We hear this a lot.  “I had some knee issues and my Doc told me just never to squat below parallel”  or after surgery they just said “don’t squat below parallel and I’d be fine”. Let’s just stop and think about that statement.  When you sit on a chair, pick something up off the ground, pull a weed, or squat to the toilet YOU ARE SQUATTING BELOW PARALLEL.  That is a necessary range of motion for most capable humans who want to live an active life.

 

From a training perspective, stopping a squat at parallel actually puts more compressive force on your knee than going through the full range of motion.

What should happen when there are knee issues or post knee surgery?  

 

We need to properly load and train both the tissues, joints, and range of motion to be able to progressively bear more load over time and live a full active life.  Yes, this needs to be done with caution and with appropriate dosing but it is 100% possible.  We have one of the strongest athletes in our gym who is post major knee surgery and he has ZERO issues squatting below parallel.

 

Reach out if you have questions or if you would like to regain full range of motion.  We can help!