When will I be able to do the Kangaroo squat

... or what do I need to be able to do, to achieve the ultimate Restorative Exercise (TM) squat

There are different ways to squat but on the of the holy grails of The Wholebody Aligment course is a squat with vertical shins and a neutral spine, just like a Kanagroo (that's why I call it the Kangaroo squat). Saves the knees and lower back and opens the hips fully, stretches the backside etc...

As you can see the shins are lovely and vertical and the spine is in Kangaroo neutral. Now, the human spine is not curved like a Kanagroo's, so to achieve the same squat with neutral human spine, we will have to keep the neutral curves of the spine and an overall more or less straight line between pelvis and neck. So, what does the human vertical shine/neutral spine squat look like?

Vertical Shin and neutral spine - arms reaching foward to help balance

Now, I can't do this squat, so I thought I will try and find out what I will have to be able to do to achieve goal of all goals. I have two problems with this squat, firstly I can't open my hips enough to keep neutral spine and vertical shins or on the other hand, if I keep my spine neutral I can't balance and fall on my behind. So I measured the length of my body parts and drew my bits and the angles I will have to be able to achieve and compared them to "normal" range of motion of the knee and hip joints.

My body part length:

Head: 24 cm

Neck: 10 cm

Arms: 66 cm

Thigh: 42 cm

Calf: 46 cm

Foot: 20 cm

Torso: 50 cm

The percentages, show how much of my body weight is in front and how much is behind the shins to be able to balance the amount of weight in front and behind the shin needs to be the same, otherwise I'll fall backwards. See my last blog entry for further details.

Now, with 153 deg knee flexion I need to be able to achieve 195 deg hip flexion to be able to keep my spine in neutral. So my thighs are not only lined up with my torso, but the torso is forward of the thighs, to keep my balance. My question is, can I achieve 195 deg hip flexion? I found values for normal hip flexion on the web (see sources below) and the highest hip flexion observed in general population is 141 deg. And may I just say, that this is not a 30 year old desk bound person, but babies of the ages of 0 - 2 years. With maximum "normal" range of hip flexion and neutral spine, my squat looks like this:

As you will be able to see, there is no way you can keep yourself from falling backwards. So is it possible to increase the hip flexion to more? I suppose, a ballerina may be able to achieve 180 deg e.g. by bringing her extended leg to the ear and keeping the spine neutral. But to be able to do the squat with neutral spine, I will need to flex the hip even further to 195 deg. Sounds, like it will be very unlikely for me to be ever able to do this.

This example is based on my body part measurements and the hip flexion I need to achieve. If you are looking at different body types, you can see how this may influence the ability to squat. Say, you were Mister Incredible. His centre of gravity is way in his chest as he carries all his weight in the muscles around there. His legs are also very short. So he will not have to achieve the same hip flexion as me.

His hip flexion has to be less as his upper body is counter blancing the lower body and his thighs are a lot shorter. So if you are this body shape, your changes are a lot higher to be able to achieve the Kangaroo squat badge. You can see this in small toddlers. If they squat they are able to keep there shins vertical and spine in neutral, because their legs are short in comparision to the upper body and their head is huge and a great counter-balance. Over the age of 2ish this ability seems to disappear as body proportions change. 

If you are a more normal pear or apple shape and you carry your weight around the middle of your body, you'll look more like this:

And as you can see, the chances of you winning the kangaroo squat badge are very low.

So what is the best way to squat, if the holy grail is out of reach. 

1. You can bring your knees forward over your toes and keep a neutral spine. This moves the centre of gravity forward over the feet and stops you from falling over. This does however put more pressure on your knees.

2. You can stand on your mat with heels raised and toes on the floor. Again this moves the centre of gravity forward and stops you from falling over. This protects the knees a little better than option one but will put more pressure on your forefoot.

3. You can flex your spine and keep shins vertical. This will protect your knees but puts a lot of pressure on your lower back.

Now all of the above options have some downside. Choose the one that puts pressure on areas of your body that aren't shot already. I prefer to bring my knees forward as my knees are still ok but my lower back is not.

There is however one last option and I love this the best. It won't help you getting into or out of a full squat but when you are there, squat like the kanagroo and use some support under your backside. The kanagroo evolved a strong tail, but since this will take me too long, I am using a block or beanbag once I am in the squat position as a support, to keep both my shins vertical and the spine neutral.

Good luck with your squatting!!

Normal range of motion:

http://www.dshs.wa.gov/pdf/ms/forms/13_585a.pdf

Normal joint range of motion (ROM):

http://pjroxburgh.tripod.com/new_page_5.htm

What is range of motion?

http://osteoarthritis.about.com/od/osteoarthritisdiagnosis/a/range_of_motion.htm

Range of Joint Motion by Lloyd L. Laubach:

http://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19790003569_1979003569.pdf

Normal Joint Range of Motion Study:

http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/jointrom/