Free Handstand Push-up

What is Free Handstand Push-up:

The Free Handstand Push-up, or simply handstand push-up, is a bodyweight overhead pressing exercise with a balancing component working primarily the shoulder flexors, shoulder abductors, and elbow extensors, particularly the front and middle deltoids and triceps brachii, as well as engaging other muscle groups for stabilization such as the core and hip muscles. This requires you to perform a controlled overhead press while balancing in a handstand position. This advanced variation not only targets the shoulders, triceps, and upper chest but also demands unparalleled stability, coordination, and mental focus.

Key Benefits:

Size and Strength: Targets the front and middle delts, upper chest, and triceps, promoting muscle growth and strength improvement.
Shoulder Emphasis: Targets the front and middle deltoids more than other push-up variations due to the inverted position emphasizing shoulder flexion and abduction, promoting shoulder muscle growth and strength.
Joint Stability: Enhances shoulder and elbow stability by engaging supporting muscles throughout the movement, contributing to joint health and injury prevention.
Core Activation: Requires core engagement to maintain stability and control throughout the movement, contributing to core strength and stability.
Balance and Coordination: Develop exceptional balance and coordination skills as you navigate the challenges of maintaining stability in the freestanding handstand position.
Functional Strength: Improves shoulder flexion and abduction strength, elbow extension strength, and overall fitness, translating to improved performance in daily activities and sports.
Versatile and Scalable: This can be performed with or without added resistance, making it adaptable for all fitness levels.
Convenience: This exercise can be performed virtually anywhere without equipment, making it accessible and convenient for most individuals.

Variations:

Pike Push-up: Considered as the foundation for all bodyweight overhead pressing exercises. It is performed while being in a pike position.
Back-to-Wall Handstand Push-up: A regression of this exercise that uses the wall for support to eliminate the balancing component and focus solely on the pressing aspect of the movement. It is performed with your back facing the wall, offering a lower difficulty than its counterpart.
Chest-to-Wall Handstand Push-up: A regression of this exercise that uses the wall for support to eliminate the balancing component and focus solely on the pressing aspect of the movement. It is performed with your chest facing the wall, offering a higher difficulty than its counterpart and mimicking the free handstand variation better.
Tiger Bend Handstand Push-up: An advanced variation of the handstand push-up, where you basically add a sphinx push-up component at the bottom before going up.

Grip Variations:

Narrow to Shoulder-width Grip: Lessens the shoulder abduction aspect of the movement, thus making it more of a front deltoids and triceps exercise.
Wider than Shoulder-width Grip: Incorporates more shoulder abduction aspect into the movement, emphasizing the lateral head of the deltoid engagement along with the front deltoid and triceps.
On Floor: Balancing with your fingers and palms alone, requires a more stable body from shoulders to toes, making it harder to balance.
On Paralletes: It allows you to use your forearm muscles more efficiently by gripping paralletes, thus making it relatively easier to balance. However, doing the extra range of motion will make the exercise harder.
On Yoga Blocks: Similarly, it allows you to use your forearm muscles more efficiently by gripping the yoga blocks, thus making it relatively easier to balance. However, doing the extra range of motion will make the exercise harder.
On Gymnastic Rings: Due to the instability aspect of performing the exercise on rings, which also depends on the length of the straps, the exercise will be much harder to perform.

How to perform Free Handstand Push-ups:

Starting Position: Place your hands firmly on the ground, slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. Raise your hips as high as possible and kick up to get into the handstand position. Engage your core and maintain shoulder elevation and slight protraction.
Execution: Initiate the movement by depressing your shoulders and lowering yourself towards the ground, allowing your head to go forward between your hands as necessary. Hold this position briefly, then return to the starting position.
Repetition: Repeat the movement for your desired number of repetitions.

Breathing Technique:

Proper breathing is crucial for maximizing performance and maintaining stamina throughout the exercise. Experiment with what you're comfortable with and let you perform your best. For starters, you can try the following:

Inhale: Inhale at the starting position.
Exhale: Exhale at the end position.

Solid Balance: Make sure to have a solid handstand balance of at least 10 seconds before attempting to rep it out. But you can still do it if you want. Just remember that you should work on your hand balancing when you find yourself being limited by loss of balance instead of strength in the movement.

Entry: You can get into the starting position in any way you prefer, such as using some kind of press or performing kick-ups as recommended.

Hand Position: From a pronated hand position, rotate your hand slightly outward to help reduce the strain on your wrists.

Scapular Engagement- Starting Position: Maintain scapular elevation for stabilitation purposes. It doesn't mean you must have your shoulders fully elevated; it simply has to be elevated to a certain degree to counteract shoulder depression through gravity and better stabilize the shoulders and engage your muscles more efficiently.

Scapular Engagement- Execution Phase: Maintain scapular depression and slight protraction throughout the execution phase of the exercise to stabilize the shoulders and engage your muscles more efficiently.

Shoulder Rotation: Maintain shoulder external rotation for better stability throughout the exercise.

Additional Information:

Ways to make it easier:

Focusing only on the Concentric or Eccentric phase
Doing it with straddled leg - getting your feet apart for more stability
Decreasing the Range of Motion - partial reps, only go as far as you can handle
Using external force for support - resistance bands, a partner or something
Regressing to an easier variation/exercise

Ways to make it harder:

Playing with the Tempo & adding an Isometric phase (pause/hold)
Leaning more forward on your way down
Increasing the Range of Motion - using a pair of paralletes or yoga block
Adding resistance - wearing weighted vest or backpack
Progressing to a harder variation/exercise