Handstands Week 3 - Getting It Up

I've come to remind you that this challenge is, in fact, still about handstands. So here's what you need to know:

Handstands have a lot of benefits, and there are a tonne of reasons to practice them:

• Highly scale-able - No matter your athletic ability, there's almost always going to be something to work up to; whether you're trying a plank position with your feet up on a stool, or one-armed handstand push-ups. This also means that as long as you're not going beyond your ability and taking proper precautions, it's a great deal safer than it might seem at first.
• No equipment required - You can always supplement your workout with some, but this is primarily body-weight based. You can practice anywhere with empty walls or open space, and you don't have to spend a dagblasted dime.
• Balanced development - While the legs specifically aren't getting a lot of love from handstands, developing the skills necessary to perform them are gonna amp up your overall strength, mobility, and balance in a really harmonious, practical, and healthy way.
• Being upside down is awesome - The (initially uncomfortable) blood rushing to your head, and stacking of bones / joints opposite from their standard position allows the body to go through beneficial processes that don't normally occur in day to day life. Plus, have you ever met anybody that doesn't think handstands are fucking impressive? If so, send them my way so that I might learn their secrets (or punch them in their stupid butts if they can't actually do a handstand).

So basically handstands are the best, and you're never going to be able to do them, right? Well, realistically, yeah, probably. Let me tell you, they're pretty hard to do effectively; but I guarantee the vast majority of you could easily perform one within a year if you kept at it. Coincidentally, I'd like to give you some pointers on how you might do that:

• Mobility - Like, duh, I already went deep here on my last post.
• Strength - Just like mobility, strength is going to give you big handstanding returns in your shoulders (delts, traps, rhomboids), triceps, core, and to a lesser extent; forearms, biceps, and chest. You're going to develop most of the strength necessary by performing a lot of handstand related exercises. This video has just about every strict handstand related exercise you need. A few additions worth mentioning for beginner level exercises are pike rolls w/ a swiss ball, shoulder stands, plows, mountain climbers (try kicking your legs up higher into the air), jack-knives, bicycle crunches, hollow body planks, and elevated bridges. If you're fairly fit, but you'd like to fast track strength, or you'd just like to put more emphasis on developing strength in general, I have some weighted exercises you may find helpful: (do your own research based on your goals, but I'd recommend 3 sets of these at +/-8 reps to make the most effective strength gains) shoulder presses, upright rows, bench press, and slightly less important; lateral raises, dips, tricep pressdowns, curls, and wrist curls.
• Balance - This is just going to be practice, practice, practice. The other skills mentioned will help you develop this, but you'll want to be doing crow pose, headstands, wallstands, elbowstands, and ultimately handstands (or something even more challenging if you're hardcore). Also, if it's in the budget, a visit to the chiropractor / massage therapist might just help you sort out some deeper balance related issues with your body.

So you're confident with your training, You're at the point where you can come out of a wall handstand for more than a few seconds. You want to take on the real deal! First thing you're going to want is... more BULLET POINTS!

• Get comfortable - You're going to be doing a lot of kicking up, and trusting yourself not to come crashing to the ground in a big avalanche of bones and meat. You should be fairly used to this by now, but your kick-off should start with stacking as much of your body over your arms as possible while bending your kicking leg as deep as you need to get your balancing leg (which should be extended behind you) straight up above your body; meeting your kicking leg up to it immediately after. For your own safety, take as much time as you need to get used to this process.
• Get used to falling too - Because you're going to be doing a lot of it. Most times you're going to undershoot and come back down on your kicking leg, which should be a fairly natural reaction by now. Overshooting is a little more daunting and panicky, and having something soft to land on will help immensely. The default recovery position you should be able to wrap your head around is the tuck n' roll, wherein you'll (ideally) transition your weight forward onto your shoulders and roll out across your back finally down to your butt and feet. Even safer and more consistent is the pirouette; which sounds fancier than it is, but does still require slightly more finesse. When you feel yourself falling backwards, the idea is to transfer more weight onto a single arm and turn the opposing side out towards your back, rolling across to the other arm and then down to your foot (similar to a cartwheel).
• The form - There are 2 standard forms of handstand, and only 1 that you want to practice. The arched handstand, which is more instinctive, and initially easier to balance, and the hollow/ straight body handstand, which is far more functional and easy to sustain once you have the balance and mobility required. Do the straight body. Feet pointed to the sky, over your hips, over your shoulders, over your hands. Starting with the hands (and one of the biggest breakthroughs I had), push into the ground with the top part of your hand and your spread, outstretched fingers. Not only will you save your wrist, but you're going to have a much wider base to balance on. Engage your shoulders and reach for the sweet sweet precious resources buried deep in the earth. Grab those diamonds. Tighten your core. Engage your glutes like you're holding in those nasty nasty resources buried deep in your bowels. Push your toes up high. Send those piggies to the moon! It's also surprisingly easy to forget to breeeeathe... so don't forget. Focus on each individual component of the handstand until they become second nature and come together in a beautiful bearing of balancing bliss.
• Record and Observe - Either get a camera and self-diagnose, or have somebody who knows what they're doing observe and comment on your form. You can't fix a car if you don't figure out what's wrong with it.

I plan to update with some more text links to terms that might have you scratching your head. Stay tuned next week for results, thoughts, and what you care about most: failure videos. Also, links to only my favouritest articles, research, and videos on how to get your feet up in the air. As always, post away with questions, pointers, or whatever.

Adios, amigos.