NASM Overhead Squat Assessment: How to Perform & Memorize

Overhead Squat Assessment – Introduction

What is the Overhead Squat Assessment?

The Overhead Squat test is a dynamic postural assessment that helps you identify muscular imbalances.

How to Perform the Overhead Squat Assessment

To perform the Overhead Squat Assessment, you or your subject will:

stand with the feet hip-width apart, and
feet pointing straight ahead
both arms raised straight above your head, testing upper-body alignment and shoulder mobility, then
squat to the depth level of a chair’s height,
while maintaining the same alignment

There are common compensations that you might see during this movement, for example, movement dysfunctions, such as:

excessive forward lean of the upper body
lower back arch
arms falling forward
feet turning outwards, or
knees caving inward (knee valgus)

How to Perform the PVC Overhead Squat Test for Mobility|Stability

Overhead Squat Assessment and Your Brain

The Overhead Squat Assessment (OSA) will tell you how well your brain controls your muscles.

You are not only looking at the mechanical system of the muscles, but you are also observing how well the neuromuscular system is functioning.

Through the OSA, you can see which muscles are in an overactive state, and which are in a weakened, underactive state.

Keep this fascinating idea in mind, and you will have a much better understanding of the OHS assessment.

An accurate Overhead Squat Assessment will reveal how you can make your muscles work better through mechanical principles to get stronger and function more efficiently.

Overactive (tight) muscles work too much
Underactive (weak) muscles work too little.

Classic Hip Flexor Imbalance

For example, a classic imbalance of excessive forward lean arises from chronic sitting.

Try it out yourself.

Do a few repetitions of an overhead bodyweight squat as described above.

There is a good chance that you might experience an excessive forward lean.

In this compensation, your hip flexors are one of the overactive muscle groups as the hip flexors are comprised of your rectus femoris (quadriceps), psoas, and TFL (Tensor Fasciae Latae).

Hip Flexor Muscles – TFL, Rectus Femoris, Psoas

nasm overhead squat assessment hip flexor muscles Credit Wikipedia — NASM overhead squat assessment hip flexor muscles – Credit Wikipedia

And if your hip flexors are tight and overactive, you know that your glutes are underactive because you sit for too many hours in the day.

When you sit, your hips are flexed, which causes overactivation of your hip flexors and a corresponding underactivation of your gluteal muscles.

Gluteal muscles – Gluteus Maximus, Medius & Minimus

nasm overhead squat assessment Image Credit StudyBlue — Image Credit StudyBlue

The solution will be to stretch and relax your overactive hip flexors and strengthen your underactive glutes, thereby improving your functional fitness and ability to squat.

Whether you are a personal trainer or not, the overhead squat assessment will help you understand how you can help yourself or a client improve functional fitness.

Five Common Overhead Squat Assessment Movement Compensations

During the Overhead Squat Assessment, you may see five common movement compensations:

1. Excessive Forward Lean

Your upper body leans forward excessively during the squat.

In this compensation, the

gastrocnemius,
abdominal complex,
soleus, and
hip flexors are overactive,

While the

anterior tibialis,
gluteus maximus,
and erector spinae are underactive.

2. Lower Back Arch

Your lower back arches excessively during the squat.

The

hip flexors,
erector spinae, and latissimus dorsi are overactive,

While the

gluteus maximus,
hamstring complex, and
intrinsic core stabilizers are underactive.

3. Arms Fall Forward

Your arms fall forward instead of remaining overhead during the squat.

The

latissimus dorsi,
teres major, and
pectoralis major/minor are overactive,

While the

middle and lower trapezius,
rhomboids, and rotator cuff are underactive.

4. Feet Turn Out

Your feet turn outward during the squat.

The

soleus,
biceps femoris short head, and
lateral gastrocnemius are overactive,

While the

medial gastrocnemius,
medial hamstring complex, gracilis, sartorius, and popliteus are underactive.

5. Knees Move Inward

Your knees move inward toward each other during the squat.

The

vastus lateralis,
biceps femoris short head, adductor complex, and TFL are overactive,

While the vastus medialis oblique, gluteus medius, and gluteus maximus are underactive.

Corrective Strategies for Excessive Forward Lean

The following corrective strategies are based on findings from the Overhead Squat Assessment (OSA), which identifies movement compensations such as the excessive forward lean movement compensation pattern:

Self-Myofascial Release (SMR) for Calves and Quads

Since the gastrocnemius, soleus, and hip flexor muscles are tight, do a self-myofascial release (SMR) foam roll of the calves and quads.

Complete Lower Body Foam Roller Routine in Under 5 Minutes!

