Pic of a Perfect Handstand

[long1468]

I have questions about the form of a perfect handstand. Do you squeeze the glutes in a handstand? Also, do you work towards a posterior tilt for a handstand? Also, what are good stretches to increase shoulder, lat, and t-spine flexibility? Also, can you post pictures of a perfect handstand?

[palmcron]

This is an old picture of Yuval Avalon. It was posted some time ago here as a good example.

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/8 ... N6WhOnl92Q

[RatioFitness]

Are the ribs considered flared in that picture?

[Coach Sommer]

No, the ribs are not considered flared in that picture. The key to whether or not the ribs are sufficiently pulled in is to observe the line of the spine; if it is flat - the ribs are fine, if it is arched the ribs need to be pulled in.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

[John Sapinoso]

I don't believe a perfect HS exist, that being said: for the purpose of this thread Yuval's may as well be an exception... :shock:

as far as your other questions,

Glutes, yes (as a novice aim to squeeze as hard as you can)

Tilt the pelvis forward ("tuck the tail bone under")

As far as correcting the shoulder like, this is a subject that takes some in person instruction or a chronicle of text ( :wink: ) and pics to convey.

Handbalancer gave this advice in a recent thread and it's a great place to start:

. One excellent stretch I always teach is to hold a stick with a supinated grip with both arms at about shoulder width, put the elbows on a table or the like and lean into the stretch. Remember also here the hollow position when stretching.

I've been doing this stretch for a few months now and my shoulder line has improved immensely.

[Aaron Griffin]

What about the head position? I know head position is very variable, but is the above acceptable for a "perfect" gymnastic handstand, or is that not so big of a point?

[John Sapinoso]

From a gymnastic standpoint, it's good to have the head slightly up so you can just see the hands when you look up.

As a side note, I just got to train with the man himself and his line really is that good and even better now...it's ridiculous.

[yuri marmerstein]

haha yes, that pic is very old but Yuval is very obsessive about his line.

It also helps the aesthetic in that he has no glutes. I can't quite get my line to look like that because my butt sticks out quite a bit.

Yuval has an interesting build in general as he is quite broad from the front but skinny from the side view

Though the line is very important and something continually to strive for, don't forget the issue of balance. I've met many acrobats/practitioners who had a great line but an underdeveloped sense of balance and so could not hold their handstands too well. It is a two sided coin, as there are many practitioners, some amateurs, some pro equilibrists who can balance really well without the straightest of lines.

As far as the "perfect handstand", it quite depends on your goals and training. The gymnastic handstand will end up being different than an equilibre handstand, as in gym the extra body tension is needed to protect the joints from all the pounding. In equilibre the idea is to relax what you can to make the position easier to hold. Capoeira is another handstand variation in which the head is looking out at the opponent and the body is very relaxed, ready to move.

Contortion hand balancers don't obey the typical laws either, so their positions will vary a lot from classical hand balancing.

[anhkun]

is it possible to like achieve perfect equilibrium in a perfect handstand where you only need to contract the muscles in the elbow and above and not rely on your fingertips and palms to counterbalance back n forth?

[yuri marmerstein]

The lower you balance from the better, so ideally elbows should be locked and all the movement should be from the hands

Eventually it is possible to keep everything completely still and put no conscious effort into balance, but by the time you get there you won't be asking such questions

[Nic Branson]

As you'll learn first, that feeling Yuri is talking about will come out of nowhere in training and it will be awesome. Then a couple months later you'll have yet to re-create it. Be patient and keep practicing.

[Aaron Griffin]

As you'll learn first, that feeling Yuri is talking about will come out of nowhere in training and it will be awesome. Then a couple months later you'll have yet to re-create it. Be patient and keep practicing.

First time I ever stuck it, I did it about 5 times in a row in one session, and clapped like a school girl. Still hard to find it again