Tips to open shoulders in Handstand

Hey guys, do you have some tips, drills or cues to get open shoulders in HS?

I have an angle of like 5-10 degrees, especially when i am not 100% warmed up. Its annoying me as hell when doing HSPU. Only when I've done a thorough mobility session can i get the proper position...

I have a feeling my activation is kinda off.

If you want to try your luck on your own you should look into shoulder flexion mobility and flexibility exercises.

Head position is what makes the last bit of difference for me, focusing on Coach's cue of looking through teh eyebrows at the fingers takes me from slightly arched each way to straight. That's provided your shoulder mobility, PPT and elevation are all in place already, which is what H1 develops

A key part is learning to activate the traps. Lots of people have the flexibility to lie flat on the floor with their arms above their head, but don't know how to "pull" their arms far enough into flexion to achieve a good line. 

Thanks, I am trying a couple of weighted mobility drills fot flexion before and after workouts and focussing on trap activation. I just need consistency, that feeling of locking into a position and knowing the bodyline is spot on.

J0X said:

Thanks, I am trying a couple of weighted mobility drills fot flexion before and after workouts and focussing on trap activation. I just need consistency, that feeling of locking into a position and knowing the bodyline is spot on.

If you can find someone to spot you once in a while who knows what to look for you will learn much faster! Trust me. That applies to every semi-complex skill.

Jon Douglas said:

Head position is what makes the last bit of difference for me, focusing on Coach's cue of looking through teh eyebrows at the fingers takes me from slightly arched each way to straight. That's provided your shoulder mobility, PPT and elevation are all in place already, which is what H1 develops

Hi Jon, how about that stretch in your profile pic? Can that be of help? To me its look like a German hang done with a barbell.

Sailor Venus said:

Hi Jon, how about that stretch in your profile pic? Can that be of help? To me its look like a German hang done with a barbell.

It is an awesome pike and shoulder extension stretch! It is not the same though, there is a difference between hanging and holding a bar. Whether it helps GH or not I cannot tell but the mechanics are slightly different.

I have seen great progress to my HS PE 2 iM doing this, though I guess one must already have reasonable pike and shoulder extension mobility before this exercise becomes effective due to gaining a good angle for applying force downwards and outwards.