Hindu squats are a very popular exercise, and it has multiple benefits. It improves posture, core strength, and overall body conditioning. As you will learn here, all three of these areas are important because they relate to how our bodies function musically, mentally, and emotionally. As with most things, there have been some myths that surround squats.
Today we will look into precisely what they are, how they work, and whether they are dangerous or not. So if you are an upcoming bodybuilder and want to know in-depth about this pose, keep reading.
What are Hindu squats?
Hindu squats, also known as the military squat, is one of the most basic and common exercises used by weightlifters and fitness enthusiasts worldwide. Its origin is traced back to the time when the renowned Greek bodybuilder and gymnastrogonomist Pliskinistas came up with a way to implement weight training and stretching in a single exercise, which is still in practice today.
Although the squat has evolved into a much wider variation with many forms of exercise designed specifically for it, its fundamental concept remains unchanged. This is why there is such a demand for this exercise among athletes, sportsmen, and even couch potatoes.
They combine a high-intensity cardiovascular workout linked with an intense overload of lower body and core muscles. The purpose of doing this exercise is to force your body into positions where it must fight to stay afloat.
Not only are Hindu squats a great way to tone your butt and thighs, but they can also be used for increasing strength, improving balance, toning the entire body, and of course, fat loss. While performing these squats, you will find that you will grow leaner and more muscular. You will also notice that your metabolism will rise as well.
As you can see, there are many reasons to incorporate Hindu squat exercise into your exercise routine. So if you want to stay fit, stay toned, and get rid of fat, then these squats may be just what you have been looking for.
How to do a Hindu squat?
As with any exercise, it’s important to start with a warm-up and some sort of stretching exercise. Your body should be relatively loose, and you shouldn’t feel stiff throughout the exercise. Take your time to make sure that you’re using the most efficient exercise movement for your body.
To perform the Hindu squats, stand with your feet straight under your shoulders, width apart. In other words, you should be standing with your shoulders parallel to the ground.
Extend your hands right out before your chest.
Now you’re ready to squat. Keep your head and spine in line with your torso, and don’t allow your shoulders to dip down.
Next, while keeping your back straight, bend your knees and raise your rear end as high as you can. Keep your back straight, and don’t allow your chest to dip down.
As you take your heels off the ground, reach your hand behind you. If you cannot get them, it’s alright- just go as far as you can without stressing. This helps you keep your quadriceps working.
Hold the position for about three to five seconds and, on an exhale, return to the standing position.
At the same time, reduce your heels to the floor and raise your arms, extending them in front of your upper body so that you’re back in the beginning position. Start slow– repeat this several times.
While practicing this pose, it is essential to breathe in through the nose, out through the mouth, and then through the nose again. You want to hold this pose for three to five seconds before slowly releasing the tension and repeating it a couple of times.
The muscles involved in Hindu squats are the gluteus maximus, hamstrings, quadriceps, and hip flexors, so they repeatedly strengthen and tone the body.
What are the benefits of Hindu squats?
Improve your balance: The first benefit is to improve your balance. As the weight of your body is placed on your legs, you will experience a perfect balance, which will improve your coordination. Also, the stretch in your muscles that you will do will help you increase your flexibility, thus making you more efficient in moving your body both externally and internally. This is also beneficial to people with knee problems since they can now strengthen their muscles regularly without putting too much pressure on their knees.
Improve your body posture: The second benefit is to improve your body posture. This is so important as most of the activities we usually do these days involve sitting down or laying down. If you do a squat exercise, you will be required to bend your knees and then bend them again. Your knees should not be bent for too long, and you should move them in a smooth motion. It is also essential that you keep your back straight, and only your chest will be lifted when you do this exercise.
Strengthening Your Back: The lower back is a significant component of the spine. This is also called the lumbar region. It is the center of all body movement. By strengthening the lower back, you will be strengthening your entire upper body as well. And squatting is one of the best exercises for the lower back.
Strengthening Your Legs: Squats are very effective at strengthening your thighs. The quadriceps are the larger muscles of the legs. They move the knee up and down the back and through the arch of the foot. So you see why squats are so good at strengthening the leg muscles. They work the calves, hamstrings, quadriceps, and glutes.
Cardio Benefits: Another one of the main benefits is cardio. You will burn more calories when you perform squats because your heart is working harder. The extra workout you do gives your body an added boost of oxygen. This will help improve your endurance. You will find your stamina increases, and you will be able to run faster and farther. In fact, studies have shown that people who squat or deadlift five times a week gain an average of fifteen pounds.
