Not sure what this is called in the calisthenics world. But working on cleaning this up (head parallel) and extending both legs.

Elevated planche lean from today's session

Hi! I’m Andrea, in the U.S. Insta: andrealingenfelter Current goal: as an aerialist, I’m working towards a full plank in the reverse skin the cat grip on Lyra and Silks future goal: full pretty handstand Looking forward to adding intentional calisthenics to my training.

The press to handstand is one of the coolest skills in hybrid calisthenics. It is strong. It is technical. It is controlled. And it is one of the best examples of how strength, mobility, flexibility, and body awareness all have to work together. A lot of people think the press to handstand is just a handstand skill. It is not. A lot of people think it is just about flexibility. It is not. A lot of people think it is just about core strength. Also not true. The press to handstand is really a mix of: • compression strength • shoulder strength • leaning mechanics • body awareness • pike or pancake flexibility • handstand control So let’s break it down. 🧠 First, an important misunderstanding This is a big one. A lot of videos online call something a press to handstand, but what they are actually showing is starting from a standing straddle position. In gymnastics language, that is usually more of a: • half press Why? Because the hardest part of the real press is not just getting upside down. It is getting your hips high enough and your feet through from the floor. That is why a real press usually starts more from: • chair • seated straddle • L-sit type positions • low compression positions So just keep that wording in mind. Full press You start from a low position and actively lift the hips high enough to get the feet through. Half press You start standing in a straddle and use that position to press up. Still awesome. Still useful. But not the exact same thing. 🤔 Why the press to handstand is so hard The press to handstand is hard because it needs a lot of things at once: • handstand strength • handstand confidence • compression strength • pike flexibility or pancake flexibility • shoulder protraction and elevation • the ability to lean forward without panicking • body awareness upside down That is why it feels like such a high level skill. It is not just one problem. It is a bunch of smaller problems working together. 🎯 What are the main things you need?