Why would you want to do (unweighted, “air”) squats? Because properly done, they are a fantastic, functional exercise that keeps you strong and flexible, and done in larger numbers even provide a cardiovascular workout. What the hell is an air squat? Here’s a video [warning: loud music]. If you spend a lot of time doing cardio, or if your entire exercise regime consists of lots of biking or walking, you likely have very weak hamstrings. Eventually, you’ll wind up with a seriously flat ass, and you won’t be able to get out or sit in a cushy chair without using your arms. If you’re doing any kind of squatting now and you’re not getting below parallel, you’re using only your quads and not your posterior chain (ahem).
If you’re still not sold on squats, I’m done selling. If you find them useful and fun, here’s how to build a bunch into your day: take little bites. Before you know it, you will be up into three digit numbers.
I went through a phase of using 100-150 air squats per day as my only workout. Initially, I would just do sets of 20 scattered throughout the day until I got up to 120. Now I prefer to have a set amount of time devoted, so I’ve taken to using an interval timer set for some number of 1 minute intervals, usually 10. The timer beeps, and I knock out 10-15 squats and then rest until the timer beeps again. Currently I’m using this as a “cash out” once a week or so. I wouldn’t hesitate to use a whole bunch of squats as my entire workout if I were pressed for time or stuck somewhere with zero equipment.
There are iPhone interval timers available, but I personally rely on the Gym Boss.
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