Strengthening Your Legs: As you stretch your leg muscles from the sitting position to the standing position, you are stretching those muscles. The deep knee jerk squats that you do will work those leg muscles to their fullest potential. Not only will they strengthen them, but they will also stretch them out further than regular squats would. In fact, if you were to compare the benefits of Hindu squats to regular squats, you would see an incredible improvement in leg strength.
Strengthening your abdominal muscles: Another thing you will get from doing a squat is strengthening the abdominal muscles. You will feel it after you have finished the exercise. This is because the abdomen and the lower back muscles are used when you do the squat. These are two essential muscles with strong muscles as they support the other muscles in your body, like the legs, arms, and torso.
Increase your metabolism: One of the benefits of Hindu squats is that you increase your metabolism. The more weight you are carrying, the more energy you will need. Therefore, if you want to lose weight and gain muscle, then doing Hindu squats regularly will be very good for you. Your metabolism will also be increased because of the extra calories you are burning while you are squatting. This will help you to lose weight quickly and keep it off.
Increase the efficiency: The last benefit is to increase the efficiency of the movement. You will feel a difference after you have been doing a Hindu squat exercise for a few minutes. This is because your body will become leaner and more flexible. If you want to make the most of the exercise, you can try to focus on a specific area of your body that you think needs more work.
As you can see, there are many benefits of Hindu squats. These benefits help to ensure that you enjoy a more substantial body and greater overall health. If you want to strengthen and tone your body using exercise, you must consider doing this.
What are the variations of Hindu squats?
Front Squat: The first variation is called the Front Squat, and you do this by leaning forward slightly and then pulling your hips back as you come up to the standing position. You stand with your legs apart at right angles to your body. You bend your knees and get your upper body into a fully contracted position. To perform this Squat, you must be in a standing position with your feet shoulder-width apart.
Back Squat: The second variation of the Hindu Squats is the Back Squat. As the name suggests, the back squat is done in a supine position with your back straight. Again you will be in a fully contracted position, but this time, your legs will be extended beyond their natural length. As in the Front Squat, you will be using your legs to drive yourself up, but here, your legs will be bent all the way up so that your head is lifted off the ground. As you rise in the back squat, you will be working the glutes.
Kneecap plate: Another popular variation of the Hindu squat is the kneecap plate. To do this, your knees are placed on a small plate that is placed directly underneath your knees. This plate is also designed in such a way that when you bend your knees, your kneecap will be perpendicular to the ground. This is effective for people who find that their knees are too high after squatting.
Touching and the Tying: The fourth variation is called the touching and the Tying. As the name suggests, you will be using your hands to touch and tie the foot between your legs up to the ball of the foot. With the ball of the foot, you will then raise your hips and bend your knees to lift the foot. By using the weight of your body and the momentum, you will be able to do the squat with relative ease.
Knee Lift: The fifth variation is called the knee lift. This requires you to stand with one leg straight. You then lift your opposite leg so that your thigh is at a 45-degree angle to your leg. Afterwards, bring your knee up to your chest level as you come up. You will be using weights here primarily, but you should be able to do this with only a limited amount of weight, if any.
Straight leg raise: The final and probably most challenging variation of the Hindu squat is the straight leg raise variation. This requires you to raise one leg straight above the other without taking any weight off of either leg. To perform this, you must straighten your legs as much as possible. Keep your legs bent and parallel to the ground. You must then lift one leg straight above the other at an angle that is most comfortable for you.
What makes the Hindu Squat different?
There are various squats, but the Hindu squats are a unique one. The reason it is so unique is that it allows some serious leg muscle building while at the same time preventing a lot of body fat from accumulating on your frame. You will be able to watch all of the major lifts on display in action, which means that you will be getting a full grasp of weight you should lift. You will also be able to see just how much your exercise routine can burn fat.
First and foremost, how the feet are positioned during a Hindu squat makes the squat so unique. In a traditional barbell squat, where your feet are spread apart at shoulder width, your knees are parallel to the floor, and your feet are locked into place. This allows you to utilize more of your lower body, and since your legs are working so hard, they end up forcing your back to hunch forward. Your feet are placed flat on the floor, and your heels must be slightly higher than your toes. Placing your heel higher will force your hips to stay close to the floor, allowing for maximum efficiency at engaging your leg muscles and maximum force transfer to the ball.
