Why We do Squatober

Every October, we change the rules a little bit.

For most of the year, our programming at Perform24 is designed to be balanced. We want to get stronger, move well, build capacity, stay healthy, and create a training program that complements everything else we want to do in life.

And then October rolls around.

And we squat.

A lot.

This October will be my seventh consecutive year participating in Squatober. I started in 2020, when I decided to jump all the way in and actually vlog the entire month. Since then, I’ve completed every rep of every Squatober program.

Along the way, I’ve squatted a lifetime PR of 425 pounds. Our staff has embraced it. More and more P24 members have joined us. And we've coached athletes and members through Squatober to numbers significantly heavier than anything I've personally put on the bar.

At this point, it's become a Perform24 tradition.

But there’s a reasonable question worth asking:

Why?

Because Squatober looks very different from the way we normally train.

What is Squatober?

Squatober is a month-long strength program written by Aaron Ausmus and released one day at a time throughout October.

And Ausmus (known as “AA” or “Double A” isn't just some guy on Instagram who likes squatting.

He's a former NCAA Division I national champion in the shot put at the University of Tennessee who went on to work in strength and conditioning at Tennessee, Ole Miss, Idaho and USC. His career has put him around some of the best athletes, coaches and strength programs in the country.

Squatober grew out of that strength and conditioning world and has turned into a massive annual training event.

Every day, the next workout drops.

You squat frequently. You train hard. Volume and intensity fluctuate throughout the month. And eventually, the program builds toward the opportunity to put some weight on the bar and see what you've got.

It is most definitely a specialty program.

And that's exactly why we like it.

This Isn't How We Normally Train

This is probably the most important thing to understand about why Perform24 participates in Squatober.

We would not program Squatober year-round.

Our normal training has to account for a much bigger picture.

Strength. Power. Conditioning. Movement quality. Recovery. Training history. Individual goals. Injuries. Life outside the gym.

Squatober intentionally narrows that focus.

For a short period of time, we're going to put a giant spotlight on one particular movement and one particular physical quality.

We're going to squat.

We're going to squat often.

And we're going to try to get really freaking strong at it.

That's specialization.

There are times when narrowing your focus can create an opportunity for progress that a more generalized program can't provide. Personally, I think the squat is one of the only movements that is worth pursuing in such a specialized phase.

You just shouldn't live there forever.

But you can visit :)

Specialty Programs Give Us a Chance to Learn

There's another reason I've continued doing this for seven years:

I learn something every single time.

I've spent my career writing training programs. Our coaches spend an enormous amount of time thinking about exercise selection, volume, intensity, progression and how all of those variables fit together.

But coaches need coaches, too.

For one month, we're following someone else's program.

AA will inevitably prescribe combinations, loading schemes, volumes or progressions that are different from what I would have written myself.

Sometimes I know exactly where he's going.

Sometimes I don't.

Sometimes a workout shows up and I wonder what in the world he's thinking.

And then we do it.

That's valuable.

It exposes our staff to another respected coach's methodology. It gives us an opportunity to experience different ideas rather than simply read about them.

And every year, we come out of October having learned something.

You Get Really Good at Squatting

There's also something beautifully simple about frequency.

If you want to get better at a skill, practice it.

During a normal training cycle, we have a finite amount of time and a lot of different qualities we're trying to develop.

During Squatober, the squat gets a disproportionate amount of attention.

That means more opportunities to feel your setup.

More opportunities to understand bracing.

More opportunities to find your positions.

More opportunities to get comfortable with weight on your back.

More opportunities for our coaches to watch you move and make adjustments.

Over the course of an entire month, those reps add up.

I've experienced that personally through seven years of Squatober and a lifetime best squat of 425 pounds.

We've also watched members and athletes inside Perform24 put up numbers well beyond that.

But the number on the bar isn't the only measure of progress.

Sometimes the biggest win is simply becoming a much better squatter.

And Then There's the Community

This might be the part that's grown on me the most.

Squatober is hard.

But doing something hard alongside other people changes the experience completely.

Everyone gets the workout.

Everyone sees the percentages.

Everyone starts doing the math.

Everyone wonders why Sir Aaron Ausmus hates us.

And then we get to work.

Our coaches are doing it.

Our members are doing it.

We're spotting each other, coaching each other, loading plates, celebrating PRs and occasionally questioning our life choices together.

There's an energy in the gym during Squatober that's difficult to replicate.

We're all chasing the same thing at the same time.

And that's fun.

Training is something we hope our members do for the rest of their lives. Not every training phase needs a gimmick or a competition attached to it.

But every once in a while?

It's okay to make training an event.

October is one of those times for us.

Want to Do Squatober With Us?

This year, any Perform24 member who wants to participate can join us.

If you're already an Unlimited member, you don't need to do anything differently. Squatober is included. Show up, grab a rack, and let's go.

If you're not currently on Unlimited, we're offering a special October-only Squatober Add-On.

The add-on will allow you to train every day throughout October so you can follow the complete Squatober program alongside our staff and the rest of the P24 community. The Squatober Add-On also includes P24 Restore. You may find yourself in need of a sauna and a cold plunge.

We'll coach you through the lifts, help manage your percentages, make adjustments when appropriate, and bring plenty of heat along the way.

Start With Squatting 101

Before October begins, we're also hosting a:

Squatting 101 Seminar
Friday, September 25
12:00 PM at Perform24

We'll break down the squat, coach technique, answer questions and help participating members establish a current 1-Rep Max.

That number matters.

Squatober uses percentages of your max throughout the program, so having an accurate starting number allows us to prescribe your training loads appropriately once October begins.

If you're newer to squatting, this is a great opportunity to learn.

If you've been squatting for years, it's an opportunity to clean things up and establish where you currently stand.

Then October 1st...

We squat.

I've done every rep of this program since 2020.

I'm not stopping now.

Let's see what happens in Year Seven.