“Squeeze your butt” is one of the most common cues in aerial and mobility training, and it tells you almost nothing.
It doesn’t specify directionality of effort. Right now, sitting in a chair, I can squeeze my glutes isometrically and it will do absolutely nothing for hip extension. Or I can contract them concentrically to actively move into greater range in a backbend. One changes the joint angle. The other provides stability. Same muscle, completely different job—and the cue doesn’t tell you which one you’re supposed to be doing.
It also doesn’t specify percentage of effort. Do you need maximal contraction, or just enough to stabilize? This matters more than people realize. Maximal effort usually means co-contracting other muscles to generate that level of force—which limits your degrees of freedom. From a skill acquisition standpoint, that’s a problem. Fewer degrees of freedom means fewer options. You get locked into a position instead of having the range and adaptability the skill actually requires.
“Squeeze your glutes” doesn’t clarify any of this. So the coach means one thing, the student hears another, and everyone in the room is technically using the same words while talking about completely different things.
So I have a beef with this cue. Let’s just ditch it, ok? 👍
p.s. Don’t get me started on “squeeze your anus.” Iykyk.
#aerial #aerialist #mobility #flexibility
It doesn’t specify directionality of effort. Right now, sitting in a chair, I can squeeze my glutes isometrically and it will do absolutely nothing for hip extension. Or I can contract them concentrically to actively move into greater range in a backbend. One changes the joint angle. The other provides stability. Same muscle, completely different job—and the cue doesn’t tell you which one you’re supposed to be doing.
It also doesn’t specify percentage of effort. Do you need maximal contraction, or just enough to stabilize? This matters more than people realize. Maximal effort usually means co-contracting other muscles to generate that level of force—which limits your degrees of freedom. From a skill acquisition standpoint, that’s a problem. Fewer degrees of freedom means fewer options. You get locked into a position instead of having the range and adaptability the skill actually requires.
“Squeeze your glutes” doesn’t clarify any of this. So the coach means one thing, the student hears another, and everyone in the room is technically using the same words while talking about completely different things.
So I have a beef with this cue. Let’s just ditch it, ok? 👍
p.s. Don’t get me started on “squeeze your anus.” Iykyk.
#aerial #aerialist #mobility #flexibility