Skip to main content
Also known as: Half handstand pushup.

Technique

  1. Perform a Handstand on the ground.
  2. Start bending at the shoulders and elbows to bring your body down.
  3. As you go down, the upper part of your torso will naturally go in front of your hands, and your legs will go behind your hands.
  4. At the bottom position, your whole body will be at a slight angle leaning forward.
  5. Push back up to the Handstand position, where your whole body is aligned vertically.

Form tips

  • Avoid arching your back: there should be a straight line from your feet to your shoulders at all times.
  • Avoid letting your elbows flare out to the sides: they should stay relatively close to the centerline.

Muscles

Strength

Primary

  • Back
  • Serratus anterior
  • Shoulders
  • Triceps
  • Neck

Secondary

  • Chest
  • Forearms
  • Lower trapezius
  • Serratus anterior
  • Anterior deltoid
  • Middle deltoid
  • Triceps brachii (long head)
  • Triceps brachii (medial head)
  • Triceps brachii (lateral head)
  • Posterior deltoid
  • Upper trapezius
  • Levator scapulae

Equipment

Appears in

Progressions

e04e

Handstand pushup

Elite
e07a

One-arm handstand

Herculean

Regressions

e02s

Crow pose to handstand

Advanced
e0d1

Wall handstand pushup

Advanced
e0d6

Wall headstand pushup

Intermediate
e02j

Chest roll press-to-handstand

Elite
e0r8

Side walk straddle handstand

Advanced
e04h

Handstand walk

Advanced
e04a

Narrow handstand

Advanced
e04f

Handstand shoulder taps

Advanced
Want to log this exercise? Open it in Calistree. Text and images are used under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0; the video plays from the original source.