A couple of weeks ago while scrolling Instagram I stumbled upon a post by Nsima Inyang (@nsimainyang; a great follow BTW!) He was at Lake Berryessa going Ommmmmmmmmmm with his eyes closed at peace atop of a rock during a #10MinuteSquat. That was my motivation for boosting my squat hold to 10 Minutes…well half of it.

During this month of 10K Steps All Day, Every Day outside of that primary focus of physical maintenance I want to get my legs back in the game. Not just squatting heavy loads or deadlifting double my weights like avid powerlifter; that’s all and good times ahead. Before the gyms are re-opened, I’m taking this time to truly dissect my lower body issues and what can I do to turn those nagging weaknesses into strengths.

Hence why the 10 Minute Squat Challenge came into play. Listening to Nsima explain the benefits of just holding a deep squat for 10 minutes while he’s performing it had me hooked, lined, and eager to give this a shot. Even with my history of leg issues and weaknesses, my first attempt was 3 minutes; and I was STRUGGLING. Feeling my knees crackle, blood scurrying up my calves, and my feet in an uncomfortable position had me cursing and grunting until the buzzer sounded. My physical state was weak but not as low as my mental questioning if I truly can accomplish this task.

That humbling moment sealed my commitment to get better.

3 Minutes turned into 4. My legs suddenly molded into a more comfortable state of stillness as the time slowly increased. Five minutes…six minutes…SEVEN?!? Noticing that my stiff knees were breaking down like boulders dropping from the mountain top. Lower back pain diminishing and my core building some resistance. Eight minutes: CONQUERED. Today I will be putting 9 minutes on the clock for the first time and I have a feeling it will be a building success.

Benefits for squat holding for minutes of the day are outside of being able to get DEEP into your squat at the weight rack. Mobility out of those stiff ankles, hips, and knees is a massive positive. That stiff lower back pain of yours also gets a beneficial lift out of your spine. There’s also cardiovascular benefit with the ability to crawl, jog, run, sprint, or walk as a collective unit with less inflammation and more muscles working as one.

There’s more information about how squatting can change your life from this Men’s Health article by Michael Easter. SPOILER: You’re going to be uncomfortable. I recommend taking a similar route I’ve done and start small (3-4 minutes) and build yourself up for the 10-minute round. A welcomed edition to my mobility and stability regime during COVID-19 training of sorts. Now if you excuse me I got a 9-minute squat to conquer.

10K Steps All Day, Every Day Update: It’s Day 17 and 16 Days of 10,000+ steps are in the books. In actually the last 2 days I’ve gotten into the 13,000 range which is crazy! So much for recovery days…anywho, onward to the weekend! Stay Weird, Show Love, Do The Work, and Live Ya Life!

“If you can do a squat and a pushup, you can build up to becoming a fitness guru.”

–John Morrison

1-on-1 Personal Training available NOW at The Well! 💪🏾