Another quality that sets the Hindu squat apart from other squat styles is that the torso twists slightly while squatting due to many recruited muscles during each squat movement. Most squats involve the big lower back and maximum gluteus muscles and hamstrings. What makes the Hindu squat so various is that the torso twists only slightly, and the hamstrings are worked separately without recruiting the major muscle groups.
The final quality is alignment. From watching the pros during their warm-ups and postures, your spine and pelvis’s proper alignment will positively impact your ability to engage in maximum efficiency during your workout.
Are Hindu squats bad for your knees?
As you are about to embark on a training regimen, one of the questions you may be asking is, “Do Hindu squats hurt my knees?” The problem with answering this question is that it depends on what your knees are like. The fact is that no one can accurately measure your knees unless you have them measured professionally by an athletic trainer or doctor.
Many people think that if they experience pain in their knees, they have incurred an injury to the ligaments in their knees. This is not true because even though your knees may feel tender, your knee does not actually have ligaments in it. What your knee actually needs is support to keep you from sliding when you squat. If you need additional information on how your knee feels when you squat, I suggest you ask your instructor or physician before you begin your routine. There are special pads available that will help you keep from sliding on your new exercise equipment.
So now you know the answer to the question, “Do a Hindu squat hurt like crazy?”
Most people do not realize that your knees hurt just as much while walking, running, jumping, and other sports as they do while squatting. You should also consider that if your knees hurt like crazy when you are sitting down and standing up, you are not doing your knees right and could be putting yourself at risk for serious knee problems in the future.
Mistakes you should avoid doing the Hindu squats
So you have decided to learn the Hindu squats exercise. What are the mistakes you should avoid doing the right way? Well, there are several, and I am going to name all of them here. By the time you’ve finished reading this, you’ll know how to avoid them properly.
Pushing Your Legs: One of the biggest mistakes that beginners make is trying and doing too much with their legs. When you’re in the middle of the squat, the weight of your body is shifted to your thighs and your pelvis, so you should have your legs spread wide apart a bit. When you’re standing, you shouldn’t have your legs spread quite as wide.
Leaving Your Feet Backwards: If you push your hips back, your stride will be shortened, and you’ll end up sacrificing a good amount of forwarding momentum. Just remember that all the power you’re getting from the quadriceps goes to your legs and not your hips. So if you want to give your legs a helping hand, make sure you put your feet back a little and don’t extend your knees as far forward as you can.
Not Arching Your Foot: You should try to keep your foot flat on the floor while you’re in the pose. This is known as the kapalabhati posture, and it’s where your thigh and leg touch the floor simultaneously. If you arch your foot, you’ll be giving your whole body a forward shift, and that is not what you want. So when you’re in the pose, don’t even try to arch your foot – keep your whole body flat. It might take some practice to get into this position, but it will be worth it.
Not Using The Center Of Your Feet: One of the main reasons people have trouble with their poses comes from using the center of their feet. What do I mean? If you’re doing a single knee bar pose, and you’re standing next to a wall, then your feet will always be parallel with the ground. This is very important. If you were to stand in front of a door and keep both of your feet parallel to the ground, it would be complicated for you to enter and leave the pose. So, to do the pose correctly, always keep your center of the foot flat on the floor.
Not Doing Calf Raises: One of the biggest mistakes that beginners make when it comes to calf raises is that they try to do too many at one time. This can be dangerous because if you get tired of your legs start to shake; you could do a calf raise incorrectly. That is why you must always focus on one at a time when you are doing your calf raises. Ensure that you only do your kneebar calf raises for about 30 seconds every time, and always go slow when you are doing them.
Not warming up properly: The last mistake you should avoid doing for the Hindu squats is not warming up properly before the workout. Your warm-ups should not only include stretching but also light jogging or running around the gym or outside for about a minute. This will help your muscles get accustomed to the weight you are putting on them and allow them to handle better all of the strain you are placing on them when you do the squats.
Also Read:
A Beginners Guide To Pop Squats
How To Do The Vertical Leg Crunch For Stronger Abs And Core
Crossover Crunch: Things You Need To Know In 2021
Conclusion
As you can see from the information above, Hindu squats are an excellent exercise for the legs. It provides a perfect workout for your calves, hamstrings, glutes, as well as your knees. The squat is so fundamental that all the major muscle groups in the body are involved during the exercise. Make sure that you follow the instructions listed above and reap the benefits of a Hindu squat.
If you think that this article has helped you understand what makes the Hindu squat so unique and effective in exercise form, click the link below, where we have many more articles just like this one to give you even more fitness advice.
Keep Reading The Treasure Tales