Way Crooked Squat! (was Unilateral training for weak side)

March 13, 2008

I appreciate the responses to my prior question. The suggestion that

made the most sense to me was to try unilateral exercises on both

sides evenly, working at the level of the weak side. My first

experiment with this revealed no strength imbalance in the overhead

press or lunges in the 8 to 12 rep range... not even one rep worth.

I went back to the mirror and observed my squat some more, with no

weight and light weight. Looking more carefully, I could see that

what I thought was a large difference in upper thigh size at the

bottom of the squat was instead one leg higher than the other. I went

home and got out my video analysis equipment and looked at an

unweighted squat - sure enough - my squat is very crooked.

What happens is this: things look symmetrical until I reach about

half-squat depth. Starting there, my left side begins to descend much

more rapidly than the right and also sticks out further to the rear.

By the time I get as low as I can without rounding my back - about

thighs parallel to the ground - the difference is very pronounced. If

I didn't work out alone, I'm sure someone would have noticed this a

while ago.

I experimented with trying to even it out. I could go from the half

squat to about the 3/4 squat position with much reduced imbalance, but

it was very difficult. It felt like I had to twist and really scrunch

up some of the muscles on the left side.

Any idea what to do about this? I was thinking I might be able to

perform lunges more symmetrically easier than I can force myself to

squat less crookedly, but don't know if it would help. Maybe light

squats with some kind of kinesthetic feedback, like a rubber band

around the top of the weak thigh, attached to the floor behind...

something for me to push into while I squat?

In case someone is wondering whether it might not really be a problem,

I am aware that it is not necessarily a good thing to try to impose a

normative model on the body. However, I have been having chronic

injury problems, mostly on my left side for some time, especially near

the groin and knee, along the medial aspect of the left leg. I have

been searching for the cause for some time. It seems unlikely that

this is a coincidence.

Thanks.

Wilbanks.

Wisconsin, USA

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