# Hindu Push-Up (Dand): how to do it

- Main muscles: chest, front delts
- Also works: triceps, lower back
- Equipment: bodyweight
- Level: intermediate
- 3D demo (side view): https://media.trainaq.com/exercises/hindu_push_up/030f6ff7c4/side-m-720.mp4

## Steps

1. Start in downward dog: hips high, arms straight, feet wide.
2. Bend your elbows and swoop your chest low and forward.
3. Straighten your arms into upward dog, chest up, hips low.
4. Keep arms straight and push your hips back to downward dog.

## Cues

- Swoop low, then rise
- Elbows brush your ribs
- Hips hover, never rest

## Common mistakes

- Dropping straight down: sweep your chest forward between your hands.
- Hips resting on the floor: keep them just above it.
- Elbows flaring wide: keep them close to your sides.

## Starting position

The traditional dand of Indian wrestling (pehlwani). Hands flat on the floor about

## The movement

Three phases, one continuous wave. 1. Dive: the elbows bend (to about 90–100° flexion) and the chin and chest travel down and forward in a low arc, skimming about 5–10 cm above the floor between the hands. Elbows stay close to the ribs (about 20–30° from the torso) and point back. The hips start to lower as the chest moves forward. 2. Sweep up: the chest passes forward through the hands and rises as the arms straighten; the hips swoop under and down; the spine arches into upward dog. 3. Return: arms stay straight; the hips push straight up and back to downward dog.

## End position

(turnaround point): Upward dog: arms straight (elbows about 175°) and close to vertical, shoulders roughly above the wrists (±10°). Hips low, about 10–20 cm above the floor (never resting on it), thighs and knees off the floor, on the toes. Head up, gaze forward, shoulders pressed down away from the ears.

## Tempo

Dive and sweep 1.5 s, hold upward dog about 0.5 s, push back 1.5 s, settle in downward dog about 0.5 s. The movement is rhythmic, with no jerks.

## Form in numbers

| Measure | Target | Good range | Sources |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Hand width | 1.1× shoulder width | 1.0–1.2× |  |
| Foot width | 1.3× shoulder width | 1.2–1.5× |  |
| Down-dog hip included angle | 80° | 70–100° |  |
| Knee flexion in down-dog | 5° | 0–15° |  |
| Elbow flexion at bottom of dive | 95° | 90–110° |  |
| Chest-to-floor gap during dive | 7 cm | 5–10 cm |  |
| Elbows from torso during dive | 25° | 20–30° |  |
| Up-dog elbow | 175° | 170–180° |  |
| Up-dog hip height above floor | 15 cm | 10–20 cm |  |
| Dive+sweep / hold / return / settle | 1.5 / 0.5 / 1.5 / 0.5 s | ±30% |  |

## Sources

1. [[Wikipedia: Hindu push-up](](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindu_push-up)
2. [[Jaiswal et al. 2025, Int J Environ Sci, Dand and Baithak and health-related fitness](](https://theaspd.com/index.php/ijes/article/view/5228)
3. [[NASM: Pike Push-Up](](https://www.nasm.org/resource-center/exercise-library/pike-push-up)

Source: https://trainaq.com/exercises/hindu-push-up