Do squats every day for good health

By Erin Mellinger, Fitness Together Fairlawn and Medina

Squats should be a part of your fitness routine every day. When done properly, squats have many benefits that we may not realize.

When most people think of the reasons to squat, they are likely thinking of building leg muscles or toning the legs. Squats not only strengthen your legs, they prime the whole body to get stronger. Many researchers credit squatting regularly for boosting testosterone, which helps build lean muscle mass and improve fitness gains for your whole body.

Squatting regularly also builds healthy bones and joints and improves your flexibility. As we age, our tendons and ligaments become less elastic and our bone density decreases. Squatting will keep your bones and joints strong and improve your joint health and flexibility by working through those ranges of motion in your hips, knees and ankles on a regular basis. Adding resistance to those joints while working them causes them to adapt and get stronger, so it’s not only muscle that you’re strengthening when you squat.

Squatting is a great move to include in your exercise routine. Along with the benefits already mentioned, it improves your balance and your circulation, burns calories and does wonders for countering the effects of sitting too long. It is an ideal exercise for people with office jobs who spend most of their day in front of a computer. It’s an easy exercise that you might even be able to squeeze a few reps of into your lunch break.

If you haven’t done squats for exercise in a long time or you’re unsure if your form is proper, it’s a great idea to see a personal trainer at Fitness Together. We’ll support you with proper form and we’ll assist you in progressing in the strength, stability and depth of your squats.

Fitness Together is located within the Medina Signature Square Shopping Center at 3725 Medina Road, Suite #106, in Medina. The Fairlawn location is at 2890 Sand Run Parkway, Suite B. Call 330-550-9839 for more information on either location. Visit FTResults.com to see testimonials from Fitness Together clients.