Handstand is now trend - and we reveal why!

It all started with a sentence that did not let me go. "If life has you down, do a handstand," I read in The New York Times. And further: "The more insecure, angry, anxious or confused you feel, the sooner you should bring your hands to the ground, swing your feet over you and let all the negative emotions flow into the earth."

I've just had a lot of negative feelings, especially stress, because I'm constantly rushing back and forth between job and children and are not enough everywhere. In that state, that word caught me and shook me. Handstand! I used to be one of those girls throwing their legs in the air everywhere. And I still remember exactly the liberating feeling, the tingling in the stomach and the fun that I had with it.

#handstand becomes an Instagram trend with 3 million entries!

As is often the case when you discover a topic for yourself: Suddenly I saw handstands everywhere - in magazines, in social networks, in yoga classes and in crossfit. Handstand is trend, I read: because it improves the balance, posture and strength in the arms, shoulders and mid-body - otherwise rather neglected body regions.

Yogis believe he as well calms and provides clarity, concentration, energy and self-confidence, "Handstand is about connecting with the earth," says Jelena Lieberberg, yoga teacher and handstand expert from Berlin. "It allows one to perceive the world differently, to break old patterns, to feel free." And: It just looks damn cool, if you master it (by the way, you can find more than three million entries on Instagram under the hashtag #handstand, which is a real source of inspiration!).

Beware of the first handstand!

But just start like that? "Not recommended is the handstand for people with frequent headaches, vascular anomalies in the head, high blood pressure, pregnancy, heart problems, diabetes, obesity and osteoporosis," says the orthopedist. Jan Schilling from Hamburg. "It is important stabilize the position muscularly otherwise the risk of injury is too great. For the totally untrained, the exercise is therefore not recommended. "

A handstand is the culmination of control, every cell works with

Although I'm trained, but my first attempt is still devastating: I can not even get up against the wall, afraid to tilt backwards and lose control. What's going on there?

"It takes a lot of courage to trust that your hands can support your body," says Jelena Lieberberg to comfort her. "And power. Exactly why handstand is a terrific exercise: it is the culmination of control, every cell in the body works with. You have to regain confidence in your power. "Just swinging up, without practice, that does not work:" It's a process. For some it takes years. "

First comes the overcoming, then the fascination

I decide to turn myself upside down on the wall every day. That's six months ago, and to say it straight away, I did not do it on a daily basis, but certainly four to five times a week. At the beginning with much overcoming, then with increasing fascination.

After two weeks I thought: Wow, that's shocking! After four weeks: something happens. I stand upside down, in the truest sense of the word. Not only externally, but also internally. I turn gravity around and my thinking too: less inner moaning, more laughter about myself and the circumstances, even if they are just totally annoying. I notice how I miss something if I do not turn around.

I'm doing a handstand workshop at "Innersmile Yoga" in Hamburg, where I'm learning to activate the body center better (with many abdominal exercises) and to be more aligned (and for the first time also a few seconds free, without a wall).

My life with the handstand

In the meantime handstand has become a way for me switch off, let go and have a good mood to get. Whenever I am sad or annoyed and there is a blank wall near me, I swing my legs in the air and the world looks different again.

The good news: Almost anyone can learn it. Those who create a few push-ups, have reasonably well-trained abdominal, back and shoulder muscles, healthy wrists and no health contraindications can get started step by step - preferably in a handstand workshop with instructions. And then, when you finally stand up powerfully and the blood rushes in your head, something beautiful happens: you're proud. And wants more. Maybe someday I'll be able to stand longer.

This is how the perfect handstand succeeds:

1. Slowly approach:
   First build muscles on the stomach, back, arms and shoulders before venturing to the handstand. Good are z. B. Exercises such as forearm support, push-ups, shoulder presses with dumbbells.
2. Warm up well:
   Wrists and shoulders circle, ten times in each direction, then a few sun greetings.
3. Prepare the handstand:
   Spiderman Walk: Lie in prone position on the mat, feet touch the wall. Push up into the push-up. Then slowly with your feet back up the wall, at the same time wander your hands to the wall, until you stand in the handstand with a view to the wall. Return to the starting position, three passes.
   Handstand on the wall: Kneel in front of a wall in quadruped position so that the feet touch the wall. Slowly push your butt to the ceiling, stretch your legs and run your feet up the wall until your legs and upper body form a right angle. Important: stretch the arms. Keep as long as possible.
   Handstand bouncer: From the looking-down dog with hands in front of the wall lift the right leg up, bend the leg and swing it up with the inhalation. 5 x per page.
4. Hold the tension in the handstand:
   Tense the thighs, torso and buttocks, turn the upper arms slightly outwards, tighten the ribs, push the armpits forward, the shoulders pull away from the ears. Important: The balance is in the hands! The hands are shoulder-width, fingers point forward, the weight lies on the pointing ngerballen. The head is relaxed, the view goes forward to the floor. And do not fall into the hollow cross.

Handstand Fails | Funny Fail Compilation (May 2024).