In my last post on juggling I talked about the differences between learning most skills and that of hand balancing. The biggest difference being that hand balancing takes a lot of strength and endurance.
People talk about having the proper position which places the stress along the structure of the body versus using your strength to hold yourself up. This is true.
Building endurance holding this position against the wall allows you to train more when trying to learn the balance.
While holding a handstand out in the open is largely a matter of balance, you know once you get past a certain point fatigue starts to set in.
By working to increase the time you can hold a handstand against the wall you can increase your endurance overall. You should be able to balance and hold a freestanding handstand longer with more endurance.
But the main benefit is you’ll also have the endurance to train longer with greater effectiveness.
So even if you are working on balancing, still spending some time against the wall to improve your endurance will benefit you.
This applies to more than just the basic handstand. Why not try the same thing with the one hand handstand?
Of course, as going for long timed holds against the wall is fatiguing you’ll want to do these at the end of your practice, not at the start.
The same can be said of handstand pushups. Are you working on presses and freestanding handstand pushups? Make sure you have adequate strength to work on the skills of the movements. And to do that increase your reps and follow the progressions laid out in The Ultimate Guide to Handstand Pushups.
Work to increase your skills. Work to increase your endurance. Both lead towards the same goal.
Good Luck and Good Hand Balancing,
Logan Christopher
