Handbalancing

[palmcron]

I am surprised that I am still having so much fun with my handstand work. . . I have never really done anything that I truly enjoy this much . . .even when I have ‘bad’ days I still have a blast.

I can only second that. I don't train with as much discipline as you do, but handstand-practice is always something that makes me feel better/good.

[RickyVT]

Going out of town tomorrow (spring break), of course I will be practicing . . .might take video, might not. I have a shooting video/review to finish filming and editing and I want to get it done before I do any other video things. My goals for break are to finish filming/editing my shooting video, build 2 handbalancing platforms (one with canes) and make some balancing blocks (I think 6 should be all I need for a long, long time). I will only have dial up internet so I usually just check email and ignore the forums because it takes way too long to load everything.

See you in a little over a week!

[RickyVT]

I built my blocks and platforms over break! Check it out!

[portaldo]

Very nice!

I am not using my blocks these days (for a long time now... Just floor for me..) but I can apreciate the fun in making a training tool and then... Actualy using it to train.

Keep up the good work,
Ido.

[RickyVT]

I, and a few others at my gym, are having a lot of fun with the thicker blocks. I bring them to the gym everyday and at the end of my practice I just do a couple tuck holds and a couple regular handstand holds on them just to start getting used to them. I have only messed with the canes once but its starting to be really nice outside (weather wise) and I am going to start practicing outside when I get home from work and maybe a little on the weekends. Maybe get a little tan going in the process I want to re incorporate Florio into my workouts as well because whenever I get a chance to just mess around with it I have a lot of fun but my movements are very limited; QDR, rotations to high/low bridge, role, and Au Cortado is about all I got at the moment I really want to work on the Corta Capim Spins and Rotations. Should be a fun and useful break between handstands

[RickyVT]

No block work today (well I did one arm elbow levers on them ) but I did have some nice holds (tuck and full out) with a chin tucked to chest head position. The stretch in my shoulders took some getting used to, but actually felt good once I got the hang of it, I must have been really opening my shoulders because the stretch was ridiculous. I need to video my 90 degree leg with chin to chest hold because it felt really solid today once I figured out how to get into the position better. I was first moving my legs and then my head and was having a heck of a time holding the position. So today I moved my head and then my legs and viola! I finally got some solid 5+ second holds! From my wall practice I learned I need to really squeeze my butt and my shoulder blades together to get a stable position, body tension is key. I need to get some more footage of my wall drills as well, its not an ideal way to learn new positions but its the best I have since I dont have access to a hand spotter. I am getting better and better at my one arm QDR as well, and I got a 'OMG!' from one of the regulars at the gym when I was working my airbaby. . .one finger on the ground! SO CLOSE! Fun day but I have been taking it easy on my right arm because my elbow has been sore the past few days, it doesnt bug me when I do any of my handbalancing/planche work (thankfully!) but it bugs me when I get on the rings . . . shouldnt of been sucked into the cross work my teammates were doing last Friday. . . Well I have my CCW class tomorrow morning and then I am going out to the range to do some defensive shooting practice and maybe mess with my M1 Garand some (got a bayonet for it last weekend lol! ).

[RickyVT]

CCW class was a ton of fun and the range was extra fun. . . well here are some physique shots I took at the beginning of March. I am 164lbs in the pics, goal weight 185, after I cut whatever fat (hopefully minimal) I gain in the process so I might gain to 190 ish and then cut down. Total gain since I started this is 10 lbs. I havent weighed myself since then so I hopefully have gained a little more. I am only posting a couple but there are more in the webshots gallery that the pics link to. I think I have me at 155 somewhere on my computer I just cant find them and I dont feel like digging that much. I think the pics of my on the rings is fairly close to me at 155. No matter how much bigger my arms get I dont think that they will ever actually look big lol stupid 6ft 4in+ arm span At least I am finally getting visible lats, traps and shoulders
Relaxed


Flex


Back, ring support like


Back, handstand like w/ neutral head


I guess I will post pics again when I hit 175, and then again at the 185 to 190 ish mark before and after I cut.

[RickyVT]

Woot! Actually had a decent handstand this morning. I try to get a few holds right after my morning stretch and right before I leave for school/work but, for some reason, I am always all over the place in the mornings. Well today I actually had a solid 15 second hold, could of been longer but the bus doesnt wait lol. Only time for 1 real quick hold but it was a great way to start the day, used my sweet handstand board too. Well, I have to finish getting ready for a meeting at 10am. . . its usually at 4pm and I was told at the end of the day yesterday so its time to RUSH!

[RickyVT]

Sorry for the lack of activity I have been practicing for NAIGC Nationals this Friday and doing my best getting my elbow back up to snuff before then! For the past few days it has felt great and I had no ill effects when I ran through my ring routine a few times today. Still did some handbalancing work but it was just airbaby, 1 arm QDR and 1 arm elbow lever work and I only did like 1 handstand. The airbaby is getting closer!! But next week I am going to start lifting seriously for max strength, my warm up will be my handbalancing work and then I will walk over and do most of my conditioning in the weight room. I am still working on my program but so far I know it will involve deadlifts, frontsquats, regular bench and incline bench and some different varieties of the previously stated, like rack pulls for the deadlift. I will also include weighted pullups, weighted chins, and weighted neutral grip pullups. The various protocols I have been looking at call for seated and chest supported rows which I will sub with XR elevated rows and various kinds of pushups that I will sub with XR pushups (on the recovery days) and tuck planche pushups/pseudo planche pushups w/ feet elevated (for the hard work days). I am basically going to use the Maximum Strength protocol by Eric Cressey, but sub in any machine work for BW variations and keep in all the barbell and dumbbell work, except things like lunges and such, I will switch out most of that kind of thing with more BtGB leg work. The thing that really got me liking his book was his exercise suggestions, he had all the weighted pull up and chin up work, so that was +1 in my book, natural leg curls, another +1, dragon flags (I will do body levers ), another +1, and then he had ONE LEG SQUATS, like +10! He also prescribes deadlifts, front squats and all there varieties (which I all ready do but I dont really have much direction with them) and several different bench pressing variations. I think going back to a solid plan written out on paper every day I go the gym will help me jumpstart my progress strength wise (and thus weight gain as well). I got the nutritional part down fairly well and I know how my body feels when its running great and when it starts getting beat up a bit too much, so I should be able to regulate my fatigue if the programming doesnt do it for me. Basically he has a decent looking way to combine a lot of the BW movements I know all ready with the 3 big lifts, which is what I have wanted to do for a long time. So I am going to give it a try and see what happens. The program is in 4 week rotations so I think I can make a ton of progress in 2-3 of those rotations. . . I will just have to wait and see!

[portaldo]

Ricky, just a quick note:
I noticed in your pictures that you seem to carry most of your fat around the supra-iliac and lower back site.
According to the Biosignature model that means too many carbs are ingested or from poor sources for your metabolic type.
Other areas seem in front of the supra-iliac in terms of leaness, you may want to make an effort to balance that.

Good job, as always on your training, keep yourself focused, down the line thats what will make the difference between someone who stands on one arm and someone who did not make it.

Ido.