Fast and Furious Fitness

Hindu squats are an explosive bodyweight movement that develop cat-like explosive strength in the legs, and the lower body, which cannot be duplicated with traditional “weight training” movements. The Hindu squat when done correctly, also emphasizes deep breathing, which gets the entire body “going”, so to speak. That makes this a perfect workout by itself (done for high repetitions), or a brisk and semi-tough warmup (done for moderately high repetitons, or in sets). Either way, it’s a great exercise, and one you NEED to include in your routine!

Without further ado, see below for how to perform the exercise. I’m going to include pictures and possible videos too at a later date, but for now, follow the instructions and that should do just fine.

1. Stand upright with feet about shoulder width apart. The toes should be slightly turned out, perhaps at 15-20% angle to the rest of your body, but this can be tweaked slightly based upon individual preference.

2. The back should be straight - this is important.

3. Hold your arms out in front of you. Breathe in, and descend (while exhaling strongly - important) with your arms behind your back, fingers pointing downwards (i.e. “drop” your butt down to the floor) until your thighs are about parallel to the floor, or, until your fingers hit the floor (your arms will gradually come to the side as you descend).

4. At this point, explode out of the squat, while breathing in deeply, and also swinging the arms upward to the starting position. That’s one rep.

5. Continue for consecutive reps. My own personal best thus far is 100 at one go, but some of you might do better. Some of you, on the other hand, might find 40 to be a great workout - it all depends on the individual, though on an average, if you can do 100 without stopping, or pausing only for a couple of deep breaths, your in good shape.

Notes (and these are important!):

1. BREATHE deeply throughout the entire movement!!! That can’t be emphasized ENOUGH - each breath should be a deep inhale, and each exhale should be a deep exhale, loud enough to heard.

2. At the beginning, it will be hard to do these consecutively beyond about 15 reps or so, therefore, proceed at your own pace. These are meant to be done fast, but in proper form. Do NOT, however, go at a snail’s pace where in you descend in full control - that is NOT how these squats are performed.

3. Ease into the exercise. There are many that decry this as a “bodyweight” only movement, and therefore declare it to be “easy”. Nothing could be farther from the truth. In many cases, a beginner will be unable to walk correctly for a couple of days, or maybe more if this exercise is “rushed” into. This exercise demands a lot out of you - your thighs are the target muscle, but the entire body is being affected. Therefore, again, proceed with caution, and at a pace you can tolerate.

Again, breathing is paramount - you need to breathe in and out correctly, and with EACH rep to reap the full benefits of this exercise. The breathing is out on the way down, and in on the way up.

There you have it - the Hindu squat. Do this exercise for a month or so, work up to a 100 consecutive reps with the correct breathing technique - and you’ll be in great shape, and more importantly, FEEL that way too!

Rahul