extensive glute activation and eccentric loading. 90% of people performing this movement will "feel it" in their glutes the next day 10x more than their quads. But if you are performing a complex multi-joint squat movement, bilateral or unilateral, and you're thinking about whether you're using it for glutes or quads, you're already doing it wrong
Physical threapists treat hernia with spine extension, I don't think it is a bad thing. We extend our lower back for stabilization, it wouldn't cause a problem unless we overextended our lower back against weight, and as long as we keep our lower back motionless during a split squat there is no extension against resistance. The problem would be flexion, rounding the back while doing the movement. And that becomes a problem when the front leg is close. As soon as there is resistance in our hands lower back tends to take over since we can't drive our hips back. That makes it harder to keep the knee behind toes too since it is a straight up and down movement like smith machine squats. Front leg a bit out in front fixes those problems. And it really doesn't make the back leg do any more work unless your hip flexors are already tight.
if i need a exercise for the glutes activation and feel it o the glutes next day...that will be lunges backwards ...less presure on lower back and knees
Can you please explain it with any scientific backing...isn't bending front risky to the spine and won't wider step throw extra pressure on the resting leg as well??
AshMo Do some do. I use this specifically as one of my quad isolation movements to help build quad strength along with front squats and leg extensions.
Gyms are closed. I only have a set of adjustable dumbbells at home to work with. So I can't load up my legs with barbell back squats or deadlifts. I have resort to the bulgarian split squat to get the proper amount of load per leg. Thank you.
I do a deep squat and my back leg never looks like that. I have a straight line back to leg. I like the deeper squat because I can target the whole leg.
You should be able to get very deep in the squat position, deep enough to touch your rear knee to the floor. Having the back leg straight will not allow that depth without creating compensation at the pelvis and lumbar spine, hence the demonstration here with the rear knee bent.
@Coach PJ Nester.. was just looking things up about form. I did this exercise, probably wrong. Day after my knee was swollen, had a bad knee popping while i stretched it (outerside) and on top of that my hip snaps too. (Kneecap was slightly blue) The Snapping and popping doesn’t hurt. I wonder what could cause this due to performing this exercise? I’m worried i torn something in the leg 😫 Does this sound familiar to someone here? Thanks
Back leg/foot elevated too high, yielding unnecessary stress on the lumbar and thoracic spine regions. 2" to 4" off the surface for the back leg/foot will suffice.
That all depends on the intended depth of the movement. Traditional Bulgarian split squats are done at approximately 18" (which is the height of the bench). But you can certainly do them on a 12", 6", or even 4" platform, or even on bands attached higher. There is no "right" height for elevating the rear leg...prescription all depends on targeted adaptation
Coach PJ Nestler, increased pressure on the spine and unnecessary. Hey, it's your posterior. The Bulgarian who invented this recommends no higher than the height of a plate lying on its side, roughly 2". Overkill and a back injury forthcoming. No need to stress your back any further than it has to be. 2" is the correct height, anymore is foolish and asinine. 🤒😷🤕. So, there's varations of depth, too? SMH. You're that guy in the gym that performs half squats. LMFAO@u, pretender. 👎
@@youarerightboss 100% correct.. I was always taught a REAL Bulgarian Split Squat only had the back leg up only about 2-3in on the BALL of the back foot and the front knee can be over the toes BUT the front heel can be up- so weight on the forefoot and arms up- weight up overhead or on shoulders looking more like a true split.. all the way down .. but most people don’t have this flexibility ..These in the video are just one legged squats with the back leg up too high in my opinion...more for dancers or ice skaters
@@charissetenewitz1008, much obliged for your attention to detail (fabricating the finer distinctions in life). The anterior receives most of the attention, though. Don't neglect your posterior chain(glute ham machine, squats, deadlifts, hamstring curls). 😉
the bench is too high for a starting position with a straight back leg forcing your model into an anterior pelvic tilt with excessive hip extension. you eventually correct this by starting with the back leg bent/knee facing or preferably on the ground
Don't push off the heel, your weight should be centered through the middle of the front foot. The cue I give my athletes is called a tripod foot, meaning you have 43 points of contact- the base of the big toe, base of the little toe, and heel. This makes sure you are getting full foot integration and your weight is properly centered through the midfoot for ideal mechanics
shouldnt the front knee more or less stay stationary? even in the "correct" way, her knee is shooting forward. AthleanX made a video on the BSS where he demonstrated the movement with a stationary knee. even if his knee did move, it was only a slight jut forward
Looks like the difference isn't due to her knee moving forward on the way down, but rather it moving backwards on the way up instead of keeping it relatively stationary and placing more emphasis on hip extension.
