If you’ve been following along here for awhile now, you might remember the One Arm Handstand (OAHS) piece I published earlier, where I talked about 5 things I wish I’d known before starting my OAHS journey. In this piece, I want to dive into more detail on the OAHS. I’ll cover things you should know if you are just starting out on your one arm handstand journey, as well as tips and advice that might be helpful if you have already gotten started on this epic move.  

There are so many factors that come into play with the One-Armed Handstand, and in this video I want to try to consolidate all of the information you might have come across regarding this move into something clear and easily digestible. After reading this piece you should have a clearer perspective on your approach to the OAHS, as well as some practical tips you can apply to your OAHS training which will make it more effective and efficient.  Let’s get into it! 

The Many One-Armed Handstand Positions

A one-arm handstand can be performed in many ways: 

1. With an anterior pelvic tilt, straddled legs, and pushed out(elevated shoulders) 

2. Retracted shoulders with posteriorly tilted pelvis 

3. Large forward lean without flexed shoulders 

The above variants and more are possible - which one is the most efficient? The answer to this question might change depending on who you’re asking. For example, contortionists, such as @oyunasenge, may perform a handstand with completely un-flexed shoulders and a large back bend. If done correctly, as she does, this isn’t necessarily less efficient than performing the OAHS with flexed shoulders. 

A quick reminder on flexed versus un-flexed shoulders: (show screenshot)

The only real requirement for a one-arm handstand is that your center of gravity is above your hand. How you get your center of gravity over your hand can be done in many ways. 

However, there are a few things that I think will make getting your center of gravity above your hand easier. 

Trying the OAHS with un-flexed shoulders(probably not a good idea)

Recall that flexed shoulders are when, with your arms being completely straight, your arms are pointing straight up, to 12 o clock. If they start to come downwards to, say, 11 o clock, 10 o clock, or 9 o clock, they are not flexed. 

If you want to try to do a one-arm handstand with un-flexed shoulders, you have two options: 

1. Have a large back bend 

2. Leaning in on your shoulder. This is not an efficient way to perform the OAHS in my opinion, because in this case we will need to use a lot more force from our shoulders. 

Another thing about having un-flexed shoulders, is that you are not able to straddle as much. By not being able to straddle as much, you may be making it harder on yourself to keep your balance. 

If you’re reading between the lines here, you’ve probably got the message. Above is what, in my opinion, you likely should not be doing when approaching the OAHS.

Let’s go over what, if you’re most people,  I think you should really focus on. 

How to make the one arm handstand easier

Shoulder positioning 

You can probably guess by my stance on un-flexed shoulders, that I think it is indeed best to have flexed shoulders for the OAHS. 

In my opinion, the main things you should remember about shoulder positioning for the OAHS are: 

1. Elevate your shoulders, i.e. push the ground away from you

2. Flex your shoulders, i.e. arms should be in line with your body 

3. Internal rotation, i.e. elbow pits face each other 

Why?

Regarding elevated shoulders, this is something that is helpful because, when your shoulders are elevated you get more control of your movement while in the one-arm handstand. This is because, when your shoulders are elevated you are using your muscles to control the movement, and with your muscles you can make adjustments. If they are not elevated, you are leaning on your joint and you will not be able to make adjustments in your position as easily. 

Flexion of your arms will make your OAHS more efficient, and will also allow you to have more of a straddle. We will go more into that below. 

Internal rotation of your shoulders has a few functions. In particular, internal rotation of the shoulders plays an important part in keeping your balance. This factor especially comes into play once your OAHS position is stable. 

Hip and Leg Positioning (Full or Straddle One Arm Handstand?)

Hip and leg positioning are another really big part of the OAHS and, in particular, a big question surrounding the One-Armed Handstand is whether it is better to do it in the full position, with legs straight, or the straddle position, where your legs are out to the sides. 

In my opinion, the straddle position is much easier for the one-arm handstand. 

At the beginning, if your straddle is not good, then of course the full position OAHS might feel better. 

However, in my opinion it makes more sense to develop a good straddle, than to spend, say, a year longer on your OAHS trying to achieve it in the full position. 

When your legs are in a straddle position, your center of gravity moves down. This makes balancing your one-arm handstand much easier. 

In addition, when your legs are in the straddle position, it’s easier to control your hips. In the full one-arm handstand position, you’ll get all kinds of wobbles which will make it much harder to balance. A small wobble when in the full OAHS position will likely force you to bring another hand down to the ground or to put your feet down. With the straddle OAHS, this isn’t necessarily the case. 

Also with the straddle, your weight is distributed on a wider plane. This makes compensating/adjusting much easier. Think of a tightrope walker holding a long stick in both hands, extending far out to his left and right. It’s the same concept :). 

A note on doing the straddle: in order to do the straddle properly, you should have an anterior pelvic tilt in your hips. That is, stick your ass out #forthegram. You can try this standing up. You’ll be able to move your feet further away/ get closer to doing the splits when you are anteriorly tilting, than when you are not. 

Your gaze 

Your gaze, i.e. where you look, is another important factor for your one-arm handstand. The place that I recommend you direct your eyes is the same as where you’d look for a regular handstand. That point that is/would be in between your left and right hand, is where I recommend you look. This factor does come down to preference and may change slightly depending on the person. Some people like to look a little closer to the hand they are standing on while in the OAHS. 

Summary

Let’s summarize. Tips on how to one arm handstand:

1. Have a stable shoulder position with flexed, elevated, and internally rotated shoulders 

2. Have a wide and deep straddle 

3. Direct your eyes to the place on the ground which would be between your left and right hand 

Coming up soon I’ll have another video and blog piece with drills and exercises you can use to help you along on your One Armed Handstand journey. In the meantime, I hope this has helped in some way. For the most detailed and complete guide to learning the One Armed Handstand, certainly the best thing for you to do would be to check out my app, where I have complete programs built for the One Armed Handstand. These programs have fully designed training sessions ready-made for you, so all you have to do is work through each day’s training session. Progress is inevitable if you follow these programs with focus and consistency. 

That’s all for now folks. Take care! 

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