Squats Can Help Build Your Upper Body – With Lee Labrada== FREE 12 WEEK PHYSIQUE TRANSFORMATION PROGRAM :http://www.labrada.com/12weekleanbody Click here to view all protein supplements from Labrada – http://www.labrada.com/store/cat/protein Please feel free to ask any questions you may have regarding Fitness or Nutrition and I will be happy to try and answer them. Here’s where you can ask.. http://www.labrada.com/asklee Today’s “Ask Lee”, comes from Antonio Mattos — Portugal QUESTION: Mr Labrada, thank you for your wonderful website, I’ve read many articles on your blog each week, it’s very helpful. I do not like to squat much but I read it can also help grow muscle on my whole body. I don’t understand how this can be, is it true? Kind Regards Antonio ANSWER: Hi Antonio. Squats performed with the correct form, are the best lower body exercise in the book. They tax every muscle in your legs. In fact, before the invention of leg presses and other leg training machines, we saw incredible leg development created with nothing squats. Squats CAN add muscle to your entire body. That’s because squats activate numerous other muscle groups. Let’s take a look. First, your core—all of the muscles of the midsection, both front and back- receives some of the most intense training possible when squatting. Your core is partly responsible for maintaining the upright posture needed when squatting with proper form. That’s because your core is the “connection” between the two halves of your body. It also assists to a great degree in stabilizing the bar’s load across your back. Squatting is also extremely taxing on your back muscles. When squatting, the load is transferred from the bar to your legs through your upper body and the main load bearing/ stabilizing muscles in your back are the erector muscles. Your erector muscles are largely responsible for keeping you upright when you perform the squat. They also help stabilize the bar sitting across the top of your back. The squat really is a whole body exercise that employs almost all of the body’s muscle tissue to a varying degree. However, the benefits of the exercise aren’t limited to the sheer amount of muscle tissue that can be trained and developed. Studies consistently show us that heavy squats to failure or near failure cause the body to release testosterone and growth hormone. These are two of the most anabolic hormones in your body. What this means is you continue reaping the benefits of the squat through your other workouts, as heightened testosterone and growth hormone levels lead to increased muscle mass. So do I think the squat is beneficial to muscle growth over your entire body. Yes, I do. Unless you have a very good reason not to squat, I would suggest you incorporate it into your leg routine. One word of warning. Squats are taxing on your system. You can grow strong , powerful legs but only if your nutrition is optimal. I strongly suggest that you check out some of the videos I’ve done on nutrition and protein to get a good grasp on how you can ensure optimal recovery and trigger the all-important muscle protein synthesis. You’ll find those videos on Labrada.com. Hope this helps! I’m Lee Labrada, your Lean Body Coach. Stay Lean and Stay Strong! YOUR FREE WEEKLY LABRADA FITNESS NEWSLETTER AND 12 WEEK LEAN BODY TRANSFORMATION GUIDE AT: http://www.labrada.com/12weekleanbody FOLLOW US ON : ————————- LABRADA NUTRITION ON FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/LabradaNutrition LEANBODY FOR HER ON FACEBOOK http://www.facebook.com/leanbodyforher LABRADA NUTRITION ON INSTAGRAM http://instagram.com/labradanutrition LEANBODY FOR HER ON INSTAGRAM http://instagram.com/leanbodyforher# LABRADA NUTRITION ON TWITTER https://twitter.com/leelabrada LEAN BODY FOR HER ON TWITTER https://twitter.com/leanbody4her LABRADA NUTRITION ON GOOGLE + https://plus.google.com/106743917096914193849/ LABRADA ON PINTREST http://pinterest.com/leelabrada