I have been told to do these to strengthen the glutes as I have an injury to the groin and my quads are much stronger than my glutes. Therefore the abductors are suffering when I run. Should I have my front foot more forward and lean forward more to avert the c shape in the lower back.?
Absolutely, with the front foot more forward and hinging at the hips (forward lean) you can engage the glutes more and take some of the stress of the quads. The quads will still be heavily involved in this movement tho
Thanks - also when doing these exercises I get a pain in the knee of the leg resting. Its just temporarily whilst squatting but does force me to stop. What causes this, please? COuld it be tight hip joints or flexors pilling up on the ligaments or tissue on the knees?
I think you're way overthinking this exercise. A lot of what you find as faults are also good exercises like stretching the hip flexors. That's a good thing. In fact, a little variation makes this a better all around exercise such as moving your front foot forward in order to concentrate on the glutes instead of the quads. If you feel "pain" in your lower back then adjust your posture or don't stand so upright. Even a biceps curl has variations in grip position and using unbalanced dumbbells to supinate the forearm better and develop the arms more fully.
If performing properly the knees should not go over the toes, it should track over the shoelaces/midfoot. This is the ideal position for any lower body push/squat pattern movement generally speaking. There are certainly slightly different stances for different goals, but as a general rule the knee over the shoe laces is how I teach them
Andrew W - I have heard very recent research that it doesn’t matter if the knees go a bit over the toes, provided the knees and toes track in the same direction.....
@@kecrn4132 Here’s what I have found: 1. If you are “light” this may not matter (not as much stress on the knee) 2. If you don’t have any muscle imbalance issues, this may not matter ie: you don’t have overdevelopment or underdevelopment in any muscles supporting the knee- this is rare. 3. You have no alignment issues with your normal gait: this is also rare. Most people run and do all kinds of exercises without realizing that for instance their hips might be off 6mm which causes a slight turning in of the one knee which also then stresses the ankle etc all the way up and down the chain. While imperceptible even to most sports physicians and PTs, this is why, let’s say, you “ran all your life no problem” and now in your 40’s you are suddenly having hip, knee, ankle, or plantar fasciitis issues and the docs are calling it “arthritis.” It’s as n alignment issue that while your growth hormone was high and you fixed the damage you were doing daily each night, as you get older those injuries compound...(this happened to me - the bursal sack was pulling off the bone because of the misalignment which was caused when I broke my metatarsal which hurt my third arch which further dropped my hip ... and instead of hip surgery, a brilliant doctor (my third opinion) told me to get an insert for my shoe, gave me a hypodermic of cortisone, and rest- thsnk god I didn’t need surgery to re-attach.. So... in theory, if everything is “perfect,” then going a little past the toes shouldn’t matter, but WHY risk it??? 4. A REAL Bulgarian Split Squat only had the back leg up on the toe ON THE FLOOR and the front knee is WAY over the toes BUT the front heel is up- so on the forefoot and weight up overhead.. looking more like a split.. These in the video are just one legged squats with the back leg up too high in my opinion...
WELCOME TO YOURE DOING IT WRONG 😂 Is this the story of my life
that's what my girlfriend says, anyway.
