Handstand improvement during H1

Yes is simply a question of better muscles activation, i'm following the steps of the H1 as a milestone modifying something if necessary. for example i'm doing IM7-IM8 always in hollow position and pelvic tilt.

Great progress. So 20kg in 3 months?

Mark Collins said:

Great progress. So 20kg in 3 months?

so far it's been 20lbs since the KoTF challenge came up because i wasn't doing focused dislocate work. by the time it's January, i'll probably have my mobility on HS/iM<1-2/3-4 already sorted to be focusing more on the dislocates themselves. it's unbelievable how fast it stacks.

 

20kg is the long term goal, though i'm sure doing anything higher than 10kg prone will be a milestone in itself (I tried it with the bar only, think it's 11lbs(5kg?) and i could clear it from the ground but not make it go overhead. 

KeilaniG said:

so far it's been 20lbs since the KoTF challenge came up because i wasn't doing focused dislocate work. by the time it's January, i'll probably have my mobility on HS/iM<1-2/3-4 already sorted to be focusing more on the dislocates themselves. it's unbelievable how fast it stacks.

 

20kg is the long term goal, though i'm sure doing anything higher than 10kg prone will be a milestone in itself (I tried it with the bar only, think it's 11lbs(5kg?) and i could clear it from the ground but not make it go overhead.

What improvements in other areas have you noticed since improving on the dislocates?

Mark Collins said:

What improvements in other areas have you noticed since improving on the dislocates?

hmm..pec mobility for sure, delts are getting a bit beefy/sinewy. bicep mobility(i notice this mostly at shoulder height when the bar is behind me.) and i can also now see the disparity between each shoulders mobility level is what comes to mind.

I want to say rotator cuff but i still haven't established enough mind body connection to really feel where it is, when it's doing its job or if it's even doing it. dislocates gives me THE best feeling in the shoulders, especially the weighted ones(the heavier they get, the better it feels) versus mn/iM1 which produces some pretty loud cracking/crunching and hbp/iM2 which only makes the top of my shoulders feel like they want to fall off(at a ridiculously low weight of 10lbs)

aside from that, best shoulder mobility i've ever done in my life, no doubt

KeilaniG said:

...I want to say rotator cuff but i still haven't established enough mind body connection to really feel where it is, when it's doing its job or if it's even doing it. ...

 

give cuban rotations a try...you'll definitely feel where they are afterwards...

Good to hear. Coach did say at the seminar that he thought weighted dislocates were one of the best shoulder exercises. I have decreased my width from 123cm to 113cm with 1.25kg and feel better in the shoulders. I am looking forward to the day I can do 20kg at just wider than shoulder width.

Don't worry about not feeling the rotator cuff. As they are local stabilisers you should not feel them working. Just like you are not meant to feel the small stabilisers in the back.

here's a small update on the overgrip dislocate(dorsal grip still looks like crap, still working on mastering iM2 with a basic weight + shoulder width.)

 

 

thoughts?

 

this was my first time going at it for reps at this weight and width, so i wanted to get pointers on where to move from here, aside from a narrower grip and increasing the weight. still working on bringing iM1 upto this weight and I'm currently alternating between iM1 & iM3 between my Wrist PE's. (first i warm up with it at 5lbs at a wider width & by the time I'm on my second giant set, im at my current working limit. slowly but surely. glad to see this progressing even though it isn't my primary focus right now) 

 

 

also filmed iM2 to see what you all think of it and lend me an experienced on eye on what I should do. I feel like my bicep pulls my arms down a lot and have been lately investing in doing this stretch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Y3s-5qbtKI a la kit laughlin(I'll have my metronome on and do short 5 second isometric holds and it opens me up nicely until i get to the end of my ROM and hang out there for a 30sec count, both sides for 3-5 sets) & I recently started doing supine shoulder extension stretches(kind of like a german hang, but on the floor, would focusing on both stretches be a good thing to focus on?) aside from having my bicep pull me down(I'm familiar that there's two heads of the bicep and sometimes i feel like my arms want to externally rotate and i feel a discomfort in my shoulder girdle that i never push towards or through. sometimes i tough it out and internaly rotate my arms which as you can see reduces my ROM quite a bit, but when i put my elbows in the place where I see the athlete hold the stretch, i get that intense sensation that something is wrong in my shoulder and i immediately stop. (sometimes i'll notice that my shoulder disengages faster than i decide to, so im not sure if it's that im so weak in that position that it's more of a form fail than anything.)

 

thoughts?

 

(as an added note: I noticed that my shoulder would become aggravated the moment i was working on H1 mobility & incrementing sPL PE1 at anything higher than 5x9, so i put that on maintenance and it's been moving forward without reason for me to discontinue training certain movements in my shoulder. I also do 10 Wall Extensions after every F1a and F1a+H1 workout. along with one banded distraction in particular that puts my shoulder in extension[similar to iM2].)

