improve your handstand

handstand courses blog

Why are handstands so popular? Is it the rush of blood to the head or the exhilaration of being yourself upside down that draws people to want to handstand? Reminiscent of childhood, handstands are rejuvenating and exceptionally satisfying when you do finally manage to hold one for longer than a blink of an eye. As playful as they may be, learning how to do a handstand safely and with good technique is always a good idea. 

Why are handstands important?
Well, arguably they’re not. You can easily go through life without doing a single handstand and be just fine. But the challenge and therefore the joy when they start to make sense is food for the soul. In addition, the body awareness you gain from doing handstands benefits your other movements, your regular yoga practice and all your other inversions and arm balances improve too, without you even thinking that hard. BKS Iyengar pointed out that handstand “develops the body harmoniously. It strengthens the shoulders, arms and wrists and expands the chest fully”.

Remember, falling is normal
Whatever your motivation, many people who want to learn to handstand are held back by fear of falling out of one. I think it is common for people to expect themselves to be able to hold one and then feel dejected when they repeatedly fall. The good/bad news (depends on your perspective) is that you should expect to fall more than you’ll hold it. Even the most accomplished handstanders in Cirque du Soleil fall sometimes. Falling is 97% of handstanding. Falling is normal.

The even better news is that a large chunk of the first lesson of the four week handstands course at Chelsea starting on Monday 29th July 2019 will be dedicated to teaching you to bail properly so that when the inevitable happens and you kick up and overshoot, you’ll know how to fix yourself and land on your feet, rather than in the dreaded broken heap.

Breaking free from the wall
Speaking of kicking up, how often do you kick up wildly, hoping for the best, and it’s a fluke if you stay for longer than a heartbeat? Or do you go to the wall, knowing that it will save you from the inevitable? The sobering reality is that if you always use the wall, you will always use the wall. Do what you’ve always done, and you’ll always get what you’ve always got. Change it up, find a friend to hold you and you will gradually learn to find your balance away from the wall.

What are the most important things to consider when doing handstands?
Your hands, your shoulders, your chest, your back, your bum, your legs, your feet. In other words, everything. It’s a whole-body experience. On a more serious note, one thing that will really benefit your handstand practice is opening your shoulders. A little every day, find a bar, a banister, a railing or sturdy door frame and hang from it. Stretching your shoulders will make finding your alignment much easier, but you can still handstand with tight shoulders.

But what if you don’t know how to get into a handstand in the first place? Thankfully there are loads of different ways to get into a handstand – kick up with one leg, with two, taking the legs out to the side and up, floating up, jumping from kneeling… you get the idea. You’ll get to try some of them on the course to see which ones work for you.

How to improve your handstand
The best way to improve your handstand is to practise little and often – even five minutes a day will make a difference over a week. Over four weeks that difference could be huge. That’s why you’ll be given exercises to do at home between each week of the course. If you’ve never taken your handstand away from the wall, now is the time to start. Step out of your comfort zone and experience the magic of handstanding independently in the middle of the room. Your life will be all the richer for it.

Awareness of how to position your body is key to holding a handstand. From hands to toes, my handstand course starting on Monday, 29 July 2019 will give you the “how” by exploring the fundamental alignment that will keep you balanced.

Click here to learn more and book your spot in Amy’s workshop ‘improve your handstand: a 4 week course’. Get 20% off full price of this course when you use promo code ‘summercourses20’ at checkout.

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