J W same
Mines too when it come to men...lol
Funny but don’t take it personally sweetie
My knees told me in 2 seconds I was doing it wrong lol
Its amazing how these "small" incorrect movements can cause so much pain. Thanks!
If you want to work your glutes when doing the split squat you need to adopt a wider (further forward) stance. You can avoid arching your back by leaning your upper body further forward and keeping a neutral spine. Weight still in your front leg.
YES! I listened to this video and found this out the hard way 😒 Wish I saw your comment when I watched this!
@@slyons6618 I've lost count of the things I wish I'd known along the way. Weight training is a lonnnnnnng journey!
👌
Thank you!! I recently heard Hanna Oeberg say that a wider stance targets the glutes more, and in practice I found it to be true, so this video really perplexed me at first.
Does anyone know if it’s okay if my knees go inward when I squat?
I have always hated these. Now I know why...I was doing it wrong.
Alicia B 😂 same sis
you will hate them when you do them correctly too haha - but they def work!
@@angelscarlett3387 sameeee
@@leahleachxx ditto..now I'm doing them right by booty brings all the boys to the yard. But im straight so it's a little annoying when all these men show up. But hey attention is attention
@@karld83 da fuk?
I always wondered why my back leg was burning so much doing this exercise. This cleared up a lot.
"you're doing it wrong" pretty much sums up my life...lol
I did them like the right way in this video and someone came up to me telling me I was doing it wrong 😂
You were doing them correct :)
🤣🤣🤣
Literally just focused on keeping my hips tucked underneath myself and I immediately felt the difference!
Perfect! Glad this helped
Aren’t your hips always underneath yourself?
@@CoachPJNestler What makes this squat more effective than a standard squat?
@@CoachPJNestler If you can feel it more in your back leg does that mean you're doing it wrong? Isn't the first version a lunge?
Nice to see this. Apparently doing it wrong has been the sTory of my life. During a normal lunge, is that how the back leg should be as well as?
O. M. G. I can't believe I've been doing them wrong this entire time! I tried the technique you showed here in this video, and immediately felt a huge difference! Also, the movement was way more fluid and easier to execute. My booty locked up on me at one point, so I can tell I was definitely hitting the right muscles. 😂 Thanks so much for the video. 👏🏾👍🏾👏🏾
Yaaaaassssss!!! I watch technique videos(from reputable trainers) for most of the exercises I do. It's so helpful
No wonder why my lower back was always in pain when doing this exercice 😅. Thank you so much for this video!!
Same!!! My tailbone always hurts so much
How's it going 4 years later
I needed this, had a little trouble getting the right form/position 🏃
Thank you for posting this! I messed up my right hamstring and lower back for 2 months (had to actually do 6 weeks of physical therapy) because my trainer didn’t know what he was doing & basically did the movement wrong! Even after I told him I was feeling discomfort because I had sciatica to begin with! I should have trusted my gut.., it would have saved me time and $$ 😔😔
Thanks for taking this exercise one step further and looking at ways to eliminate injury. I've got roto scoliosis and am really trying to avoid damaging my spine more than it is currently.
I feel your pain as I've suffered from multiple spinal fractures myself, from training incorrectly before I knew better. Trying to help others mitigate those risks and train safely and effectively. Stay safe and keep training hard!
Ohhhh, so that's why I felt my low back was a bit sore the next day!
My gawd, my physio told me to keep my front leg out far!!! I've been straining my back the whole tone. Thanks PJ
starting with the back knee bent as described will automatically bring the front leg closer and in a more natural split position
Oh my god this exercise always hurts me so much. Thanks for the video
you look like paul ryan
I get that a lot
I had that same thought, not as an insult or compliment, just an observation!
Looks and sounds just like him
Marcy Aj oh, true lol
Marcy Aj Paul Ryan used to be a trainer
I just started bulgarian split squats and was wondering why my quads burn sooo badly. Really glad to come across your video. Keep up the good work!
