Combining The Hindu Pushup And Hindu Squat

Using simple exercises can make an impact on your training as you may have noticed; however, combining different exercises into one big movement can really take on a realm of fitness that would send your workout into the stratosphere. Such movements as the Hindu Squats & Hindu Push-ups have been a staple for fitness for centuries and in the last 20+ years, have been foundational for people all over the world and not just in athletics but from businessmen, stay at home moms/dads, travelers, corporate managers, high school students, college students, doctors, lawyers, therapists, coaches and others. These movements were originally intended for keeping wrestlers in peak physical condition and now have been for those who want to stay in shape or get in shape again after reaching 40.

The gold standard for these exercises was to do 250+ Hindu Push-ups in a row and 500 Hindu Squats in a row which was set by the late Karl Gotch. Now there is a move you may see Hindu Wrestlers do which looks like a combination of the two that really amps up their conditioning. It's similar to our modern day Burpee which is a conditioning movement for countless athletes in various fitness communities such as Crossfit. Some call it a Hindu Burpee, others the Hindu Squat/Push up Combo and whatever names they may call it but it's safe to say it's a hell of a movement and there are different ways to do it.

I've tried this out a couple times using push up handles for the Hindu Push-up point and it is a scorcher for the lungs and the longer you go, the crazier your cardio is. Now this doesn't mean you keep going until your form becomes sloppy, that's one way of injuring yourself and also it's done at a greater clip than usual but can be slowed down so you can focus on the technique. Shooting for 10 at first is a good start and build from there. When it comes to movements like this, I don't really like counting reps unless there's a specific goal involved like I do with animal movements, just go with it and move. I would keep going until I feel fatigued so when I recover, I can do better the next time around. The Hindu Wrestlers would do their variation and do them in the hundreds to even thousands of reps, that alone would make anyone have endurance for days and if you're a combat athlete or other sports athlete, imagine the level of conditioning that will have you lasting longer than many of your top competitors.

Karl Gotch once said "Conditioning is your greatest hold." Vince Lombardi said "Fatigue makes cowards of us all." And John Wooden has said "Conditioning is essential to success in basketball." Beyond just sports, regular conditioning training is a fundamental component for many areas of life such as being able to keep up with kids as a parent, the ability to save someone's life, a factor if you're ever in a fight and it lasts longer than it needs to be, manual labor and many other elements. Let's make one thing clear, I don't believe in the "No pain, no gain" bullshit so if you're in pain, stop and take care of yourself, do something that works for you and your goals. There is a difference between pain and discomfort, discomfort can be daunting but you can keep going, the thing is to be aware. Some people can withstand pain and some can't. If you're in a sport, injuries are common but they don't have to be common with you so be careful but don't ever not challenge yourself either.

Take a shot at this exercise and see how you do. How many can you do before form becomes scarce and how long can you go without fatiguing?