Good form is important to avoid injury when doing squats, especially with added weight. Stand with feet slightly wider than your hips and pull your shoulders down and back. Brace your abdominal muscles to help stabilize your spine. Shift your hips down and back and slowly bend your knees, keeping your back flat. Stop when your thighs are parallel with the floor or your heels begin to lift off the floor. Your knees should be aligned over your toes. Maintain this position as you exhale, push your feet into the floor and return to standing. Your hips and torso should rise together and your knees should stay aligned over your toes until you straighten your legs. If you're an exercise beginner, practice squats without any weight resistance first, then slowly increase added weight over time. Do squats whenever you do resistance training -- aim to do them at least two or three times a week, but only do strength training every other day at most to give your muscles a day to recover. According to MayoClinic.com, one set of 12 to 15 squats is adequate for most people