I've been doing these wrong the whole time. Thank you
I'm glad this helped you clean up your technique!
Thanks for the tip. It will be helpful. You missed the set up ques though.
This just saved my lower back thank you!
Great video tip. 👏🏽 I’ve been working out for years but had my first baby a few months back and had to start all over. Thank you☝🏽🙏🏽
wow my front foot needs to be so much closer. thanks for the tip for knee alignment over the middle of your foot. glad i found your channel!
I just discovered these squats the other day, and after 2 days of doing it my lower back hurt so bad! So I’ll try again tomorrow while watching this lol
This channel is amazing. Right to the point and very clear, thank you!
Wow what a difference thank you!!!!
You are very welcome. Thank you for your support
I think many many ‘fitness influencers’ need to see this, so many doing it completely wrong!
Excellent, I am doing them wrong, thanky you very much.
One of the toughest excerises
Ikr it's like Slavs have competitions who's gonna come up with the hardest exercise 😂🤦🏿
I can't believe I've been doing it wrong! Thank you so much for this!
Cathy Evans oh baby do it right and take care of yourself. I dont want you getting hurt now
If you do get hurt i will look after you. I'll bring you anything
Thanks Coach ! gonna RE practice this workout in my routine
Very nice tip. ...Gonna definitely make a couple of adjustments and give this exercise another try.
That' so helpful!! I had no idea i wasn't doing it correctly! Thank you!
Great I just did this in my home and it worked out so well for me.💪🏼
Awesome!
That may help my lower back!!! I will def watch my lower back during this squat... thx
You're welcome!
Props to Christina for holding that squat as long as she did, just watching made my legs burn.
Great video, I've been struggling to get these right for some time and I always wondered why my inactive leg always had more of a burn in it then the one I was squatting with.
Great information . . . Thanks!
Dang it, I've been doing it wrong all along! I have one hamstring that is underdeveloped, & I never saw any growth. This is probably the reason why. Thanks for this video it really helps. ☺️
This is not a great exercise to target the hamstrings, the glutes and quads are primarily dominant in this movement. The hamstrings are active and will work but this is not a hamstring dominant movement.
Did these today after squats. That's a tight stretch on the quads when the front foot is closer to the bench.
Awesome demonstration!! thank you for sharing!!
I usually just do normal squats and i tried these for the first time yesterday. My butt cheeks are so sore, its like my first time working out type of sore. I cant even sit down without being in pain!
Same here. Stopped doing them for a while in favor of my new vertical leg press, did 4 x 12 yesterday and I feel like someone beat my glutes with a baseball bat!
This was so helpful, thank you!
I always wondered why this exercise hurt me! Thanks for correcting my bad form!
I was curious about when the hip dips during these during lunges,. Is a hip dip due to lack of strength?
Is a hip dip something that should ALWAYS be avoided, like having a rounded back...its a no no. Is a hip dip during lunges always a no no?
Thanks for making the video for us !
I hate this exercise because I feel my back leg burning. I'm gonna try this adjustment tomorrow. Thanks!
This was super helpful!! Thank U!! 💞 Will share it on Facebook right away!! 💪🏼🤓
Don't put the back foot so high, and you'll have no problem. The back leg for the squat is to high. Use a chair so you can hold yourself straight. I never have a problem. The back leg, should be at half the height it is in the video. Try it for the Bulgarian Squats, and you'll see I am right.
Why did you cut away at 1:50. Your video would have been more informative if you had shown the actual correction of the error.
I suppose her legs were already going through hell by then. Good point though
I concur
She got a bit closer to the bench to get a greater bend in the back leg and to allow both her legs to be closer together.
