Help with handstands

melmckay99
melmckay99 Posts: 358
in Fitness and Exercise
I wanna be able to do a handstand but not sure what the trick is to maintain that balance point. I practice in my room against a wall but as soon as I take my feet away I can only stay up for a few more seconds...

Any one have any pointers for me?

Replies

  • Tetonia
    Tetonia Posts: 79 Member
    Yoga will give you training and practice for all kinds of balance positions, including handstands. My instructor says that balance is something that the body learns to do by repetition. The more you try the longer you can stay balanced. It's a brain/cell thing... For what it is worth.
  • waldo56
    waldo56 Posts: 1,861 Member
    Practice, practice, practice.

    Handstands are unfortunately the opposite of riding a bike. You rapidly lose your ability. To get good you need to frequently practice, if not daily then several times a week.
  • catrunsintowindow
    catrunsintowindow Posts: 77 Member
    http://anthonymychal.com/2012/04/how-to-become-a-handstand-beast/

    Are you practicing back against the wall or front?
  • jonesin_am
    jonesin_am Posts: 404 Member
    I think that handstands would require amazing core strength and good balance. Practicing against a wall is good. I would try some yoga which should really help with balance and core. Good luck. It's a great goal! I want to be able to do handstand push-ups...but have a looonnng way to go!
  • tiffanyarowell
    tiffanyarowell Posts: 14
    Agreed, repetition is key. Keep practicing against the wall and hold it until you cant any longer. Try and inch further and further away from the wall so that you rely on it less. Handstands also require a lot of shoulder and ab strength, so add in weight training that focuses on those areas
  • melmckay99
    melmckay99 Posts: 358
    http://anthonymychal.com/2012/04/how-to-become-a-handstand-beast/

    Are you practicing back against the wall or front?

    I practise with my back to the wall.
  • lizsmith1976
    lizsmith1976 Posts: 497 Member
    Core strength and keeping your core tight help with balance. Also, finding a focus point that does not move for you to stare at.
  • cici1028
    cici1028 Posts: 799 Member
    Practice and repetition, as everyone here is saying. It's true. I still use a wall but now I practice my handstands a good few feet from it. Your body just needs to learn and memorize how to do it.
  • melmckay99
    melmckay99 Posts: 358
    Agreed, repetition is key. Keep practicing against the wall and hold it until you cant any longer. Try and inch further and further away from the wall so that you rely on it less. Handstands also require a lot of shoulder and ab strength, so add in weight training that focuses on those areas

    Awesome profile pic! haha I mostly wanna do them cause I think they are cool and it would be a unique skill to have. I do a lot of weight training and recently started crossfit training (I've had a personal trainer for abou t 6 months now). I try to do yoga, usually a hot yoga class, once a week. I'm pretty sure I will get the there eventually but was wonderigng if there was a trick to it, or maybe a certain way to place your legs, or arch/not arch your back etc ... that would help me with the balancing part.
  • catrunsintowindow
    catrunsintowindow Posts: 77 Member
    http://anthonymychal.com/2012/04/how-to-become-a-handstand-beast/

    Are you practicing back against the wall or front?

    I practise with my back to the wall.

    This is generally a bad idea, unless you already have a solid idea of how your handstand is supposed to feel. Take a look at the link I provided - for handstands, having a 'hollow body' position is vital. Having your back to the wall encourages arching your back, which makes it much harder to hold the handstand by yourself. It can be done, but you need to pay special attention to your body position (back on the wall, feet OFF the wall)

    Try practicing stomach to wall. In this position, your toes should be on the wall but nothing else (i.e. your stomach is an inch or two away. From this position, rock your weight on different points of your hands and fingers- get used to adjusting and reacting to where your body is moving. Eventually you can shift your weight so your toes come off the wall for a second or two, then practice holding that for longer.

