PE3...what to do?

Well, I just started with it yesterday and finding the balance point is quite a challenge. I feel that I have to use my core much more to get me into position and still I'm using a wall to help me since I overbalance a lot.

My real question is what to do while I can't hold the position unassisted for more than a few seconds? How people worked this one up? Is there any complementary exercises I can do? Should I try to balance with my legs bent first, build up some time and then straighten them?

I started playing with the press up in a tuck against a wall until i could press up from the floor. still a bit challenging, since i don't work it regularly but it was what initially helped me feel comfortable enough not to WHACK onto my back and stay breathless....not that it happened.....more than 5 times. #ugh

better yet, as a safety you should use yoga mat. it's a wise decision

You should learn the hollow body shape, and lock that in. When you're on your forearms, you haven't got a lot of room for error, since you cannot compensate with the forearms, so you need to lock in that hollow body shape, and keep the legs absolutely straight. It's easier to balance a piece of dried spaghetti, than a boiled one. Also, having a hollow body shape will steer you towards underbalancing, in which case you can compensate, by leaning more on your elbows.

Thanks for the advice guys!

I've been using a yoga mat or else it would be really tough on my head haha

I'm working on the press up in a tuck and the hollow body position... the main problem is that my core is not strong enough to keep that shape and counterbalance with my forearms/elbows, therefore I'm overbalancing at the moment. It seems it's something I can't do much about except work on it diligently and wait for my core strength to catch up...

Considering that I could press up to a normal headstand and keep my shape for 5x60s, this PE3 feels much different in terms of core activation due to the elbows on the ground component.

i find pe3 a lot easier to balance compared to pe2, not sure why.

i'm on week 10 with it and feels easy to balance, the last seconds i always try to get my self out of balance to train the balance stuff more, spreading the legs and kipping from one to the other side is just fun

there are two options for you to get up in the endposition: with momentum or with just pressing from tripod. i always do the last one, nice train for the core too.

i felt twice in one session, but nothing serious, i was clever enough to safe my backside with my bed

Ravn said:

It's easier to balance a piece of dried spaghetti, than a boiled one.

So you say...

TANSTAAFL said:

So you say...

Ok, you are officially challenged to balance boiled spaghetti; Vid, or it didn't happen!

Ravn said:

Ok, you are officially challenged to balance boiled spaghetti; Vid, or it didn't happen!

You set the analogy in motion. I think it only fair for your uncooked spaghetti balance video to appear first.

Have been in same situation with you richard, especially when my hollow body was lagging behind my core burned like hell in this one. The simple progression I used is closed tuck --> open tuck ---> straddle  ---> half straddle ---> full lay. The whole thing took about 3 weeks to lock down the balance (I cheated the course a little and practiced every day. Like a baby learning to walk) . By the time I got to full lay, hollow body was still lagging and my core was not strong enough for a fully extended position, hence some piking of the hips into an exaggerated hollow. But from there it is just a matter of strength, not balance, to fix the issue.

Hope this helps.

Hei Micawberian, thanks for your insight! I will practice it more often to get it right, following the same progressions as you. I feel that when this element is mastered I will have unlocked some serious core strength and balance!

Looking forward to it 

For me it's all about engaging the upper back. I pull my shoulders away from my head (which is also important for protecting the neck in this position) and engage my traps and lats. With that tension I can pull myself from falling backwards when I get a little off balance. I also focus on pushing up with my elbows, which helps keep everything tight.

The stronger my traps became (with the iMs) the easier this became. The muscle activation from planche leans also synergizes quite well I found.

Thanks for that cue thecolin! I will put it into practice as well. I was already engaging my traps but not thinking about the lats..