You really needed to see her move 8 inches toward the bench? 🤦♂️
The video didn't even show her take her shoes off. I had to watch another video to work out how to do that
This is f great. I’ve been doing it wrong all along
wow that is great to know! I have been doing them incorrectly for a year! lol
Is there a rule of thumb for measuring how far, for example, your heel should be from bench?
When you are and the low position of the movement, you want where your ancle bends to be close to the edge of the bench
I love these videos it has helped with my form. Can you do a video on kettle bell swings because I see people doing it different ways.
Already made one, check it out here
ua-cam.com/video/DPrU323pamQ/v-deo.html
what a beautiful explanation. thank you for emphasizing the distance from the bench, and its effect on the lower back (this is something I was neglecting)
My pleasure, thanks for watching!
Great video...I stopped doing this exercise because I was getting lower back pain....now I know why!...thx
I'm glad this was helpful! Hopefully you can add these back in and avoid that back pain...it is a GREAT exercise when performed correctly!
Great video. I'd been wondering why my back leg and foot were hurting constantly during bulgarians. I was doing the exact position at the start. Thanks!
Best explanation on this topic
Black belt technique 👌
Very helpful thanks! This is a great way to build quads at home or at least maintain size and strength for experienced lifters who weigh a lot. ;-)
does it make A difference if your foot is flat on the bench or your toe?
Thanks for the excellent videos!!
Yes, the toe up on the bench pulls a lot more on the hip flexors, and leads to more anterior pelvic tilt, as well as puts a lot of hyper extension force onto your big toe. I always teach it with shoe laces on the bench
thank you!
Thanks for asking this. i had the same question
Super duper question I wanted to know as well.
Brockway Babe actually it depends entirely on the height of the bench you're using
I struggled with the balance of going "toe down" for months , until I dropped the rear foot to about 6 inches and went toes up,at which point all the balance issues I had disappeared
It's subjective to the individual,I have very long toes and short legs, toe down really hurt my rear leg and messed up my balance
You just made this a quad dominant movement. You have to take a wider step and a slight forward lean for qlute activation.....people don’t just use single leg movements for quads.
It is a split squat, any squat pattern is going to work quads and glutes. The slight hinge at the hip along with the deep range of motion into hip flexion will provide extensive glute activation and eccentric loading. 90% of people performing this movement will "feel it" in their glutes the next day 10x more than their quads. But if you are performing a complex multi-joint squat movement, bilateral or unilateral, and you're thinking about whether you're using it for glutes or quads, you're already doing it wrong
Physical threapists treat hernia with spine extension, I don't think it is a bad thing. We extend our lower back for stabilization, it wouldn't cause a problem unless we overextended our lower back against weight, and as long as we keep our lower back motionless during a split squat there is no extension against resistance. The problem would be flexion, rounding the back while doing the movement. And that becomes a problem when the front leg is close. As soon as there is resistance in our hands lower back tends to take over since we can't drive our hips back. That makes it harder to keep the knee behind toes too since it is a straight up and down movement like smith machine squats. Front leg a bit out in front fixes those problems. And it really doesn't make the back leg do any more work unless your hip flexors are already tight.
if i need a exercise for the glutes activation and feel it o the glutes next day...that will be lunges backwards ...less presure on lower back and knees
Can you please explain it with any scientific backing...isn't bending front risky to the spine and won't wider step throw extra pressure on the resting leg as well??
AshMo Do some do. I use this specifically as one of my quad isolation movements to help build quad strength along with front squats and leg extensions.
Nice video. Congrats for the lady.
these videos are SO helpful, thank you!!
Thank YOU for your support!
Useful, thank you!
fantastic video thanks coach
No wonder my back leg would be killing me while the front one isn’t a bad, my position was off. Thanks
Such a common mistake, glad I was able to help you fix your technique!
Awesome video 👍💪
Do. Not. Agree. Tuck your tummy in to avoid the arch.
You get more glute activation with wider stancer.
Omg 😱. You have just saved me.
