Your hip flexors shorten and lengthen in an overhead squat. The same is true for your hips, hamstrings and quadriceps. Some of the muscles stretch on the way down, others on the way up. Your hip flexors contribute to both the up and down action as well as the position of your thighs during this movement. Consult a health-care practitioner before beginning any strength-training program.
Overhead Squat Set-Up
The overhead squat was first used by weightlifters to help them rise out of the bottom of the snatch -- one of the two competitive Olympic lifts. To perform the overhead squat, trainers stick their arms straight out to the sides, then bend the arms so the forearms are pointing straight up at the ceiling. They they grip the bar, set it in the squat rack just below the level of the shoulders and then step under the bar with head and knees bent. They grip the bar appropriately with their palms facing forward, and straighten the legs to lift the bar out of the rack.
Overhead Squat Performance
Weight trainers will take a small step back with each foot and stand with the feet under the hips, toes turned slightly out. With the knees slightly bent, they straighten explosively, using the drive to push the bar overhead. They catch the bar at arm's length overhead, rotate the elbows slightly and pull the bar apart with their hands, as if trying to bend the bar forward. This creates tension in the upper back and helps maintain bar position. They arch their back so the bar is in line with the back of the head. The bar should stay in line with the hips and either heels or the middle of the foot throughout the lift, regardless of the position of the head. They squat as low as they can, until their hamstrings touch their calves without relaxing in the bottom. At the bottom, the bar will actually be slightly behind the head. They stand up by driving the shoulders back as the knees and hips straighten.
Hip Flexors
Your hip flexors consist of three muscles -- the psoas major, psoas minor and iliacus muscles, collectively known as the iliopsoas muscle group. These are the primary flexors of your hip, and act to pull your femur -- the large bone of your thigh -- up toward your chest. They connect your pelvis to your thigh, and they shorten as you descend, and lengthen as you stand up. These muscles get an assist from the rectus femoris and the sartorius, both of which are located on the front of your thigh but attach to your pelvis. These muscles lengthen on the way down and contract on the way up -- acting to pull your thigh straight.
Smaller Muscles
Your tensor fasciae latae, pectineus, adductor longus, adductor brevis and gracilis all assist as hip flexors. Your tensor fasciae latae is located under your gluteus maximus, and stretches as you descend but shortens as you stand up to pull your femur back into line with your spine. Your pectineus, adductor longus, adductor brevis and gracilis are all located inside your thighs, and work to keep your legs from moving in and out while squatting. These muscles lengthen on the way down, and shorten on the way up.
References
- "The Weightlifting Encyclopedia"; Arthur Drechsler; 1998
- "Strength Training Anatomy"; Frederic Delavier; 2010
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