How to go from zero to hero with wall handtsand pushups ?

To master your first complete wall handstand push-up, I suggest working on these 5 progressions:

1. Pike Push-Ups
2. Elevated Pike Push-Ups
3. Negative wall Handstand Push-Ups
4. Half Wall Handstand Pushups
5. Full Wall Handstand Pushups
   

Ready? Follow along!

Let's get to work

To begin, let's go over the common execution elements for all the variations I'm going to present to you:

• Hand Placement :
• Width: Place your hands at a width equivalent to the width of your shoulders, plus one hand's width on each side.
• Positioning : In the starting position, your head, shoulders, elbows, and hands should be aligned.
• Elbow Lockout: With arms extended, lockout your elbows and turn them forward, so when you descend, your elbows bend toward your body and not outward.
• Avoid looking at the floor during the exercise; it makes it more challenging. Keep your head in a neutral position and gently touch the ground with the top of your head.
• Inhale while descending, exhale while maintaining abdominal pressure on the way up.
  

Pike pushups

This is the first progression towards ATR push-ups, evolving from regular push-ups to start working on a more vertical push.

• Body Positioning : Start in a regular push-up position with your legs extended. From there, lower your knees to the ground and bring them towards your hands until you can sit on your heels. Then, extend and straighten your legs. You should now be able to assume the starting position with hips bent at a right angle.
• Foot Placement: Your feet are on the ground, ideally close together.
• Execution: In the starting position, bend your arms while keeping your elbows as close to your body as possible. Shoulders, head, and buttocks move in unison and at the same pace. Reverse the movement to come up.

Progression: You have several possible progression routes :

• Foot Placement: You can make it easier by spreading your legs and then gradually bringing them together as you progress.
• Range of Motion: Start by only descending halfway and increase the range of motion gradually until your forehead touches the ground.
  

Elevated pike pushups

An advanced version of pike push-ups, this puts more emphasis on the upper body as your torso is vertical.

• Foot Placement: Keep your feet close together and place them on an elevated surface, with the minimum height at knee level.
• Body Position: Once your feet are in position on the support and your hands are on the ground in a declined push-up position, bring your hands closer until your torso is vertical or nearly vertical in the starting position. Your legs are extended, hips bent at an angle between 45 and 90 degrees, and your buttocks point upward.
• Execution: The execution elements of basic pike push-ups apply.

Progression: To progress, gradually increase the height of the support under your feet until your body is completely vertical. You can also manage your range of motion to progress.

Negative wall handstand pushups

Here, you'll start working in a completely inverted position as you balance against a wall.

• Leg Placement: Begin in an ATR position with your legs spread apart.
• Execution: In the wall-supported ATR position, gradually lower yourself until your head touches the floor. Once in the low position, shift to return to your feet and reset the position.

Progression: Gradually bring your legs closer together as you advance until they are completely squeezed together.

Half wall handstand pushups

Here, you'll work on both the descent (negative phase) and ascent (positive phase) with reduced range of motion.

• Leg Placement: Keep your legs apart throughout the movement.
• Execution: In the wall-supported ATR position, descend until your arms are bent at 45 degrees, then ascend with arms extended.

Progression: Start by bringing your legs closer together, then increase the range of motion until your arms are bent at about 90 degrees and your head touches the ground.

Full wall handstand pushups

You're on the final stage, the full version. The same execution points as for full ATR half push-ups apply, but you descend with full amplitude.

And there you have it! ATR push-ups! If you've made it this far, congratulations! But what do you do once you can do more than 10 repetitions? You can progress to:

• Close-Hand WHSPU Push-Ups: Bring your hands closer together until they touch, forming a diamond shape.
• Full Range WHSPU Push-Ups: Perform wall handstand push-ups with your hands on an elevated surface, allowing your head to go below hand level until your hands touch your shoulders.
• Unsupported handstand Push-Ups: In this version, you perform the exercise without a wall for support, increasing the strain on your muscles and adding a balance element.

It's your turn to play!