HeSPU question and programming

[Paul Gray]

Hi guys

here's a quick look at my plan:

FSP's - every day doing all of the positions.

Day 1 - pullup and HeSPU variation FBE + core work

Day 2 - front level rows and dips + core work + at the end 5 x 40 secs of handstands = 3mins 20secs

Day 3 - pullup and HeSPU variation FBE + squats and other leg exercises to failure.

Day 4 - front level rows and dips + core work + at the end 5 x 40 secs of handstands = 3mins 20secs

My questions refer to HeSPUs.......is it too much to do them twice a week? (i'm also doing handstands for time trying to do 40seconds x 5 sets) mins total the the moment on the days i'm not doing the pressing.

I was doing 3 sets of 5 reps with my head raised 2 inches above the ground.

I've now lowered to 1 inch....and can do two reps max - does this mean that I will do 2 reps x 5 sets?

[Alexander Moreen]

I don't think its too much, however if you look at your workouts, all of your pushing is vertical. You should probably add in some pushups/psuedo planche pushups/bench press.

[Joshua Naterman]

+1.

You can actually do HeSPU every day if you are only doing 1-2 reps for 1 set in your warm up. Just do the press, don't lower down. Lowering causes damage that takes ~7 days to heal so you don't want to be doing that in your warm up. I would say that one of your actual HeSPU days should focus on negatives with a longer ROM and one day should just be concentric. I know, that sounds strange, but if you give it a try let me know how you feel. I am building a ton of strength this way surprisingly easily.

Try to press explosively, and take 2-3 seconds when you lower. If you decide to do 1-2 reps in your warm up I would suggest starting from whatever head or hand elevation allows you to be very explosive. Obviously you'll never be quite as explosive from your head on the floor as you will be from your head 6 " off the floor, but you should be able to put considerable explosive force into the press without kipping or bending the back.

If you do this, the concentric HeSPU workout would definitely be from a harder position than your warm up is, but you should still be able to complete the reps without arching the back. It is very important to force the shoulders to do the work and not the chest.

[Paul Gray]

Ok so the main thing I wanted to clarify was my sets and reps per week....i'm not sure that was answered:

doing 2 reps at 1 inch head above ground for 5 sets? And twice a week.

....but also another question has come up from Slizz's comments regarding negatives. On the days when I do my static handstands against a wall for time I do them chest to wall. I lower slowly and roll out of them each time. So effectively I'm doing x5 negative reps on those days also (twice a week). Will this hinder my progress?

:?:

[Joshua Naterman]

A few reps like that won't matter much, I mean volume and intensity always have to be considered. I would consider learning how to do a cartwheel out or something like that if you can, but that's not a huge deal.

[jl5555]

With HS chest to wall I started out doing as mentioned above a negative down to roll out. However, lately, I have been doing as Slizzardman suggest, cartwheel out. I have found that doing this has helped my stability. It's a bit of a skill to lower your legs into a straddle HS against the wall. Forces your hips to stay on top of your torso. Then you learn to control the negative of the legs down to the side. Good stuff.

[Samuel Carr]

Lowering causes damage that takes ~7 days to heal so you don't want to be doing that in your warm up.... I am building a ton of strength this way surprisingly easily.

Slizzardman i'm pretty sure i read one of your posts recently were you said you've been doing negative XR HSPU in your warm-up and this has helped you a lot

[braindx]

This depends on your goals to a large extent.

If you really want to prioritize HeSPUs you're going to want to do them at the very least 3-4x a week. If you keep them fairly low volume you can even throw them into warm ups or doing them grease the groove style like slizzard is suggesting.

Otherwise, put the handstand work in the beginning of your routine unless it is significantly negatively affecting your HeSPU quality.

If you're at this beginner stage I very strongly recommend a full body routine just because you get that 3-4x a week frequency on your goals instead of 2x a week. But that's up to you.

[Joshua Naterman]

Lowering causes damage that takes ~7 days to heal so you don't want to be doing that in your warm up.... I am building a ton of strength this way surprisingly easily.

Slizzardman i'm pretty sure i read one of your posts recently were you said you've been doing negative XR HSPU in your warm-up and this has helped you a lot

I did, but that wasn't every day. I ended up doing that about twice a week, but once a week for more volume would work better in that sense. If I was strong enough to do a few full rom XR HSPU that would be a good idea in the warm up.

[Paul Gray]

Hey thanks for the responses guys!

braindx - so you're saying I can work these every training day?! :twisted:

That sounds great, the max volume would be 3 sets of 5 reps? or would it need to be lower?

And my 5 sets of 2 reps would that be an ok volume?