The Implementation and Manipulation of Squatting

Statement of Need/Background

Throughout the years in the program, I felt fortune to have had a personal training background because I was able to use that experience to understand the implementation and execution of various exercises in the therapeutic context (namely for musculoskeletal issues). However, I learned that several of my peers did not have such a background, or even experience with exercise in their personal lives. Over many conversations, I came to understand that while many of these classmates gained insight from the “big picture” topics and concepts taught during the curriculum, they still desired to have been taught some sorts of concrete examples of exercises. To address this gap for future classes, I wanted to use this capstone project as an opportunity to create an educational VoiceThread about the squat and its variations, so that 1^st year students in the Exercise Prescription course can use it as optional learning material.

Squatting is a very commonly utilized and widely applicable exercise in the PT and performance realm. However, it is often prescribed without direct intent and/or without attention to the implications that can result when its accompanying variables are not accounted for. In simple terms, if a patient is dealing with a lower extremity musculoskeletal concern, squatting is often used as a default, uniform exercise with little thought behind its implementation. I aimed to use this presentation to serve as a resource for better understanding the reasons for using this exercise, and how and why one could manipulate it.

Purpose

The purpose of this capstone project is essentially explained above. As this topic is not part of or related to required course content in the program, I wanted to leave it as supplementary material that was not a requirement. Another reason for this same decision is that while I predict that many students could benefit from this presentation, there are some that already have a background in training and exercise prescription. Hence, such students may not benefit from this resource being mandatory material.

Product

The resultant product from this capstone project is a VoiceThread presentation named “The Implementation and Manipulation of Squatting.” This presentation is intended for first year DPT students, however, may be beneficial for any DPT student or licensed PT as needed.

• Presentation Link: https://voicethread.com/share/22616708/

Evaluation

To evaluate this presentation, I formed a pre- and post-presentation quiz to evaluate how well my teaching of the material was conveyed to the students. I attempted to make these quizzes a short as possible to promote student participation. Moreover, the post-test includes a section for students to provide any feedback that they may have. Due to time constraints, I was unable to deliver this presentation to first-year students and collect data. However, I will continue to monitor these forms as data becomes available.

• Pre-Test:
  • https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeWxZl64WQGbRs_wj8mV-gYfBAh8Pv6zrizz01n73QH51GbNA/viewform?vc=0&c=0&w=1&flr=0
• Post-Test:
  • https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdxlq91eQLjPm1BfsWd0KPjAGW9qSRwPwsV77r6zoX0xtvrPA/viewform?vc=0&c=0&w=1&flr=0

Additionally, I attempted to make the VoiceThread as engaging as possible. This included placing as little information as needed on the slides themselves, while still conveying the important delivery points. I attempted to use graphics and charts when appropriate to assist in this delivery. Moreover, I created videos for several different pieces of content, with voice-over explanations.

Self-Reflection

Although I had not undertaken a project of this size previously, I very much enjoyed creating this presentation. I have learned so much about squatting over the years from personal experience, but this capstone presented me with an opportunity to actually look at the literature behind this movement. On this journey, I learned about several pieces of new content, and was challenged to let go of previously-believed notions and biases that did not align with the evidence that I found. Both of these factors continued to grow my motivation to keep working and digging further along the way. At times, as with any type of work, it felt like an assignment that I had to complete. However, I was pleasantly surprised with how much I desired to research and think about this presentation during my personal time as opposed to doing non-school activities, as it brought out the same amount of passion that those other activities could have produced. As I will soon transition into the “real world,” this was a reassuring discovery as I believe that I will continue to be self-motivated to be passionate about examining research pertinent to the field that I work in even though I will no longer be required to do so for school.

Acknowledgements

I want to give a huge thank you to my advisor, Bria Dunn, and my committee members, Jon Hacke and Josh Torrey! These individuals provided me with excellent feedback, assistance, and their generous time along the way, all of which helped make this presentation what it was. They deserve equally as much credit as I do for its completion!