WALL SITS

The wall sit exercise is a real quad burner, working the muscles in the front of your thighs. This exercise is generally used for building isometric strength and endurance in the quadriceps muscle group, glutes, and calves. The exercise is characterized by the two right angles formed by the body, one at the hips and one at the knees. The person wall sitting places their back against a wall with their feet shoulder-width apart and a little ways out from the wall. Then, keeping their back against the wall, they lower their hips until their knees form right angles. This is a very intense work out for the quadriceps muscles and it can be very painful to hold this position for extended periods. Walls are everywhere. Even in the deepest, darkest parts of the countryside there’ll be a few stones piled on top of one another to stop sheep roaming free and terrorizing the neighborhood. And yet most humans or sheep have likely never looked at a wall as the perfect piece of equipment to improve the strength and tone of their legs. That will all change, for humans at least, once they learn of the thigh-busting benefits of the wall sit. A wall sit is an isometric exercise involving muscle contraction while in a static position. Perform wall sits by standing in front of a wall with your feet shoulder-width apart. Press your back against the wall and lower yourself until your knees and hips are both at a right angle with your thighs parallel to the floor.

Wall sits are used as a primary strengthening exercise in many sports requiring strong quadriceps like fencing, ice hockey, sailing, skiing and track and field. This exercise is also used as a disciplinary activity in the armed forces. It takes up little space, and can be administered easily in classroom settings to misbehaving soldiers-in-training. The wall sit strengthens your lower body, especially your thighs, and improves stamina so you should be that little bit more sprightly at the end of your next long run. Sufferers of runner’s knee in particular could benefit from wall sits, as the strengthening effect they have your quad muscles can help prevent the condition. For those of you who are not familiar with the wall sit, this is an exercise done over a period of time rather than a specific amount of repetitions. The wall sit requires you to hold yourself in a seated position, for a certain amount of time, normally between 30 to 60 seconds. It predominantly works your glutes, quads, hamstrings …and your pain threshold. One of the rare sights in a gym is someone leaning on a wall with their feet firmly on the floor and knees held at 900 to the floor. These are called wall sits. Whenever someone spots me doing the squats, they normally think I am wasting my precious gym time. This exercise can be changed to match your fitness level to make it more accessible or to give yourself more of a workout. 19가이드03