Bulgarian split squats are quite common exercises and for this reason they are included in most workouts aimed at strength training and toning the buttocks and lower body.
Although they need a good stamina, they are quite simple in execution and this leads many people to approach them with little attention.
The risk when doing so, however, is that of making mistakes that could jeopardize its effectiveness or, in the worst cases, lead to accidents or injuries.
or a support surface behind you and your legs shoulder width apart.
This is why swaying from side to side is a common mistake, especially when fatigue begins to make itself felt.
Your body should only move forward, backward, and up and down during this exercise, but if you don't have sufficient stability in the lower part, your knees and hips can buckle and lurch to the side. pain or injury because they overload the joints in an excessive and wrong way.
Here's how to protect your knees while doing squats.
How to correct it: Slow down each repetition and make sure that the foot, ankle, knee, hip and spine are facing in the same direction during the exercise. A good way to check for correct posture is to stand in front of a mirror while doing the exercise.
Don't focus on a specific goal
The Bulgarian split squat can work different lower body muscles such as quadriceps, hamstrings and glutes, but depending on how it is performed it targets one in particular. In fact, by changing the position of the front foot, efforts can be directed to specific areas.
A common mistake is not to decide which side to focus attention on, but in doing so it is very difficult to get the most out of this movement and progress towards the goals you have set for yourself.
How to correct it: choose a goal and pursue it. To sculpt the hamstrings and glutes, position yourself further away from the bench press, press your heel with each repetition, and lean forward slightly.
For a focus on the quads, instead, get closer to the bench.
Lean on the back leg
Another reason why Bulgarian split squats are so complicated is that doing them works one leg at a time. While not considered a true one-sided exercise, such as single leg deadlifts, the back leg should provide just a little extra balance and not be burdened with excessive weight.
If this happens, the front leg, which should carry the heaviest weight, does not get the expected benefit of the exercise.
Furthermore, relying too much on the rear knee can be dangerous for the corresponding knee because during the execution of this exercise it is not in a safe position to support a lot of weight.
How to correct it: Instead of leaning on your back leg, bring the weight slightly forward before starting. This removes some of the pressure on the corresponding foot. If you are working with dumbbells in your hand, drop your weight forward or keep a chair nearby to help keep your balance.
Only perform one variant
In addition to the basic version, the Bulgarian split squat includes several modifications which, when incorporated into the training routine, allow you to get the most out of this exercise.
In addition to changing the position of the foot, there are many other possible ones, although the one that involves the additional use of a dumbbell in each hand is almost always performed.
This variation allows for greater balance and more intense strength training, but does not challenge lower body and core stability as much as other alternatives. If you just do this, then, you might miss out on some strength-building benefits.
How to fix it: think of alternative ideas to modify the basic version of the Bulgarian split squat. Instead of always using two dumbbells, for example, try to hold only one on one side, in order to shift the load to different muscles.
Alternatively, the individual dumbbells can be replaced with the use of a barbell. This option reduces the demand for stability but forces the supporting leg to exert more effort and, consequently, trains its strength more.
Finally, you can also do this exercise using kettlebells.
Alternatively, shrimp squats can be performed.
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