HSPU's in 18.4 - The debate continues

                    

The Handstand Push Up (HSPU) standard has caught loads of people out.

In 18.4, it’s not 21 handstand push-ups. 

It’s 21 handstand push-ups that meet the new movement standards. 

For the perfect HSPU you require:

·        Full range of motion at the shoulder (gleno-humeral joint)

·        An active shoulder position (Scapula elevation)

·        Midline stability (not arching your back)

HANDSTAND PUSH-UP

 Primary movers: Deltoids, triceps brachii. 

The handstand push-up (HSPU), sometimes considered a headstand push-up, begins in a handstand. The athlete then lowers to a headstand, creating a triangle with the hands and the top of the head before pressing back up to a handstand.

 The triangle creates a slightly disadvantageous lever system because the hands are further away from the frontal plane. As explained earlier in the course, disadvantageous levers build a great deal of strength. In a barbell press, the hands and bar are kept close to the frontal plane to make the lift efficient. The press is an open-chain movement in which balance is more easily maintained by keeping the bar in this plane. 

However, in HSPU without the aid of a wall, keeping the hands and head aligned creates more instability. A wall is often utilized when performing handstand push-ups, which usually results in a loss of position. Gymnastics progresses from basic skills to more advanced skills, and maintaining the hollow position and creating the triangle will allow an athlete to progress to higher skills and develop dominating strength in the movement. 

In the purest gymnastics version of the movement, HSPU would be done on parallettes (EROM) without the use of a wall. The athlete would lower until the shoulders contact the bars and are level with the hands before pressing back to a handstand. Achieving this level of balance and strength takes a lot of practice and effort, but when it is reached, a headstand push-up against a wall becomes incredibly simple.

CrossFit Gymnastics Training Guide

When inverted, you’re going to lose height if you don’t fully lock out your elbows (range of motion) or if your shoulder blades are depressed (inactive shoulders).

You can lose a lot more height if you significantly arch your back (lack of midline stability).

Add those three errors together, and you might be well under the line at “lockout.”

Add in a super-wide hand position and you’re bound to get a no rep.

When training handstand push-ups, gymnasts actually recommend you hold a hollow position, keep your hands fairly narrow and lower your head in front of your hands to create a tripod position despite the fact that this creates a disadvantaged lever. 

That crappy lever is actually great for building titanic strength, and it allows a person to access more advanced movements, such as strict presses-to-handstands.

 This proper technique is part of a long progression.

The sloppy, wide-handed, arched-back, falling-away-from-the-wall kipping handstand push-up is now a thing of the past.

Looks like I will be doing Diane again.

Video: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNRMF4aKRFUCdzvJVBEMFdQ