    Eventually, a handstand!
  • bumblebums
    bumblebums Posts: 2,181 Member
    In addition to what everyone else said, learn how to fall without injuring yourself. Maybe take a jiu jitsu class. Not being afraid of falling is key to mastering balance poses.
  • melmckay99
    melmckay99 Posts: 358
    http://anthonymychal.com/2012/04/how-to-become-a-handstand-beast/

    Are you practicing back against the wall or front?

    I practise with my back to the wall.

    This is generally a bad idea, unless you already have a solid idea of how your handstand is supposed to feel. Take a look at the link I provided - for handstands, having a 'hollow body' position is vital. Having your back to the wall encourages arching your back, which makes it much harder to hold the handstand by yourself. It can be done, but you need to pay special attention to your body position (back on the wall, feet OFF the wall)

    Try practicing stomach to wall. In this position, your toes should be on the wall but nothing else (i.e. your stomach is an inch or two away. From this position, rock your weight on different points of your hands and fingers- get used to adjusting and reacting to where your body is moving. Eventually you can shift your weight so your toes come off the wall for a second or two, then practice holding that for longer.

    Eventually, a handstand!

    Thanks so much! Gonna read through the link now :)
  • penelopia
    penelopia Posts: 52 Member
    My dance teacher used to make us do them against a wall and when we got too comfortable with that we used an exercise ball so you'd be going much further over but had to have a massive amount of control....I wouldn't recommend doing this without a spotter.

    But if you position the ball between you and the wall, then start the handstand further from the wall, you can walk your way down to the ball and gradually remove the assistance so you don't hurt yourself :)

    But be super careful
  • tiffanyarowell
    tiffanyarowell Posts: 14
    I did gymnastics as a kid and recently joined an adult gymnastics class and its awesome - I highly suggest looking for one in your area, it's an awesome workout! If anything, you want to over kick when you get up so it feels like you might fall over and then walk your hands to keep balance. It's extremely difficult to hold a handstand if you don't kick up far enough, but easier to compensate if you kick up too hard.
  • JustJennie1
    JustJennie1 Posts: 3,749 Member
    Why bother with handstands? You need to squat and do dead lifts. (J/k. That just seems to be the answer to EVERYTHING lol).

    Honestly just practice. I was trying to do handstands a few years back and I'd practice in the gym having someone catch my feet and then let go and then I practiced at home in my yard. You've now made me want to go back to practicing them.
  • melmckay99
    melmckay99 Posts: 358
    Why bother with handstands? You need to squat and do dead lifts. (J/k. That just seems to be the answer to EVERYTHING lol).

    Honestly just practice. I was trying to do handstands a few years back and I'd practice in the gym having someone catch my feet and then let go and then I practiced at home in my yard. You've now made me want to go back to practicing them.

    haha squat, deadlift and eat at a caloric deficit. Yup that is engraved in my head now thanks to MFP. I squat and deadlift regularly, but now eat at maintenance :). Looking for new non-weight goals now like doing handstands, lol.
  • DancingDreams1234
    DancingDreams1234 Posts: 165
    For me I really had to focus on my upper body strength to be able to do a handstand and slowly collapse into a bridge. There really is no "easy way" to do it, you just have to practice, practice, practice. Slowly you'll see results :)
  • SPARTA1013
    SPARTA1013 Posts: 60 Member
    I would absolutely start out trying a yoga headstand with your forearms planted on the ground for stability to find your center point. Once you're good with that you could try handstands but they're much harder as there is less surface area to balance on. if you want a real challenge, give scorpion a shot.
  • MinimalistShoeAddict
    MinimalistShoeAddict Posts: 1,946 Member
    Practice, practice, practice.

    Handstands are unfortunately the opposite of riding a bike. You rapidly lose your ability. To get good you need to frequently practice, if not daily then several times a week.

    I agree with this. 6 months ago I could not do a handstand without falling over instantly. Now I can do handstand pushups.

    Keep practicing and you will get there. Remember to use your whole body. It became easier for me once I started focusing on using my legs for balance as well.

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