Press Walk (form check)

This is my first try, while I am still working on the previous PE… but I need to learn how to dare to transfer the weight onto my arms (those pesky fears) so I started to play with this one… before I develop some bad habits, what should do I focus on? Thank you for your inputs and corrections… this somehow doesn't look like the demonstration video    

(the song: Road to Moscow, ha ha)

Well, the problem it is more strength related. you tend to fall, on the other side you should flex the feet and slowly move it closer to the hands.

Yes, that's how I feel, @Alessandro Mainente, like I have no control, strength wise. Once I am upside down, I have no idea what muscles to use… is it my shoulders, traps, or core that I need to engage somehow differently? How?  Any tips, maybe compering the muscle engagement to what I would do if I would not be upside down? Maybe it will click in my brain then…   

I'm working these as well. I think the idea is to actively push hard down with the traps.

I like to think of it as simultaneously allowing yourself to lean forward but actively resisting this leaning forward by pushing down hard with the traps like you are pushing the floor away from you, meanwhile actively compressing in the pike. The feet should start to feel weightless till they come off the ground and are gently placed forward. 

@Christian Nogueira thank you. I will try that… I never get to that feeling of "weightless" because I get scared that I will fall forward and just panic and stump forward. So irritating…  I will focus strongly on those pointers you suggest next time and see if I can float for a little bit  :-) 

Press strongly into the floor with straight arms.

Strongly compress your thighs into your belly.

Compress your chest into your knees. 

Then see if you can lift your butt.

Also, maybe hop up just a tiny bit from the starting and/or finishing position and try to slow the ensuing descent down - that may give you a feel for what you need to engage.

@Kai Ewert, thank you so much for the detailed tips. I will work on it. I really hope that  I can find the "floating" feeling, because I think that it will help me to not to be scared of the handstands and being upside down. Cheers, great advice from you!

Overcoming the fear to some extent is also important. Maybe do just a single rep with a wall behind your back? You will need to reduce your fear enough so you can find the amount of lean that is necessary to float...

On 11/8/2017 at 12:50 PM, Kai Ewert said:

Overcoming the fear to some extent is also important. Maybe do just a single rep with a wall behind your back? You will need to reduce your fear enough so you can find the amount of lean that is necessary to float...

Kai, I did it today. Wow, that was interesting. The amount of lean to be able to feel the lightness for the hips to float was much more than I would dare to do without the wall. It was a good exercise to become aware what I have to work myself to, without the wall. Also, I could really feel how I was engaging some of the core muscles that I was not sure how to engage before. Great success (Borat would say  ), thank you!

Good progress, getting that floaty feeling in the hips and feet is an important milestone for press.

However, keep refining it, albeit on one hand you want to lean, on the other hand you don't want to turn this into a planche exercise. Remember the motions from Slide Press (pHS/PE3 ) and the following series of Vertical presses (pHS/PE4 to PE6), the shoulder flexion and pressing down hard with elevated scapulae ? While you need to lean some, you also want to do this.

This constant pressing gives you like something to compress your hips against so you can get moving the hips and feet forward and higher without necessarily leaning (and ultimately is what'll raise your body up in the press). Keep this always in mind and you'll find as you refine your motion with this exercise you'll find that you'll need less forward lean to get the floaty feeling, which is ultimately what makes the Handstand Press different from Planche (and much easier in terms of raw strength).

It also goes without saying that pike and pancake compression mobility will make everything easier.

Congrats, keep at it !

@Christian Nogueira thanks for all the additional tips. It will help me to mentally figure out the physics of the muscle action (I am so analytical) and hopefully I'll find that floating feeling without leaning too much soon. I will keep practicing and also thinking of all your pointers… My pike is quite ok now, I can keep my belly on the thighs, chest on the knees and chin/nose/cheeks on my shins. The pancakes is not as good as my feet want to internally rotate a little, so I am refraining from putting my chest down to the ground so I would not internally rotate the feet. I need more work here for sure. :-) this is exciting, as I slowly start understanding what is wanted from my body to float/press. Cheers!

I also had to try this tip of slowly leaning towards a wall. I found it to be very interesting. As I begin to lean forward i feel more and more of the weight being transferred to my arms and when the feet are almost weightless I tough the wall and most of the strength just disappear. I am guessing this happens as I also loose some balance at this stage. Sorry for stealing the thread, I just thought it was so interesting to feel that you have almost all weight on your hands and then after touching the wall completely loose ones strength. 

@Tobias Karlsson, no problem about "stealing" the thread… it keeps a good conversation going  :-) I felt like you too. The more I practice, the more control I feel like having. But I still would not be able to do it without the wall. I am also noticing that it is my head that wants to push against the wall, not necessarily other body parts… Just like when I was doing the reverse leg lifts on the stall bars, my head wants to be very active…  

For what it's worth, some people use leaning against the wall and going up as a progression for press HS. And the pushing off of your mid back from the position you will reach (a HS with most of your back on the wall) for mid-trap strengthening. 

Using your head against the wall is definitely one way to cheat that movement and thus not advised :). It's using your neck muscles to compensate for your mid traps...

@Kai Ewert great info, thanks! I will keep my head in check and try to find the feeling in the middle traps. Later today, it's my HS day, so I will work on it. 

How is it going for you?

On 1/6/2018 at 3:22 PM, Tobias Karlsson said:

How is it going for you?

I just made a video of these and even though I felt maybe a little stronger, looking at it, it looks just the same  :-( grrrrr… but I just found this drill below, that I started to do two days ago, and it is great for me to feel what muscles I need to contract to keep my glutes up in the air ( was able to do only 4 seconds the first day, and 17 seconds the next day… something is waking up)…  I will keep working on it and see if in a few weeks it will help me with this press walk… how about you? Any progress and "discoveries"? 

@Tobias Karlsson I just went to look at my first video (Nov 7) and the new one (Jan 8) and I can see that I am not planching as much when leaning forward and it looks like I am compressing better (or at least I think :-) ) … so maybe there is some improvement. 

Nov 7 vs Jan 8

5 hours ago, Suzanna McGee said:

@Tobias Karlsson I just went to look at my first video (Nov 7) and the new one (Jan 8) and I can see that I am not planching as much when leaning forward and it looks like I am compressing better (or at least I think :-) ) … so maybe there is some improvement. 

 

Nov 7 vs Jan 8

 

Nice progress @Suzanna McGee

I too have long struggled with this one. Probably due to my abnormally long arms. Lol

I have found it very helpful to revisit press walks every now and then. with a strong emphasis on pressing and curling at the same time;)