The handstand is a fundamental skill in the sport of gymnastics. Not only is it an important technique in itself, but it’s also a stepping stone towards unlocking other, more advanced maneuvers, such as walkovers and handsprings. There are many different ways to get into a handstand, but gymnasts almost always enter the position with a kick-up. Take a short step forward and swing your back leg up behind you to shift your weight from your feet to your hands. Once there, bring both legs tight together and use small movements of your fingers and the heels of your hands to maintain your balance.
Method 1
Kicking up into a Handstand
1. Start in a lunge position. Stagger your stance as though you were mid-step, only with both feet touching the floor. Stay poised on the balls of your feet to prepare yourself to kick up and shift your weight to your hands.
Set your feet a comfortable distance apart. Having them too narrow or too wide may make your kick-up feel difficult and unnatural.
It doesn’t matter which leg is up front and which one is in the back. However, many gymnasts prefer to keep their stronger leg up front to provide more power and stability on their way up.
2. Raise your arms straight up over your head. Point your fingers towards the ceiling so that your biceps are right beside your ears. Straighten your arms as much as possible without locking your elbows and shrug slightly to engage the muscles in your shoulders and upper chest.
If your arms are bent too much when you get into an inverted position, it will make it much harder to hold yourself up.
3. Reach down towards the floor with both hands while lifting your back leg. Keeping your arms and back straight and firm, bend at the waist and place your palms flat on the floor. At the same time, shift your weight forward onto your front leg and pick up your back leg. Make sure your body forms a straight line from your shoulders to the toes of your back leg.
Spread your fingers wide to create a more stable base.
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This is only the first stage of the kick-up, which you'll perform in a single fluid motion when you're ready to actually attempt a handstand.
4. Kick up forcefully onto your hands and bring both legs together above you. Swing your back leg straight up behind you like you’re trying to kick the ceiling, letting your front leg follow naturally behind. After your front foot leaves the floor, bring it up to meet your kicking leg and hold both legs tight together to complete the handstand.
Watch from 1.37 minutes
Do your best to keep your legs touching the whole time you’re in your handstand. That way, you can avoid separation or windmilling, which can throw off your balance.
It may take some time to fine-tune your kick-up and learn to gauge how much force you need to get inverted without falling forward or backward. Be patient—this is one of the most difficult parts of the gymnastics handstand.
Tip: Once you’re upside down, imagine that your legs are a single unit, like they’re super-glued together. Where one goes, the other should follow.
5. Keep your body as straight and rigid as possible. Once you’ve found your balance point, tighten up and hold yourself steady. The idea is to keep everything “stacked” so that your wrists, elbows, shoulders, core, hips, knees, and ankles are all hovering over a single point. Olympic-level gymnasts look like statues when they go into handstands.
Be sure to straighten out any bent or slack points. If a single part of your body comes out of alignment, you’ll lose your handstand or have to struggle to regain control.
When you’re first learning how to hold a handstand, you may be tempted to look down at your hands, which is okay. In a proper handstand, however, your head should be in line with the rest of your body, with your gaze fixed somewhere in front of you.
Don’t forget to point your toes if you’re a competitive gymnast. Judges will deduct points for floppy feet!
View from 0.50 sexsand
Here I talked about the first method; we will talk about the second in the next lesson.
Artemus Vazhui