It's All about Progressions: A Template for Developing the Squat for Kids Ages 7 and Up
We are happy to feature this guest post contributed by Coach Earvin McKenzie, Director of Strength and Conditioning at Allen University. You can find him on Instagram at @earvin.mckenzie and on Facebook at facebook.com/earvin.mckenzie. You can email him at emckenzie@allenuniversity.edu. Please see his full bio below.
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One afternoon, I was watching my two-year-old nephew at the time, Solomon. He was running around the den like an average destructive two year old. Solomon was carrying his favorite legos, and the bully Uncle, me, slapped them out of his hands because one almost took my eye out. Solomon was standing and pretty upset with me at first, then he squatted down perfectly, picked up his LEGO's, smiled at me, and went right back to playing.
As a Certified Strength and Conditioning Coach, I was quickly impressed. I have neither taught him how to squat nor showed him the correct movement. He just squatted down on his own, feet hip-width apart, knees out. He descended his hips below parallel then stood up with a big smile because my frustration didn't bother him very long at all.
From that moment, I looked at how coaches who work with kids (ages seven and up) teach the squat movement differently. I became curious and started questioning myself. How can we develop young athletes better, quicker, and with more efficiency?
The Answer:
Kids already know how to squat as toddlers, so why are we teaching them something they already know how to do? We need to reinforce the fundamentals of the squatting movement with simple coaching cues and a motivational stimulus.
I used to teach the squat movement with a plyo stick, but I noticed how the kids were unmotivated with short attention spans. The learning process was boring and was even torturous for some of the kids. Therefore, I added a motivational stimulus. WEIGHT.
Kids are more intelligent than we think and always watch adults while hoping to live up to those same expectations. Therefore, I took out the plyo stick and added the Kettlebell (KB). We started with a light KB around 10 pounds. Again, kids already know how to squat; we coaches must give them simple coaching cues to perform the movement correctly.
KETTLEBELL PICK UP (KETTLEBELL SUMO DEADLIFT)
Setup
Feet: Stand with feet under with their shoulders. *align with shoulders
Eyes: Keep your eyes straight ahead
Chest: Chest straight ahead *pointing to my chest
Arms: Drop arms straight down and let them hang in front of you *like a frog
Grip Placement: Without bending over and bending arms, lead with your butt and sit down until your hands touch the KB
Upward Phase: Stand up tall with the KB while arms remain straight *Stand up like Superman
Reposition: Control the KB down while keeping your eyes straight and chest forward just as you started the movement
It was like watching a powerlifting competition with the kids trying to show how strong they were. They also enjoyed the training sessions without any disruptions.
Once the movement was perfect without any corrections for the next few weeks, I added another stimulus: Tempo on the way down (Eccentric) for a three count. After they mastered the tempo, we increased the weight on the KB. The results were incredible. The kids were engaged, their arousal was high, and they were all getting stronger.
Note: I tried teaching the squatting movement without weight to increase the mobility for the squat. However, kids want to lift weight just as much as athletes and want to be challenged in prescribed doses. With the KB Pick up, kids quickly gain the necessary mobility, self-confidence, and learning ability for more movements. The same setup for the KB Pick Up can also be used to teach the Romanian Deadlift (RDL). Therefore, you are killing two birds with one stone.
SECOND PROGRESSION: TEMPO WALL SQUAT WITH MEDICINE BALL (HANDS-FREE SQUAT)
I needed to keep the kids engaged while adding a new progression. It was time to try the squatting movement on air and continue to perfect the move. It was easy for the kids to understand the setup for squatting from the KB Pick up, which was the transition's primary purpose.
The Tempo Wall Squat setup is almost the same as the KB Pick Up.
TEMPO WALL SQUAT WITH MEDICINE BALL (HANDS-FREE SQUAT)
Setup
Feet: Stand with feet under with their shoulders. *Hip or shoulder width
Eyes: Keep your eyes straight ahead
Chest: Chest straight ahead
Hips: Hips are behind you *Bending at the hip joint
Knees: Knees slightly bent *Aligned over feet, no valgus/varus movement
Downward Phase: Lead with butt until butt touches medicine ball *Do not sit, TAP!
