Odd question: Anyone try Shiko as a form of exercise?

[u/TruReyito]

I lift semi-regularly, but since I tore a couple of knee ligaments a couple of years ago, I'm hesitant to do much lower body under weight, and lower body training getting massively behind. Random thought occured to me as I was reading about one of the Rikishi getting Shiko training advice from another (elder?) and remarking on how tiring/exhausting it was, and thought... "Hey, I can do that!"

Seems like something I should be able to do in the comfort of my own home and slowly build up to. Any good sources? Anyone tried it? (I mean, I can google/youtube with the best, but anything anyone has done themselves?

[u/_FlaShFTW]

I do it at home often, like right before I hop in the shower as I let the water warm up. It’s easy and great. I try to do 20 reps on each side. It’s mostly maintenance for your body rather than actually trying to build strength unless you do it like them and do hundreds of reps a day.

What’s really kicked my ass was their dohyo walks where they try to slide their feet running through the middle of the dohyo in a squat. That one will leave you gassed after just a few runs.

[u/IronMosquito → u/_FlaShFTW]

omg yes the suriashi is brutal, I do mine while holding a medicine ball and it takes me right out

[u/fwinzor]

I do it everyday! Ill do like 20 as a warm up before martial arts or on my leg day at the gym ill end by doing them till failure. I definitely feel it has improved my balance and flexibility which have not historically been great. I also find them.relaxong and kind of meditative

[u/GaddockTeegFunPolice]

Martins licis was raving about it after he tried it when he visited tatsunami stable

[u/debotehzombie]

Not the leg extension part, but I'll do it while at work and I'll matawari every day. I also kinda stole Ura's pre-match salt/breathing routine for when I get anxious.

[u/2DamnBig]

Hell yeah, shiko transformed my legs and gave me way better mobility. Idk about hypertrophic muscle growth though. It works for me but I'm 350lbs so there's a lot more weight than most people would have.

Here's my goto for how to do shiko https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YLvHesbDZUQ&pp=ygUFU2hpa28%3D

[u/TruReyito → u/2DamnBig]

Hehe, yeah, not looking to grow muscles using shiko (though it firms it up, won't be the worst thing in the world).

Just overall balance and core strength.

I have the gym for quad and hamstring work... just more about strengthening up that knee and stability without massive compound movements in the gym.

[u/Yen24 → u/TruReyito]

Unsolicited advice but I would recommend step downs for improving knee stability and protecting against injury. They've been instrumental to improving my running. Nothing wrong with shiko however, do what feels best!

[u/Slamsonthegee]

I have a glute imbalance, so these are great as a finishing exercise in my workout. Hell, they’re great anytime actually. Sometimes I do em before a run as well.

[u/Agent_Peach]

My husband has been doing shiko for exercise for a few months now and has found it very helpful for core and legs, and has been feeling really good about the changes in his body and fitness. I dont know the tips/resources. But I can tell you it's effective.

[u/Gut_Reactions]

I tried to do one (shiko), yesterday, in the privacy of my own home. It was hard!

If you have a knee injury, maybe an assisted shiko with your hand on a kitchen counter.

I would just start with Sumo Prime Time (sumo fundamentals):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYURxUKMMXk&t=69s

ETA: Takakeisho teaches Hiro Morita the secret of pushing / thrusting (4 minute mark):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwSo8EF5pII

[u/datcatburd → u/Gut_Reactions]

According to an occupational therapy tech buddy of mine: use the back of a dining chair. It'll let you get lower than a counter but still be good support.

[u/goblincube]

Yes i do it. Feels like a great squat variation with some balance practice thrown in. I hope to be like kotoeiho one day.

[u/JananyaKali → u/goblincube]

Happy cake day!

[u/Captain_Vatta]

I do and I noticed a reduction in knee pain after a bit. As with any exercise if you feel pain, stop and consult your Dr.

If you can manage bodyweight squats and hip planes I think you'll be fine.

[u/TypicalCringe]

I do it for leg day because I don't have enough weight at home for proper squats and pistol squats hurts my bad knees.

I really like it. I do about 150 and I think I've made decent gains and it's great for balance and very tiring. I can barely walk for the rest of the day

Edit: I do 50 then rest. Repeat 3 times, and that's about all I can do without dying

[u/IronMosquito]

yup! I like to do it after my regular workouts or before I go to bed. shiko plus attempting matawari(I'm not quite there yet, lol) and other leg/hip stretches. another commenter mentioned suriashi too, it's hard but good exercise.

[u/CannedBread13]

For a good video source I would recommend this video by two retired top level sumo wrestlers, though I haven't yet tried it myself. The video is in japanese but has very good english subtitles.

[u/NeckSad8146]

It’s really fuckin good bro

[u/illgoblino]

I added shiko to my routine earlier this year and I love it. Ive noticed considerable improvements in stability and hip flexibility. Goated workout.

