OAHS and my beginnings of consistency

[John Sapinoso]

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This is the result of the past few months of (nearly obsessive) work toward the OAHS. Of course I'm not satisfied with it yet but I've been hitting the 10 second benchmark fairly regularly these past few weeks. Left arm is coming along and right around the 5 second mark on a good day.

Let me know what you think.

[acegerter]

looking good man, long way to go but the progress picks up once you get the general feel for the balance

do you do much block/cube work?

not sure what your daily practice looks like but these are some things that really work for me:

--with 1 block under each hand: unstack to the floor then get back up on them (make sure to alternate so that you don't develop unevenly)

--unstack>restack with 2 blocks under each hand (traps and delts kill after too many sets of these...)

--stomach against the wall, straight body & arm at your side, alternate holding 1 arms for 2-3mins. just spending time on one hand (regardless of the wall) helps more than you'd imagine

--hold on to something with your free hand, move your legs from straddle to straight body very slowly, quality on this, not quantity, your just trying to find your center

let me know if any of that was helpful haha

keep it up

[WitnessTheFitness]

Very kickass, especially for just a few months of working on it. I'm nowhere near ready to work on a OAHS, but when I do start training I hope it looks half as nice as that one

[Ian Legrow]

i am dying to start doing this. But i have heard you need to be able to do a hs press before you can work on it...so i have a little bit before i can even start.

wonderful John! I am so jealous that ido teahces u

[John Sapinoso]

Ace, thanks for the tips man. I haven't done any block work yet. I've simply done loads of volume near a wall and then progressed away from it. I made some earlier today though so I'll give it a shot. This is a huge question but what is the basic premise behind using blocks? Is it meant for trap conditioning / decreasing wrist strain / learning not to push with the opposite hand ?

Thanks Aurele.

I appreciate the sentiment Ian. I learned the OAHS progressions and technique from Ido, but note this was achieved without any sort of private online coaching or magic dust...just a lot of volume, frequency, intelligent approach and stubborn fortitude. Good luck in your training, your handstand has made leaps and bounds in progress from what I've seen on these forums.

[Ian Legrow]

Thank you my friend that means a lot otme.

I actually speak to Yuval Avalon once in a while and he told me to start using blocks. WHen i asked him why the long and short of it was, it makes HS easier, and will also prepare you for cane work. What i have found from using blocks personally is it is very different. It is almost like combining floor work and parallet work. Yuval told me sooner or later blocks would be easier then floor work. But what i have personally found with blocks, is they are so different from the floor, that when you start on the floor againm you may find like i did that floor becomes a lot easier. After doing 30 minutes on blocks, i find i am able to stay on my hands on the floor without any problem balancing and can stay in the handstand sometimes twice as long

Hope this helps! and keep up the good work my friend

[yuri marmerstein]

Ace, thanks for the tips man. I haven't done any block work yet. I've simply done loads of volume near a wall and then progressed away from it. I made some earlier today though so I'll give it a shot. This is a huge question but what is the basic premise behind using blocks? Is it meant for trap conditioning / decreasing wrist strain / learning not to push with the opposite hand ?

All of the above really. When you get used to it, the blocks make the balance a bit easier on one arm, but keep in mind you have to learn not to squeeze your hands hard or you will get tired fast and won't be able to feel your fingertips later.

Apart from that, block stacking is really useful for shifting weight from arm to arm while keeping balance under varying conditions, so it will do a lot for your balance. Getting used to shifting weight without calculating or thinking about it is a good quality to possess.

[irongymnast]

Looking great ts00nami!! Well done!

[John Sapinoso]

Getting used to shifting weight without calculating or thinking about it is a good quality to possess.

Makes sense, I'll try adding it to my arsenal.

[Mikael Kristiansen]

Thats looking great! You are balancing with with very small movements which is a good sign. Your straddle looks good and you do not twist to any significant degree. Free arm is not too bad, though you can keep it more relaxed. Remember, even on 1 arm, both trapezius should be shrugged to keep the shoulders square. This is what later will enable you to lift and play with the free arm.

You should keep doing the straddle and increase your average time and endurance, but dont be afraid to also try out new things. I would especially recommend you to play with lifting the free arm, first to 90 degrees and then all the way to your leg. Also, try moving the legs down into a flag position, this should come easy for you i think, since you are strong. Leg positions are also good to play with.

The advice above is also good, blocks are excellent to build up consitency and a good push in the shoulders.

[John Sapinoso]

Special thanks to yuri, handbalancer and acegerter. Your helpful nudges and tips along the way have been infinitely helpful.