Positive Shin Angle But Never With Squats?

What is the angle of the shin when one lands with good mechanics on one foot? On two feet?

What is the angle of the shin when one uses proper acceleration mechanics?

What is the angle of the shin with skipping?

What is the angle of the shin in the "athletic stance" or "ready position" for many sports? Batting stance? Getting low on defense?

Doesn't effective ground-based force production require a coordinated effort using the foot, ankle, knee and hip?

Shouldn't the squat mechanics we teach support teaching a coordinated effort of the entire lower extremity, not just focus on the heel and the hip? The forefoot, midfoot, ankle and knee are also important parts of the equation. Center of pressure on the foot is dynamic, not static. Shouldn't the athlete learn to feel this? Isn't this a part of being balanced? Can we really reduce squat mechanics to the heel and the hip, when so much else of athletic movement calls for a positive shin angle and integration of the ankle, knee and foot in basically the opposite manner?

Comments

Anonymous said…
How much of the emphasis on heels and hips do you think constitutes verbal cues, not necessarily strictly 100% accurate? Especially with beginners or CF people?
6:28 AM
Tracy Fober said…
I couldn't say how much, but certainly, there are those that don't optimize the use of the hips and the feet with squatting. But I don't think this has anything with "activating" hip extensors vs knee extensors. I think it has more to do with lack of hip mobility, ankle mobility and movement experience in general.
7:26 AM
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