The squat is one of the most common movements we train—and one of the most over-policed.
We’re often told exactly how it should look: where the feet go, what the knees should do, how the spine should behave. Those details can matter in certain contexts. But they’re not the whole story.
In today’s short exploration, I invite you to step away from how a squat is supposed to look and instead get curious about what happens when you play with the movement.
You’ll move through a few simple variations:
* pausing in the bottom of the squat
* letting the arms travel through space
* imagining different shapes in front of you and allowing your spine to respond
There’s no single right way to do this. The goal isn’t to find a better shape—it’s to notice how your weight shifts, how your feet relate to the floor, and how movement travels through your body when you give it a little freedom.
Understanding specific shapes is useful when you need them—like lifting something heavy. But much of life asks us to move in ways that are less rigid and more adaptable.
This kind of exploration is about the journey, not the endpoint.
Try the video, then take a moment afterward to notice what changed—if anything. And if something surprised you, that’s usually a good place to stay curious a little longer.
As always, I’d love to hear what you noticed.If you’d like a simple, repeatable way to build strength without overthinking form, you can download the Simple Strength Training Template here.
