does anyone here do these? Is there an advantage or disadvantage to them? I tried a few and my knees weren't too comfortable with them [although regular squats hurt too--chondromalacia patella I think]

Are they worth doing?

thanks in advance

terry

Hi,

If it hurts or something grinds, it means stop. I stopped doing lunges because they make my knees grind.

Hindu squats are great. They engage the largest muscles in your body, yet work your core and upper body, too. In addition, they give you a cardiovascular workout. A lot of people work up to 500 repetitions.

You could try not squatting down quite as far. Even if you squat "just a little" you can get a great workout. If it still hurts, then it's time to try something else.

Good luck!

Terry, I have the same condition in my knees, and having spent a lot of time with a physical therapist I have been able to strenghen the muscles surrounding the patella and help keep it tracking correctly. Once you've done this you will be able to squat deeper. Of couse you need to keep doing the PT exercises - though most of them are easy to work into a warmup routine.

I've never done - or seen - hindu squats. I went and looked them up and it appears that by adding in the arms you're adding momentum to help come back up, and speeding it up does make it a cardio type workout. I personally would need to work quite awhile on the form before I'd start doing them fast. You're more likely to get injured with incorrect form.

The problem that I see with those type of squats is the knees go far past the ankles.
To do a normal squat correctly your knees and ankles should stay in a line and your knees should never go past your toes. This helps keep the pressure off your knees so they don't get stressed or hurt.
I would suggest starting with correctly done normal squats to build your strength and not to worry about Hindu squats if you have knee issues.

Thanks for the replies...I think I will stick with regular squats for now.

pat, I think I will talk to one of the PTs at work [I work at a hospital] and get some suggestions for exercises. I do leg presses and squats [regular ones] now, I quit the leg extensions because the orthopod said to.. I have noticed that when I don't go to the gym regularly, my knees hurt more. So, maybe the quad exercises were helping and I need to get back to it after a hiatus for the last month!

Thanks!
terry

My PT gave the the evil eye and said he'd hunt me down if he ever heard I was using the leg extension machine! I do use a leg press machine, the one where you lay on your back, to warm up. Basically I do squats without much weight, really helps loosen and warm up my knees. I have a number of others which individually seem simple and easy, but grouped really work out my knees. I choose a few each time I warm up for a leg/lower body workout.
QUad exercises are key for a loose patella!