The reason that you foam roll the quads is that the hip flexor complex includes the rectus femoris, one of the heads of the quadriceps, as well as the psoas and TFL (Tensor Fasciae Latae).

How and why you should use a foam roller

Static Stretching for calves and quads

Static stretching your calf muscles – lateral, medial gastrocnemius, and soleus

Kneeling Hip Flexor Stretch

The kneeling hip flexor stretch is an excellent tool in your arsenal because, more likely than not, you have tight hip flexors.

If you spend many hours a day sitting either for work, commuting, or watching TV, your hip flexors are constantly engaged.

As a result, your hip flexors become tight, shortened, and overactive.

The hip flexor stretch will help to lengthen your tight hip flexors.

Never underestimate the power of simple stretches to help resolve back pain or any other type of muscular joint pain you have in your body.

Even better, do SMR and static stretches to prevent you from ever suffering from joint or muscular pain!

Strengthening Exercises for EFL

Here are the sample strengthening exercises for the excessive forward lean compensation, which indicates weak, lengthened, and underactive anterior tibialis, gluteus maximus, and erector spinae muscles.

Quadruped Arm Opposite Leg Raise – Bird Dog

How to do the quadruped arm opposite leg raise

Ball Wall Squat

Stability ball wall squat

Solutions Table

Short, tight, overactive muscles mean that there is too much stimulation of these muscles by your central nervous system.

Overstimulation of these muscles results in altered reciprocal inhibition of the antagonist muscles.

For example, overactive hip flexors, a common postural pattern distortion caused by excessive sitting, result in a weak, lengthened, and underactive gluteus maximus.

A weak gluteus maximus will reduce your ability to produce the muscular force in any exercises that require hip extension, such as the squat and deadlift, two of the greatest compound exercises.

These weak muscles must be strengthened while the overactive muscles need to relax to calm down.

Here are several examples:

For tight soleus and gastrocnemius, as in the excessive forward lean and feet turning out compensations, use:

Self-myofascial release for the calves and
static gastrocnemius stretch

Or, for tight hip flexors, as in the excessive forward lean and low back arch compensations, use:

SMR (self-myofascial release) for the quadriceps
Static kneeling hip flexor stretch

In the anterior view of the OSA, overactive biceps femoris short head, as in the feet turn out and knees move inward, compensations can use:

SMR for the biceps femoris short head, and
static supine biceps femoris short head stretch

Overhead Squat Assessment – Wrapping Up

Why is the overhead squat assessment one of the most important movement assessments for you to know?

First, it is a valuable tool to enable any fitness enthusiast to improve coordination, function, and core strength.

Because when there are muscle imbalances, they affect the neural communication between your brain and your muscles and hinder your ability to generate maximum force.

And for fitness professionals, the OHS assessment builds credibility.

Therefore, there are many benefits to knowing and remembering the Overhead Squat Assessment solutions table.

Here are a few:

You will immediately understand any outstanding postural dysfunctions
Identify the overactive (tight) and underactive (weak) muscles through the overhead squat assessment
As a result, you will know how to design a program to correct muscle imbalances and prevent injury
This program design will help your muscles work more efficiently and get stronger
Make greater progress in your fitness goals; for example, as a result of tight hip flexors, you might not be making the gains in the squat you want.
Or because of weak hamstrings, you might be experiencing the same lack of progress in your deadlift.
If you are a PT, it helps to establish your authority and competence as a personal trainer and fitness professional.
If you are not, and want to be, you have a better chance of passing the NASM exam if you memorize the OHS assessment solutions table

For this reason, the Overhead Squat Assessment (OHSA) plays a pivotal role in passing your NASM certification exam.

Believe it or not, the NASM (National Academy of Sports Medicine) exam for certification as a personal trainer devotes up to 20 percent of its test questions to the Overhead Squat Assessment.

So, if you are taking the NASM CPT exam, how can you remember the muscles and compensations?

How to Memorize the Overhead Squat Assessment

A formidable challenge for any NASM CPT candidate is to remember the Overhead Squat Assessment solutions table.

The reason is that the OHSA solutions table includes:

Two views, lateral and anterior
Four checkpoints are part of the kinetic chain
LPHC – lumbar pelvic hip complex
Upper body
Feet
Knees
Five common movement compensations
Excessive forward lean
Lower back arch
Arms fall forward
Feet turn out
Knees move inward
Plus 34 overactive and underactive muscles
and the corrective exercises to relax the overactive muscles and strengthen the underactive muscles

That is a lot of information to remember!

But if you do, not only do you have a better chance of passing the NASM exam, but in addition, you will remember valuable information to help yourself and others immediately.

