Hand Position on Wall Handstands

Hey GB, 

Chasing that freestanding handstand for 30s, so I'm working on wall handstands. My question is where should my hands be placed relative to distance to the wall. I noticed the farther I get from the wall (far being < a foot but > 6 inches) the more gassed my shoulders and traps get and faster, when I'm within a few inches of the wall, trust me, it's still tiring - especially when focusing on all the cues like PPT, tight core, pointed toes, shrugging into to floor etc - but seems a bit less taxing on parts of the delt... is there an optimal distance to be for max benefit from this progression? Or do I want to get as close as possible to the wall, and just have a mat or something to roll out into if I lose my balance? Thanks! 

You want to get as close to the wall so that you can maximally flex (open) your shoulder.

On 4/7/2

2 minutes ago, Edgar Hernandez Celli said:

You want to get as close to the wall so that you can maximally flex (open) your shoulder.

Meaning elevated and retracted scaps, yes? 

John Koliopoulos said:

 

Elevation and protraction of the scaps.

Just now, Edgar Hernandez Celli said:

Elevation and protraction of the scaps.

Oh maybe I'm misunderstanding then, but how does one keep the shoulders "open" while protracting? The only cues i've been using for myself are actively shrugging into the floor, PPT, tight core, squeeze glutes and point toes. Am i missing an element? Thanks in advance! 

http://amactraining.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/shoulder-girdle-movement.png

Yo want to protract your scapulae so when flexing the shoulder, the scapulae are clear from the ribcage so they can do their upward rotation movement 

Watch the video, when she retracts the scapulae there is no complete shoulder flexion, but when she protracts you can see how her shoulder completely flexes.

^^^ That helps alot, I'll try working on that.