Buena compadre, excelente explicación!. Toma tu búlgaro like!😁
Gyms are closed. I only have a set of adjustable dumbbells at home to work with. So I can't load up my legs with barbell back squats or deadlifts. I have resort to the bulgarian split squat to get the proper amount of load per leg. Thank you.
I do a deep squat and my back leg never looks like that. I have a straight line back to leg. I like the deeper squat because I can target the whole leg.
You should be able to get very deep in the squat position, deep enough to touch your rear knee to the floor. Having the back leg straight will not allow that depth without creating compensation at the pelvis and lumbar spine, hence the demonstration here with the rear knee bent.
Thank you so much for correcting me! I had been doing it all wrong all these years! Regards!
Very helpful. These always felt awkward to me when performing and now I know I was positioned way too far from the bench. Cheers!
@Coach PJ Nester.. was just looking things up about form. I did this exercise, probably wrong. Day after my knee was swollen, had a bad knee popping while i stretched it (outerside) and on top of that my hip snaps too. (Kneecap was slightly blue) The Snapping and popping doesn’t hurt. I wonder what could cause this due to performing this exercise? I’m worried i torn something in the leg 😫 Does this sound familiar to someone here? Thanks
Now i know why my back been hurtin 🤣
Same I’m in so much pain right now 😂
malik gilmore 🤣 smh my back has not hurt since ive been doing it correctly now haha
Very good video, thanks!
It'd be great if you put side by side videos.
Thank you!
Many thanks.
Thanks
Back leg/foot elevated too high, yielding unnecessary stress on the lumbar and thoracic spine regions. 2" to 4" off the surface for the back leg/foot will suffice.
That all depends on the intended depth of the movement. Traditional Bulgarian split squats are done at approximately 18" (which is the height of the bench). But you can certainly do them on a 12", 6", or even 4" platform, or even on bands attached higher. There is no "right" height for elevating the rear leg...prescription all depends on targeted adaptation
Coach PJ Nestler, increased pressure on the spine and unnecessary. Hey, it's your posterior. The Bulgarian who invented this recommends no higher than the height of a plate lying on its side, roughly 2". Overkill and a back injury forthcoming. No need to stress your back any further than it has to be. 2" is the correct height, anymore is foolish and asinine. 🤒😷🤕. So, there's varations of depth, too? SMH. You're that guy in the gym that performs half squats. LMFAO@u, pretender. 👎
@@youarerightboss 100% correct.. I was always taught a REAL Bulgarian Split Squat only had the back leg up only about 2-3in on the BALL of the back foot and the front knee can be over the toes BUT the front heel can be up- so weight on the forefoot and arms up- weight up overhead or on shoulders looking more like a true split.. all the way down .. but most people don’t have this flexibility ..These in the video are just one legged squats with the back leg up too high in my opinion...more for dancers or ice skaters
@@CoachPJNestler www.google.com/amp/s/physicalculturestudy.com/2017/05/08/the-history-of-the-bulgarian-split-squat/amp/
@@charissetenewitz1008, much obliged for your attention to detail (fabricating the finer distinctions in life). The anterior receives most of the attention, though. Don't neglect your posterior chain(glute ham machine, squats, deadlifts, hamstring curls). 😉
the bench is too high for a starting position with a straight back leg forcing your model into an anterior pelvic tilt with excessive hip extension. you eventually correct this by starting with the back leg bent/knee facing or preferably on the ground
Very helpful!
Back leg gets cartilage damage... Thanks PJ
So 90 degrees 90 degrees each leg
Should my knee go over the middle of my foot? Or should my knees go over my toes. Cuz I love putting my knees over my toes.
Super helpful
Should we push off from our heels while the other leg is used for balance?
