3 Common Squatting Errors in Young Athletes

Let's help our young athletes squat better and perform better!

Everyone goes through a growth spurt at some point. It is inevitable and growing is a good thing! However, technique and form with tasks like a squat can change during this growth spurt. This is not uncommon, but it is important that we go back to the basics and ensure proper technique when this does occur.

Not everyone will experience changes in their technique, but it is something I see A LOT in my physical therapy practice working with young athletes, especially those who are growing a lot very quickly. Often, I see them for physical therapy once they start experiencing things like knee pain and squat form is one of the first things I will address.

However, what if we worked on technique and ensured our athletes are squatting with proper form BEFORE pain occurs or BEFORE an injury?!

Below are 3 of the most common errors in squat form that I see in the young athletes I work with.

1. Knees Fall Too Far in Front of the Toes

This is one of the most common alterations in squatting form I see in my young athletes. While knees moving in front of the toes isn’t necessarily a bad thing and is needed to perform movements necessary for sport or going down stairs, knees moving too far forward without the help of the hips or gluteal muscles can contribute to knee pain or other injuries. There is definitely a time and a place to work on strengthening muscles like the quadriceps and making sure our athletes are comfortable loading their knees in front of their toes, BUT we also need to make sure that they know how to squat using their hips and gluteal muscles.

2. Knees Collapse Inward

This is probably the second most common alteration I see in squatting form. Often with growth spurts, an adolescent’s sense of balance and where they are in space can be off and takes some time to catch up with the bones that just grew rapidly. Along with strength, this can sometimes contribute to the knees collapsing inward during a squat. When the knees collapse inward, it can place stress on the knees themselves and contribute to pain. From more of an injury prevention mindset, it can possibly predispose an athlete to unnecessary stress at the structures of the knee/hip such as the ligaments (ACL I’m talking about you) or the menisci.

3. Torso Falls Too Far Forward

In a squat we do expect the torso to move forward a little, but sometimes a young athlete will squat just by moving their torso forward. They will try to squat by just moving at their hips and not bending their knees. This could be because they are currently experiencing knee pain and trying to avoid loading the knees or could be because they lack necessary strength in their knees and hips. It could also just be because they grew a ton and need to remind their body of how to squat properly.

All of the things mentioned above can either occur by themselves or together. The great thing about working with young athletes is they can usually make changes to their squat form super quickly which means they often feel better quickly. Often we just need to remind their body of how to move and perform a squat properly. This is especially true if they already have the necessary strength and mobility required for a squat.

And…besides feeling better, squatting with proper form often means they perform better and faster. Who doesn’t want that?

Cheers to helping our young athletes feel great, perform great, and squat great!