When i squat, i bring my feet a little wider than shoulder width, point my feet outwards, and go ATG.
Since i point my feet, im pretty sure that i am hitting the inside of my leg (adductor i think?) pretty hard. My question is, do i have to keep some sort of balance between my adductor and abductor (outside of my leg i think).
Are there any exercises i should do for my abductors?
Right now, my goals are to jump higher for basketball, but developing my abductors will aid in quickness and defense too.
Am i squatting wrong for my sport? SHould i change my stance or anything like that?
An interesting point I picked up from a strength coach once:
“an athlete isnt going to be setting his feet in the optimal, or even the same stance on the field so it only makes sense to use a variety of stances in the weight room”
I know some will bash saying the gym isnt a place for specialization but if different squat stances hit different muscles and your just trying to build overall strength in the gym…
Yes, you should develop adductors and abductors too. Plate drags (push a plate around on the floor with your foot), side lunges, and band walks (jumpstretch or iron woody bands wrapped around your lower thigh, walk around sideways) are my favorites.
[quote]JNeves wrote:
I know some will bash saying the gym isnt a place for specialization but if different squat stances hit different muscles and your just trying to build overall strength in the gym…[/quote]
Using different squat stances will work to some degree, but there’s more effective ways of developing adductors/abductors.
Good thought process behind the coach’s reasoning, though.
Sure, as long as they provide a decent amount of resistance. You may need to double loop them, choke them (basically form a little loop only on one side), etc to get the resistance right.
If the rubber band things you have don’t work out, though, you can also buy jumpstretch mini bands in singles or in pairs from elitefts.com or other sites. Only a few bucks and a great tool.