Running, Cycling, Fitness Tips – The Inadvertent Athlete

Hindu Squats: Secret of the Yeti

Somewhere in the Himalayas, Yeti’s are working out. They are singular in purpose: avoid human detection. While their North American cousin, the Sasquatch, has become a camera hog, first with the tourist videos, then with a series of beef jerky commercials, the Yeti’s have remained pure, undetected, invisible. How, you ask? I will tell you how. With the most unpleasant workout regimen, that’s how. If you wanna avoid all the pesky sherpa traffic, you gotta be able to move like a mongoose. I guess. Since P90X hasn’t started broadcasting infomercials over there yet, they have had to rely on the locals for inspiration. Since they live in the middle of nowhere, they have few options. Two to be exact: Burpees and Hindu Squats. Everyone knows about Burpees. We all hate them. It’s universal. But boy do they work. Same deal here. The Hindu Squat, when done correctly, will debilitate you for several days or at least make you walk funny. Here’s how you do them.

Step 1: Set up like you would start a regular squat: Feet shoulder width apart, arms at your side.

Step 2: As you start down into the squat, instead of placing the weight in your heels, roll up onto the balls of your feet and go all the way down. Bring your arms out in front like a zombie or Frankenstein to balance yourself.

Step 3: Now that you are crouched on the balls of your feet, arms out in front, reverse what you just did and stand up. Do not let your heels hit the floor until you are standing completely upright.

Doesn’t seem too bad does it? Do 100 of them continuously and tell me how you feel tomorrow…

These are great for lots of muscles that we don’t use often enough, as well as being a great cardio exercise. The first 10-20 go by without much struggle but as the count gets higher, it will take focus and stamina to finish it out. As you do these regularly, you will most likely need to buy new pants as you will probably hulk your new quads out of them frequently. I know I do. Find comfort in the knowledge that, should you accidentally hulk your pants off completely, you now have the Yeti skills to avoid embarassing attention. It’s all good. Enjoy your invisibility. You’ve earned it.

Tags: Burpee, Climbing, Cross Fit, Cycling, Hindu Squat, P90X