Don't push off the heel, your weight should be centered through the middle of the front foot. The cue I give my athletes is called a tripod foot, meaning you have 43 points of contact- the base of the big toe, base of the little toe, and heel. This makes sure you are getting full foot integration and your weight is properly centered through the midfoot for ideal mechanics
I haaaaaaaate these so much :(
Should i be driving through my heel or the ball?
shouldnt the front knee more or less stay stationary? even in the "correct" way, her knee is shooting forward. AthleanX made a video on the BSS where he demonstrated the movement with a stationary knee. even if his knee did move, it was only a slight jut forward
Looks like the difference isn't due to her knee moving forward on the way down, but rather it moving backwards on the way up instead of keeping it relatively stationary and placing more emphasis on hip extension.
I have been told to do these to strengthen the glutes as I have an injury to the groin and my quads are much stronger than my glutes. Therefore the abductors are suffering when I run. Should I have my front foot more forward and lean forward more to avert the c shape in the lower back.?
Absolutely, with the front foot more forward and hinging at the hips (forward lean) you can engage the glutes more and take some of the stress of the quads. The quads will still be heavily involved in this movement tho
Thanks - also when doing these exercises I get a pain in the knee of the leg resting. Its just temporarily whilst squatting but does force me to stop. What causes this, please? COuld it be tight hip joints or flexors pilling up on the ligaments or tissue on the knees?
I think you're way overthinking this exercise. A lot of what you find as faults are also good exercises like stretching the hip flexors. That's a good thing. In fact, a little variation makes this a better all around exercise such as moving your front foot forward in order to concentrate on the glutes instead of the quads. If you feel "pain" in your lower back then adjust your posture or don't stand so upright. Even a biceps curl has variations in grip position and using unbalanced dumbbells to supinate the forearm better and develop the arms more fully.
Nice tip...thanks
Avoid locking your knee when coming up
My only concern with this "safer" version of the BSS is that the front knee might feel a lot of stress when it goes to far over the toes. Thoughts?
If performing properly the knees should not go over the toes, it should track over the shoelaces/midfoot. This is the ideal position for any lower body push/squat pattern movement generally speaking. There are certainly slightly different stances for different goals, but as a general rule the knee over the shoe laces is how I teach them
Andrew W - I have heard very recent research that it doesn’t matter if the knees go a bit over the toes, provided the knees and toes track in the same direction.....
@@kecrn4132 Here’s what I have found:
1. If you are “light” this may not matter (not as much stress on the knee)
2. If you don’t have any muscle imbalance issues, this may not matter ie: you don’t have overdevelopment or underdevelopment in any muscles supporting the knee- this is rare.
3. You have no alignment issues with your normal gait: this is also rare. Most people run and do all kinds of exercises without realizing that for instance their hips might be off 6mm which causes a slight turning in of the one knee which also then stresses the ankle etc all the way up and down the chain. While imperceptible even to most sports physicians and PTs, this is why, let’s say, you “ran all your life no problem” and now in your 40’s you are suddenly having hip, knee, ankle, or plantar fasciitis issues and the docs are calling it “arthritis.” It’s as n alignment issue that while your growth hormone was high and you fixed the damage you were doing daily each night, as you get older those injuries compound...(this happened to me - the bursal sack was pulling off the bone because of the misalignment which was caused when I broke my metatarsal which hurt my third arch which further dropped my hip ... and instead of hip surgery, a brilliant doctor (my third opinion) told me to get an insert for my shoe, gave me a hypodermic of cortisone, and rest- thsnk god I didn’t need surgery to re-attach..
So... in theory, if everything is “perfect,” then going a little past the toes shouldn’t matter, but
WHY risk it???
4. A REAL Bulgarian Split Squat only had the back leg up on the toe ON THE FLOOR and the front knee is WAY over the toes BUT the front heel is up- so on the forefoot and weight up overhead.. looking more like a split.. These in the video are just one legged squats with the back leg up too high in my opinion...
Thanks for sharing! 💪🏼
I thought some weight should be put on the back leg to work the vastus lateralis
Omg thank you always felt like I was doing it wrong