I'm a big believer in bodyweight exercises, particularly Hindu Pushups and Hindu Squats. However, many people do not even want to try Hindu squats as they believe that as the knee extends beyond the knee, this is dangerous. It will somehow "shear the knees."
There is no doubt in my mind that you want to treat your knees with care. The knee is a delicate joint and may be one of the biggest trouble spots for people (next to back pain). When you lose the cartilage in your knee, it's gone for good. I speak from experience on this. On the right side of my right knee there is cartilage that is severely damaged. What happened to me?
Well, it certainly wasn't Hindu squats. I used to be a big time runner and I suspect all of the "pounding the pavement" I did really pounded the heck out of my knees. I also really twisted my knee over 20 years ago playing football in a park. I didn't think of it at the time, but my doctor suspects this is where the initial damage occurred. So, when it comes to knee pain and damaging your knee, I think I know something about it.
From my experience with Hindu squats, they strengthen the knee. When I first started with this exercise there were some aches and pains, not to mention snapping and popping sounds. However, I took it easy and kept at it. After about a month of consistent training (meaning, training everyday) the pain seemed to go away. It took some time, but this kind of bodyweight exercise, like all of them , not only strengthen the muscles and help you build endurance, they also strengthen the ligaments and tendons. This is something that weight lifting doesn't do.
Some people have told me that baseball catchers have terrible knees. Supposedly, they got this way from all of the squatting they do. This sounds like an old wives tale to me. The people who tell me this can't offer up the actual names of any baseball catchers who believe this. Until they do, I will remain highly suspicious of this claim.
But there is another factor in my thinking here. The fact of the matter is that a good portion of the world sit in a catcher's position on a regular basis for their entire lives. If you've ever been to Asia, you'll see people squatting like this all the time. I'm willing to bet that these people have far healthier knees and backs than North Americans. If there was any truth to the "knee sheering" theory, you'd think there would be an epidemic of shot knees through Asia. It just hasn't happened.
In conclusion, from my experience, Hindu squats do not damage your knees. In fact, just the opposite. They can actually help you strengthen your knees and get rid of chronic knee pain. You just have to work at it.
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