NASM OHSA Solutions Table

overhead squat assessment solutions table Credit NASM Essentials of Fitness 6th edition — Overhead squat assessment solutions table, p. 196 – *NASM Essentials of Personal Fitness Training, 7th edition*

My NASM OHSA Mnemonic

Are you facing a significant obstacle in learning the Overhead Squat Assessment solutions table?

And remember it?

Well, you are in the right place.

Here is my mnemonic device, which will help you memorize all of the overactive and underactive muscles.

You can create your own imaginary story, of course, or feel free to use my fable of overworked elves at the North Pole.

It is tried and tested and helped me pass the NASM CPT on the first attempt.

So I know it works!

Overhead squat assessment Elf Mnemonic – Image Credit Elf Movie (New Line Cinema)

Lateral View

You get an invitation to visit Santa’s workshop at the North Pole.

As you enter the workshop…

Excessive Forward Lean Compensation

Looking from the side (Lateral View):

You see an:

ELF (which stands for Excessive Forward Lean compensation), with a

GASH (Gastrocnemius, Abdominal Complex [ rectus abdominis and external oblique ], Soleus, Hip Flexors – overactive muscles) across his hips; he is at least at the

AGE (Anterior Tibialis, Gluteus Maximus, Erector Spinae (underactive muscles) of 1000,

So, visualize an Elf who is 1000 years old with a Gash from Santa across his hips for not working fast enough.

Lower Back Arch Compensation

This ELF’s name is:

Larry B. Archy (Lower Back Arch compensation), is sick and tired of working for Santa, to the point that he feels like he is living in

HELL (Hip Flexors, Erector Spinae, Latissimus Dorsi (tight and overactive muscles).

Larry B. Archy is holding a large bottle of Ghee, but thinks;

GHI (Gluteus maximus, Hamstring complex, Intrinsic core stabilizers such as;

transverse abdominis,
multifidus,
transversospinalis,
internal obliques,
pelvic floor muscles (weak and underactive muscles).

intrinsic core stabilizer abdominal muscles Image Credit anatomyinfo.com — Intrinsic core stabilizer abdominal muscles Image Credit anatomyinfo.com

Arms Fall Forward Compensation

So, out of tremendous frustration, Larry B. Archy screams out;

AFF (Arms Fall Forward compensation)!

I cannot take this anymore!

I am so tired of my lazy boss Santa telling me what to do, and asking always, is it done yet?

Are the other elves that I am responsible for managing finished?

Did you feed the reindeer?

AFF!

And Larry makes both arms fall forward in exasperation.

Larry exclaims to all of the other elves, ” Let’s start a revolution!

It is time for a work stoppage!”

So, Let’s sTop Production LTP (Latissimus Dorsi, Teres Major, Pectoralis Major/Minor (overactive muscles)) in Santa’s factory; we have had enough!

And instead of working for Santa, we immediately need some R and R – MRR (Middle and Lower Trapezius, Rhomboids, Rotator Cuff (underactive muscles).

Anterior View

So Larry B. Archy quits Santa’s workshop and takes a vacation to Antigua beach (Anterior View).

Feet Turn Out Compensation

At the beach, while he is sitting under the umbrella, Larry sees his own feet turn out (External Rotation compensation) to the sides.

And as an Elf, he knows that means he is hungry and has to order his favorite Sandwich of Bacon and lettuce SBL (Soleus, Biceps Femoris Short Head, Lateral Gastrocnemius (overactive muscles).

I am sure you know that Elves do not eat tomatoes or eggplant- nothing from the nightshade family- only SBL.

Larry is so happy with his SBL that he made the right choice to bolt from Santa’s workshop to the beach. What a sandwich, and he shouts out:

“MMm Good, So tart and popular! MMGSP (Medial Gastrocnemius, Medial Hamstring Complex, Gracilis, Sartorius, Popliteus (underactive muscles).”

Knees Move Inward Compensation

After his delicious sandwich for lunch, Larry lies down on the beach, still in his Elf clothes, but he sees that his knees are exposed because the patches came off, and his knees move inward (compensation) towards each other.

Larry’s knees flap inwards and outwards like a Virtual Bat VBAT (Vastus Lateralis, Biceps Femoris Short Head, Adductor Complex, TFL (overactive, tight muscles).

And finally, he sighs in happiness, Very More Only Good VMOG, which is how elves say very good. I made the right decision to revolt and flee Santa’s workshop; how Very More Only Good! VMOG (Vastus Medialis Oblique, Gluteus Medius, and Maximus (underactive muscles).

What’s Next

The squat is a foundational movement to improve your health.

Learn how to Do Squats Properly With Or Without Weights and use this Beginner Squat Workout Routine to increase your functional strength and mobility.

Overhead Squat Assessment: How to Perform & Pass NASM

Overhead Squat Assessment – Introduction