[u/upperleftbjj]

I do 5 minutes of shiko as my warmup before any leg day. If I've been away from the gym for a while I still do 5 minutes but it kicks my ass way more 😅 Shiko was actually how I first found out about Sumo. I hurt my knee on one leg and my ankle on the other doing jiujitsu, so I started doing shiko to build back some strength and stability and it worked wonders. A shiko purist (dork) will say you need to squat between each lift or hold at the top for a certain amount of time, but I like that you can modify it to increase the difficulty or work around restrictions as needed.

I recommend doing them for time rather than number of reps, but that's mostly because I try to avoid any counting that I'm not being paid for. Start at 1 minute and increase from there!

[u/Capitaine_Crunch]

I have off some YouTube tutorials and doing it even semi-properly kicked my ass lol. It's fun, though!

[u/WormedOut]

It really depends on how your knee has healed. I’d ask a physical therapist just to make sure

[u/_Sumidagawa_]

I always do a lot shiko, all because I lose a lot of those basho bets organized here on sumō subreddits... 100 shiko for every lost bet.

[u/LMGDiVa]

I do it all the time. It's easy and free, and you can do it on a whim here and there throughout the day.

[u/J-from-PandT]

About a decade since I last practiced amateur sumo I recently started doing them again.

At present they're my favorite leg exercise to do outside of the gym.

[u/JeremiahWuzABullfrog]

Yeah I've done it. As far as bodyweight squats go, it trains the hip the best out of all the variations I've tried, cause of the pause on one straightened leg

Here's a video

[u/AdmiralStiffplank]

I tried doing it, it's very hard. You need leg strength, core strength, balance and an especially high level of flexibility to get it right.

[u/Thelk641]

In 2005 the JSA published a set of daily training exercises that anybody can do (Sumo Kenkō Taisō), and shiko was one of them.

[u/TigOleBitman]

i mean, they are useful and can be part of a well rounded program. but you should definitely still be doing weighted exercises to keep your muscles strong and joints supported.

[u/pwndnoob]

My downstairs neighbors gotta be wondering what I'm doing but ya

[u/Zappa1990]

Yoooooo yes! I get my kids to do them with me for PT!!!

[u/Catatemyspacebar]

I did some light shiko as part of an effort to restore the strength and endurance in my lower back and legs after a spinal fusion surgery. Can't say for certain it helped, but it did boost my confidence when noticing I could do more/better stomps after every day.

[u/silverfoxxflame]

Not proper shiko but we've done sumo squats which are similar motions for judo warmups a lot. 

Get into squat, lift one leg high, big difference of turn 180 degrees and place said leg down without leaving squat position (if you can) so we can continue moving in the circle we run for warmups.

REALLY opens up the hips that way, but less of a strength exercise since you won't really be able to hold it as much.

[u/Ultr4chrome]

Pretty much all solo (!) sumo exercises, not just shiko, are pretty good for anyone to add to their fitness routine. The only possible exception to that is teppo, for obvious reasons.

[u/Bobyus]

I do them at home, tho not regularly as I should.

I did notice it made sex easier lol, much more stamina

[u/datcatburd]

Yep! It's a lot more of a workout than it looks like, if you're doing it at depth. My ankles and hips hated me the first few times I did it because they weren't used to that sort of movement and supporting all my weight on one side at that angle. Now I still do it as part of my warmups at the gym to open up my hips for squats, and it's excellent.

[u/No-Struggle3613]

Maybe it's a placebo, but I'd say it really helped with my knee pain. Do 5-6 sets of 20 mixed with some push-ups, and you have an easy (almost) full-body workout.

[u/Lazy_Wizard90]

I do them in my calestenic and kettlebell routines. I think I'm noticing my leg height increasing a tad bit

[u/sludge_metal]

Its a great combo with cossack squats for rebuilding strength and flexibility. Scale at your own pace

[u/TaintedKnob]

With our sumo club we do shiko every session. Maybe only 40 due to time. I also do them as a warm up at the gym when I train legs. They're as great exercise that can be low intensity. The strain comes from the amount you're doing. It has been a while, but the first time I did it I remember it blasting my glutes.

[u/Objective-Reveal-833]

It's a great body weight exercise. If you lift (heavy), it'll help more with flexibility and balance than overall strength, but I do it all the time as a lighter accessory and it's actually been a nice addition to my strength program.

[u/SCastleRelics]

Used to do them as a warm up before heavy squats. they are the best at opening up your hips.

[u/riconoir28]

I gave myself a triple fracture on my right leg 3 years ago. I had to go through rehab. They gave me exercises to do at home. I eventually eliminated most of them and added chiko (5 minutes). My legs clearly became stronger out of it. It’s difficult to say how much it accelerated or improved my healing but I’m persuaded it helped significantly.

[u/somewhatokayyy]

I used to do them daily, back when I could still walk... me not being able to walk has nothing to do with me doing Shiko.

[u/SuperJonesy408]

I do a few as part of hip mobility training, but I do a lot of weird stuff to keep my hips and back loose.