Upward Phase: Stand tall while keeping your eyes straight, arms forward, and chest forward just as you started the movement
This time, I immediately begin with a motivational stimulus, a Medicine Ball (MB). The MB is placed a few inches behind them as a target point for the butt to tap *not sit. We started with a tempo on the Wall Squat to reinforce the technique using a three-count down, tapping the MB, and standing tall.
Note: You will have athletes with hip shift issues and valgus/varus knees. For hip shift problems, you can elevate the heels with a five-pound plate. For knee valgus/varus issues, you can use a light mini-band placed two inches above the knees near the quadriceps while using your coaching cues to address either issue.
Once again, the kids were excited and executing the squatting movement very nicely. The parents were amazed and thanking me for my services. One parent mentioned his kid was squatting better than some of the professional athletes he has seen.
THIRD PROGRESSION: GOBLET SQUAT
After the kids mastered the squatting movement proficiently, it was time to develop their work capacity. The first two progressions: KB Pick Up and Tempo
Wall Squat set up the KB Goblet Squat. The KB Goblet Squat is a crucial developer for more complex movements such as the Front Squat and Back Squat. If you take a deeper look, you will find that posture, weight shifted, and vital fundamental movements already developed leading up to this point. As a result, the coach should simply incorporate a light-to-moderate KB at this point. For novice athletes, it is wise to start with a linear model with hypertrophy block.
GOBLET SQUAT
Setup
Feet: Stand with feet under with their shoulders. *Hip or shoulder width
Eyes: Keep your eyes straight ahead
Chest: Chest straight ahead
Hips: Hips are behind you *Bending at the hip joint
Knees: Knees slightly bent *Aligned over feet, no valgus/varus movement
KB or DB placement: Place the top of the DB or Bottom of the KB on your chest
Elbows: Raised parallel to the ground
Downward Phase: Lead with butt until thighs parallel to the ground
Upward Phase: Stand tall while keeping your eyes straight, arms forward, and chest forward just as you started the movement.
Note: It is wise for coaches to be patient and let the kids master the basics. If they do not master the basics, they will never master the most advanced movements. Coaches, please understand that you are dealing with kids; therefore, the language we speak to each other fellow coaches and body parts' terminology will be too complicated for kids to understand. For example, when placing the DB or KB for the Goblet Squat's Set Up, it will be wise to say, "Place the top of the dumbbell on your chest" instead of saying, "Place the top of the DB on your Sternum." Use your coaching eye to decide the load and rep ranges. The results will be in your favor as the Goblet Squat improves technique, core development, and even upper body stability.
The Results:
These three keys progressions (KB Pick Up, Tempo Wall Squat with Medicine Ball, and Goblet Squat) have shown significant improvements in the squatting movement pattern while developing the kids properly into more advanced movements.
Guest Contributor Coach Earvin McKenzie
Earvin McKenzie serves as the Director of Strength and Conditioning with the Allen University Yellow Jackets. He will oversee the Strength and Conditioning program for all 9 Varsity sports.
Earvin McKenzie joined the Yellow Jackets Athletic Staff after serving as the Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach for the University of Alabama-Birmingham (UAB) from 2016-2019 where he worked primarily with football. He was apart of the Strength and Conditioning Staff that revived a canceled football program to an 8-4 season and to the Second Bowl Berth (Bahamas Bowl) in School History. In 2018, he played a key role on the Strength and Conditioning Staff which led UAB to their First Conference (USA) Championship and First Bowl Win (Boca Raton) in School History with a 10-3 record. He also serves as an Instructor for the Kinesiology Department.
Prior to joining the UAB staff, McKenzie served as an intern for Southern Methodist University (SMU) in 2016. In 2015, McKenzie begun his Collegiate experience interning with Samford University.
McKenzie earned his Bachelor’s from Jacksonville State University (JSU), where he was a walk-on Running Back and received two Conference Champions (OVC). McKenzie also received his Master’s in Sports Management from JSU.
McKenzie is from Fairfield, Alabama, he is certified through the National Strength and Conditioning Association as a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS). He is also certified through USA Weightlifting level 1.
Mckenzie is a father of one, Emoni McKenzie.