 

Edit: the second iM2 video is still loading, it'll be done shortly

KeilaniG said:

mn/iM1 which produces some pretty loud cracking/crunching

 

I know it's off topic here but I had the same trouble and I've been trying to find the right position for the shoulder. Recently found that focusing on retracting the scapula during the entire motion eliminated all discomfort. I even doubled the weight in no time. Maybe it'll help for you too.

Joakim Anderson said:

I know it's off topic here but I had the same trouble and I've been trying to find the right position for the shoulder. Recently found that focusing on retracting the scapula during the entire motion eliminated all discomfort. I even doubled the weight in no time. Maybe it'll help for you too.

definetely not off topic! thats why I brought it up

thanks for the pointer, Joakim #thumbsup

How did it go with the MN/iM1, KeilaniG?

Joakim Anderson said:

How did it go with the stiff leg windmills, KeilaniG?

mobility was a little abbreviated after retracting(it took almost all the sound away, still need to give it some time) so i'm getting some nice feels during the reps. they got a little bit slower since it's a bit funky to control like that(currently) but it's cleaning up quick. it's showing in HS iM2

 

edit: we're in H1 forum, change it back to MN/iM1

Good call, sorry for that.

Joakim Anderson said:

Good call, sorry for that.

I should be sorry for not knowing I had to retract sooner! (had F1 since release in January) isn't that also known as an annual fail?

shoulder is back in the swing of things and i'm making great gains in mobility as of late. I'm feeling confident about how things are looking and just need to keep nudging the weight ever so slightly and methodically as to not injure my shoulder again. slow and steady wins the race. 

 

working on Pec stretches and mastering HBP/RC iM's on the side and performing them at the end of my workouts have proven to be resourceful and useful to me in this regard. 

 

here's my latest Shoulder Flexion test and at shoulder width with 11.5lbs. nothing to be wow about, but a personal best upto now. 

 

I have a slightly more serious second video uploading

 

 

also, I keep re-testing iM2 after doing some mobility 

I'm guessing from the balloons that you've had a birthday?  So Happy Birthday!

 

You've made great progress from the last videos that you posted.

thanks Jen, yeah I just joined the quarter century club  

 

I think it looks funny how iM1 looks like when I don't retract and once I do, everything feels awesome. mighty crampy to keep the elevation too. I remember when I couldn't get this with 3lbs, i wonder what iM2 will feel like with 11.5lb's. #ohthecramps

Yesterday I was walking around with poor posture, as usual, head forward and all. I couldn't fix this before, no matter how hard I tried to keep my neck from craning forward.

 

Then I did my H1 routine and when I was finished, I felt great. Couldn't even figure out why, until I looked at myself in the mirror and I had THE perfect posture. No craning, straight back, even my pelvic tilt somehow seemed less pronounced . Those headstands made something go BAM, and it really clicked .

 

I know, I know, this isn't exactly handstand improvement, but I had to post this somewhere.

well you're right in posting it, it is improvement, since posture directly influences how effective exercises are AND how much fun inversions become! seriously, handstands feel wild now, i wonder what it'll feel like once dialocates are handled

i'm glad these things are working for you, i know they have for me

Duff said:

Yesterday I was walking around with poor posture, as usual, head forward and all. I couldn't fix this before, no matter how hard I tried to keep my neck from craning forward.

 

Then I did my H1 routine and when I was finished, I felt great. Couldn't even figure out why, until I looked at myself in the mirror and I had THE perfect posture. No craning, straight back, even my pelvic tilt somehow seemed less pronounced . Those headstands made something go BAM, and it really clicked .

 

I know, I know, this isn't exactly handstand improvement, but I had to post this somewhere.

It is a handstand improvement actually. How the hell you can hold a straight handstand if you, upright, are not straigh? I can't imagine somebody with a great HS line with a bad posture upright.

Adriano Flo said:

It is a handstand improvement actually. How the hell you can hold a straight handstand if you, upright, are not straigh? I can't imagine somebody with a great HS line with a bad posture upright.

This makes sense. Looking forward trough H1 mobility, I think most of my postural problems will be solved by the time I reach the end

went to the beach today and my friend took a picture of my handstand and.....well im stunned.

Mark, thank you so much for the help you've been extending to me this past week.

I actually felt like I was literally standing on my own two feet for the first time again....only well, i was on my hands! it was such a great experience!

That looks so much better. I think you might have to walk on your hands instead of your feet.

recent work with iM2, pec stretching has been helping and fighting to get those last few inches. lately i've been feeling my trapz really firing and sometimes they don't if i don't give myself a good stretch beforehand. what else could I be working on besides pec stretches from F2-3? thoughts?

 

Nice posture in the low back. Try releasing the anterior delts and biceps.