Anyone (Literally, Anyone) Can Do a Handstand Push-Up With This Strength-Building Plan

Of all the impressive exercises that appear on my Instagram page “Check”, the handstand push-up wins the top spot. By themselves, handstands and push-ups aren’t funny, and when you combine them? It is enough to make my upper body hurt by thinking about it. But as hard as it seems, with the right training, it is possible for us mortals to be able to achieve it. Keep reading everything you need to know about understanding travel that is sure to strengthen you ... and entertain your Instagram followers in this process.

Benefits of the handstand push-up

Obviously, a push-up handstand is a great way to burn your upper body because you use those muscles to lift and reduce your total weight. "It's a great exercise to flex your shoulders, triceps, and - to a lesser extent - your chest muscles," said personal trainer Mike Matthews, CSCS, founder of Legion Fitness. "It also works with your insides, glutes, and legs because you have to serve these muscles to maintain your balance in all reps."

While individual handstands and push-ups work on each of these muscles, tying them together gives you your entire belt. “Compared to the handstand, the push-up handstand is more effective at building strong, defined shoulders,” Matthews said. "And compared to push-ups, the push-up handstand emphasizes the shoulders above the chest and goes a long way in improving your balance and coordination."

How to create a push-up handstand

As this movement falls into the “advanced” phase of the fitness world, you’ll want to make sure you properly prepare your body before you go down and try to give (vertical) 20. To do this, Matthews suggests focusing on improving your strength, communication, and mobility.

1. Power

Understandably, holding the handstand and pressing your bodyweight above your head requires considerable strength on the upper body. “You need to improve your overall body pressure by doing a lot of pressure on the barbell and dumbbell up,” Matthews said. If you are new to weight training, start with light weight and work your way up to the heavier options.

"These exercises train the same muscles as the handstand push-up, but allow you to gradually increase your weight over time so that you can increase the pressure near your body weight." For your own good, you do not need to be able to compress a barbell the size of your body weight before you are ready to try a hand-push-up, but training your body in this way will lay the foundation for the strength you need to do in real walking.

In addition to the extra body strength, you will also want to make sure that your core is strong enough to hold you. The old planks are ready to point out the place, and making them in the right form will help you learn how to properly integrate your core. And if you need more out of the abs, this hand-friendly basic travel list is a great place to start.

Another useful block to improve your strengths is a negative push-up, similar to the younger sister of the real thing. “This involves getting into the first place with a hand push, lowering your body slightly until your head touches the floor, then lowering your feet to the floor and finishing the repetition instead of pushing yourself back into the starting position,” Matthews said. Try to repeat this in as many reps as possible in the correct form, take a break and rest for a few minutes, then rotate with two more sets.

2. Balance and coordination

Video: How to Do Tricep Push-Up | The Right Way | Good + Good (Good + Good)

For many of us, looking down sounds unnatural, so you will want to take the time to get used to your body feeling a real blow to the head. “The hardest part for most people is just getting into the right place to start, so focus on this early on,” Matthews said. Before you enter the full handstand, you may want to try the modified version, which is supported first.

"Raise your feet against the wall and [go hands] towards the wall to complete your chest towards the wall," Mike Aidala, a fitness, and wellness coach in Denver, told Well + Good earlier. “Comfort with sitting face down is key, and this exercise helps to build up the handstand in the middle of the room. Once on the wall keep your arms straight. Look between your thumbs and focus on your breathing, "he adds.

Once you’ve got that down, you’re ready to try to kick off the real deal — but again, start small. "Play with a variety of hand positions, kicking hard or slow, and so on. It can also be helpful to have a friend act as a marker to catch you when you start to fall," Matthews said. Once you've mastered the basic handstand - and you can safely hold it, without looking, for at least 30 seconds - you'll be ready to add a push-up element to the section.

How to do a push-up handstand 1. Set

Start by placing a yoga mat or pad near the wall - which will help close your palms while you are in your hand - and face the wall. Place your palms six to 12 inches from the wall shoulder width. “Make sure you hold on to the floor to evenly distribute the weight in your hands, and improve your balance,” Matthews said. This will help later.

2. Kick

With your hands and feet on the floor, place your body in a pike push-up position with your arms straight and your knees bent. To keep your arms straight, you kick with your legs, lean forward, and then open your lower body in a standing position on the wall. "You're probably going to interrupt this a few times - don't worry about it," Matthews said.

3. Lift

To hold the handstand properly, "touch your buttocks, glutes, and quads, stretch your toes, and press your hands down so that your whole body lays a straight line from head to toe," says Matthews, adding that you should be. you think of involving these muscles all the time to exercise. "A common mistake is to let your hips and chest appear in different places. While this often sounds easy right now, it actually makes exercise a lot harder, especially if you're trying to climb."

4. Push up

Now, with a real challenge. "Tie your spine and bend your elbows to lower your body slightly until the top of your head is down. Let your ankles go down the wall as you go down," Matthews said. "Once your head has touched the floor, push hard with your hands to push your body upwards and back to the starting position." Make sure you do not place weight on your head under the movement (this is a handkerchief, not a headstand, after all), and then quickly move backward (gently) to contact the floor. Et voila —you are on the way to entertaining your Instagram followers with the right form.