What the hell is a goblet squat?:
A Goblet Squat is a key lower body movement for us here at Elais Sports Performance. It is an anteriorly loaded bilateral knee dominant resistance exercise typically performed with a dumbbell or kettlebell. If you prefer english, it’s a lower body exercise where you hold a weight right against your chest, and while keeping your feet flat on the ground, bend your knees as much as you can with your chest staying upright before you return to standing. Here at Elias Sports Performance, we use the goblet squat for every population we work with, although some populations use it for different reasons.
(Start and bottom position of the Goblet Squat. The weight I’m holding is definitely like 200lbs….)
Why Even Care About Goblet Squats?:
In our adult program we use the goblet squat as a strength movement. Goblet Squats primarily target the quadriceps and glutes. These are two very large muscle groups that play a huge role in our lives and strengthening them helps us improve the ability to walk, run, jump, and get up and down. Since the muscle groups are very large, the goblet squat can also be used as a conditioning exercise, however that’s not the main purpose with the movement.
Goblet squats are also a very safe movement to load due to where the weight is placed. The weight is placed either right against the chest, or a couple inches away from the chest. This forces some of the smaller muscles of the arm to become a limiting factor. If your arms aren’t strong enough to hold the weight, then you simply have to use a lighter load or else you risk being the awkward person in the gym who drops a weight on their toe. The anterior load also forces you to have to brace through your core. This is more of a reflexive action and not something you need to be overly conscious of.
How Athletes Use It:
While the Goblet Squat can be a phenomenal tool for building lower body strength, we use it just a tad differently for our athletes. While some of the younger athletes may use the Goblet Squat as a lower body strength, we primarily use it as a teaching tool. Due to the weight being in front of the body, the athlete learns to self organize under load. Essentially they get really really good at not face planting into the ground when they hold something heavy and move around. This teaching tool allows us to set up athletes for success later on in the program when we move them onto the heavier barbells.
Am I Doing This Right?:
Well first things first here if you are feeling any pain while doing the movement, then talk to a coach! I don’t care if the pain is in an unrelated area, go tell a coach. If you have to debate if something is causing you pain just go tell the coach about it anyway. We’re here to help and unfortunately are unable to read minds just yet.
For some extra ideas about what to think about while lifting, I’ve enlisted some help from Coach Mike and Coach Anastasia to list off a few of their favorite coaching cues so you have something to focus on aside from why does CJ always play Ska music during the class
Coach Mike Says:
- Head and chest upright
- Feet about shoulder width apart
- Push the ground away with your legs as you come up
- Please come run with me
Coach Anastasia Say
s:
- Hips back
- Sit back
- Chest Up
- Come to the To Learn To Lift class so you can use the heaviest weights!
(Click here to learn more about our coaches and their expertise!)
Final Thoughts!
Goblet Squats are a great exercise that can be used by just about anyone! They can make you strong, and are safe to load up nice and heavy. They also lay a real solid foundation for more advanced lower body training down the line as we progress through your strength and conditioning program here at Elias Sports Performance. If you ever have any questions about the goblet squat, ask your coach during your next session!! We’re here to help!
More Reading!!:
If you want to nerd out a bit more on Goblet Squats check out this article from the British Journal of Sports Medicine! Click Here!
Or for more on Squats in general, check this article out from the Strength and Conditioning Journal