why am i arching my back during handstands?

When I was younger I could do perfectly straight handstands, I had to walk them out but my back didn't arch.

Now I can hold a hand stand for a bit, but my back has a defined arch leaving my feet hanging at least a foot infront of my head. Is there a certain weakness that causes the back to arch?

I find shoulder flexibility to be the main cause. It could also be a weak lower back but that's usually not the case. Try some wall extensions and see how you do.

Dillon

A picture would be nice. How´s your head?

Dont look forward, look down through your eyebrows on your thumbs.

I fixed my arching back problem by pushing my shoulders up against my ears... it's a lot harder to balance this way, but it is a lot prettier

cdx said:

A picture would be nice. How´s your head?

Dont look forward, look down through your eyebrows on your thumbs.

I found that to be a big problem for me.

Sticking the the head out breaks the whole body line and I start to arch.

Dillon Zrike said:

I find shoulder flexibility to be the main cause. It could also be a weak lower back but that's usually not the case. Try some wall extensions and see how you do.

Dillon

I agree. Shoulder flexibility is usually the problem.

Shoulder flexibility in what way? I do have a seriously beat up left shoulder and my ROM is not what it should be. But I can hold my arms straight over my head no problem.

IS there something I am missing here?

Not necessarily, none of us have actually seen you, Dillion is making a guess based on the simple fact that most people don't have enough shoulder flexibility for handstand and have to compensate for that by arching the back.

If that's not you then the other thing he said most likely applies, weak midsection and possibly lazy glutes.

I'm more in that camp, and working hollow hold was my first step out towards getting a reasonably strong core.

9 times out of 10 if your back is arching in a handstand it's because of a lack of shoulder flexibility. That is just a guess because I haven't actually seen your handstand, but I would put money on it.

Pretty much anyone can hold their arms over there head, the question is weather or not you can actually do it while maintaining a hollow position through your torso. If you can, then my next guess would be that you have a lack of active shoulder flexibility. Even if you can stretch your shoulders to 180 degrees and stay hollow, you still may not have access to 100% of that flexibility while the weight of your whole body is pushing down on you.

The second most likely option in my opinion is just a lack of technique. Being upside down can be quite disorienting, and you may just not be familiar with what it feels like to open your shoulders and hollow out while you are in a handstand. It takes a long time to really understand and be fully aware of what position your body is in, and how to change that position, when you are standing on two feet, let alone on your hands.

Regardless of the problem your course of action will probably be about the same no matter what; keep stretching your shoulders, do active flexibility work like wall extensions which Dillon mentioned, and spend time in your handstand really striving to open your shoulder and hollow your body as much as possible.

I'm another example of this. I used to arch a lot in the handstand. As soon as I gained more shoulder rom, I easly fixed the arch, and my handstand also improved.

Thanks guys,

I'll keep working and also try to get a pic just so we can be certain what the issue is.

Thanks again,

Chris

I just found out my problem: I had to push my butt in the air, I always leaned my whole weight on my back, which is bad!

Rago said:

I just found out my problem: I had to push my butt in the air, I always leaned my whole weight on my back, which is bad!

Yeah! It is. But this can only be corrected if you have 180º shoulder rom. If not, you will end up in a straight, but inclined, body. You want your body in a straight line, from hands to feet, 90º from the floor.