Imagine...

You travel back tens of thousands of years into the past. From your comfortable couch and the artificial surroundings of your modern life, you suddenly find yourself at the campfire of a Stone Age community. Everyone is sitting completely relaxed in a deep crouch, gazing dreamily at the crackling fire - but you can't last 30 seconds in this position. You ask yourself: How can this be comfortable? But this posture is completely natural and even healthy for the human body. Because that's exactly what we were built for.

Back to the origins: Why our body loves squatting

What may seem surprising today was completely normal for our ancestors for thousands of years: they rested, worked, ate and defecated in a squatting position without a second thought. Over the course of evolution, our bodies have adapted perfectly to this posture - and you can still feel it today.

Human anatomy impressively demonstrates how well we are built for squatting. Joints, muscles and bone structure are perfectly adapted to this posture. In fact, studies of skeletal remains show that early hunter-gatherer populations, as well as farmers, have characteristic bone and joint adaptations that can be attributed to regular squatting (Dlamini & Morris, 2005).

Although we mostly sit on chairs today, the squatting posture is still deeply anchored in our biological DNA. This is precisely why many people initially find the deep squat unfamiliar, but after a short time it becomes surprisingly relaxing and beneficial.

Anatomy & health: scientific perspectives

But it's not just history that speaks in favour of squatting - science also impressively confirms its benefits. Studies confirm that squatting has demonstrably positive effects on joints, muscles and the cardiovascular system.

Biomechanical studies show, for example, that deep squatting significantly reduces the load on the knee joints (Pejhan et al., 2019). At the same time, this position optimises the alignment of the pelvis and spine: the lumbar spine adopts a more natural posture, which leads to less strain and tension in the back (Moon et al., 2021). In addition, the squat posture activates muscles such as the quadriceps, hamstrings and calf muscles (Escamilla, 2001; Raichlen et al., 2020).

Your cardiovascular system also benefits from regular squatting: research shows that heart rate and blood pressure change positively during squatting - for example, the heart rate is lowered while cardiac output improves at the same time (Scheen & Philips, 2012).

Science thus impressively confirms what our bodies have always known: the deep squat position is ideal for your health. But why have we stopped squatting?

From squatter to hipster - why have we stopped squatting?

Originally, the word ‘squatter’ referred to people who settled spontaneously and without official permission in uninhabited areas of what is now the USA. These early settlers went about their daily lives in the squatting position as a matter of course - they worked, rested and even went about their daily business in this way.

To this day, indigenous communities and many people in Asia, Africa and Latin America practise squatting intuitively and naturally. In contrast, in Western cultures we spend most of our lives sitting on chairs, armchairs or sofas. Why? Because chairs and armchairs have become status symbols of comfort and progress. The word ‘squatter’ is even a swearword in the USA today and is used as a synonym for house occupiers. But the price of this modern comfort is health disadvantages such as back problems, joint complaints and indigestion.

It is therefore worth refocussing on what has been good for our bodies for thousands of years. Because we all benefit from rediscovering old habits and integrating them into our modern lifestyle.

Squatting today

You don't have to make radical changes to your habits and lifestyle to reintegrate the benefits of the natural squatting position into your everyday life. Small, simple adjustments to your daily routine are often enough to feel the positive effects of squatting:

  1. Incorporate short squat breaks: Take opportunities in your everyday life to squat down briefly - for example, when tying your shoes, talking on the phone or during short breaks in your home office. Just a few minutes a day are enough to activate your muscles and joints and get your body used to this natural posture.
  2. Squatting instead of sitting: Try squatting while watching TV or talking on the phone. It may be unfamiliar at first, but you will notice that it is good for your body and your musculoskeletal system will become more flexible and stronger.
  3. Integrate targeted exercises: If you do yoga or sport, integrate squat exercises into your regular training. These strengthen your muscles, improve your flexibility and reduce joint stress at the same time.

Bad WC Hocker Sitzen vs. Squatten

The next step in making squatting easy to practise in the bathroom every day is to use a specially developed toilet stool such as the stuul®. This two-part, ergonomically shaped toilet stool automatically puts you in the optimum squatting position on the toilet.

Thanks to its flexible positioning options and the slightly forward-sloping tread surface, it adapts perfectly to your posture. The stuul® can be easily plugged together to save space and stored discreetly in the bathroom - whether next to the washbasin or on a bathroom shelf.

With the stuul®, squatting becomes a natural, pleasant habit again that integrates seamlessly into your modern everyday life. It's a simple way to combine tradition, health and stylish design - and benefit in the long term from the many health advantages of the natural squatting position.

Conclusion

Back to our roots! The squat position is deeply rooted in our DNA - it supports your body and actively contributes to your well-being. By consciously integrating squatting into your everyday life, you can enjoy health benefits and at the same time give your body what is naturally good for it.

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References:

  • A. B. Sriwarno, Y. Shimomura, K. Iwanaga, T. Katsuura (2008). The relation between the changes of postural achievement, lower limb muscle activities, and balance stability in three different deep-squatting postures. Journal of Physiological Anthropology
  • N. Gupta, Atul Kumar, Rajeev Kumar (2008). Does Position Affect Uroflowmetry Parameters in Women?. Urologia internationalis
  • Monica Mittal, S. Malik (1991). Biomechanical evaluation of lift postures in adult Koli female labourers. Ergonomics
  • M. Moon, Seong-Tae Kim, S. Shin, S. Jeon (2021). SQUAT POSTURE AND SPINOPELVIC PARAMETERS — RADIOGRAPHIC ASSESSMENT
  • S. Pejhan, H. Chong, L. Tennant, S. Acker (2019). A comparison of knee joint moments during high flexion squatting and kneeling postures in healthy individuals. Work
  • R. Escamilla (2001). Knee biomechanics of the dynamic squat exercise. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise
  • A. Scheen, J. Philips (2012). Squatting test: a dynamic postural manoeuvre to study baroreflex sensitivity. Clinical Autonomic Research
    N. Dlamini, A. Morris (2005). An investigation of the frequency of squatting facets in Later Stone Age foragers from South Africa
  • Rajal Savla, R. Mullerpatan, Bela M Agarwal, Victoria Kuttan, Sushil Kumar (2024). Influence of Physical Activity Including Squat Exposure on Trunk Muscle Strength and Labour Outcome in Pregnant Women. International Journal of Exercise Science
  • D. Raichlen, H. Pontzer, T. Zderic, J. Harris, A. Mabulla, and 2 more (2020). Sitting, squatting, and the evolutionary biology of human inactivity. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

 

 


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