Do an unassisted headstand - elegantly

I have a fear that I’m going to break my neck, or suffer from some other really bad injury if I attempt a headstand. This is why I’ve delayed attempting this goal. However, that fear may be irrational. So I’m going to take a stab at this, and go very slowly.

I also want to be able to do a handstand, which seems easier than a headstand to me. I found a website that recommended working your way from a headstand into a handstand, so perhaps the latter is more difficult. In any case, they suggested to get started by placing your hands on the ground next to a wall and stepping up the wall with your feet.

This evening, I did this with my face to the wall, and got to about a 45 degree angle. Then I rested there for about 30 seconds, and came back down.

I’ll try doing this on a daily basis. The idea is to get my nervous system to adjust to balancing in this way, and to test my upper body strength. I lift weights for strength training, but I don’t lift anywhere near my bodyweight over my head. I also have had some minor shoulder injuries. I don’t want to make those flare up, so I will proceed cautiously.

After the worst capoeira class today, I came home to practise the headstand and nearly killed myself doing it. I’m not giving up yet.. but i still prefer doing a handstand mroe than a headstand. Hope I don’t break the floor

When I was trapped into living with my other, She never let us do anything or go anywhere, so my sisters andI all decided that we were going to teach ourselves to do tricks like a circus.. I chose to learn how to do headstands and tumbles, it took me twoo weeks before I could pull off a nice headstand, but now, 4 years later, it is a little harder getting off ht eground because I never kept it up after I got alife…lol. but it was so fun to do, and fail…lol

entry slow & calm, from ‘dolphin’ to tippe-toes, to pike, to straight-overhead. Stayed there 24 calm-slow-smooth breaths, & came down in pike, gently & controlled.

Oooh yeah, my neck feels good, my body feels good, & I’m excited at having moved gently & persistantly toward this goal…

yessssss

it makes a huge difference where my hands are…

with hands flat on the floor in front of my face, elbows @ a right angle (in the air), this is MUCH easier. (shoulders pick up some of the wobble & I can compensate muscularly for waverings)

I’m working on hands near head, elbows on the floor – there’s more SURFACE area on the ground, but less that can compensate for wobbles – I was UP for MUCH longer than ever before today…

YEA! I think there might be progress here!!

one thing dont swing your feet up you will just tip over and fall and again just take your time start from moving like a side swing or 6 step ( if you know how to bboy)

ok everyone trying start by going from a jog or do it from your elbows and the key is to BALANCE take your time and BREATHE

wasn’t able to flatten out my hands fast enough to roll when my balance shift too far forward… could feel my knuckles cracking left/right/& center… ow!!

back to hanging out a few feet from the wall (wobble-wobble-tap, wobble-wobble-tap…)

I was pretty close—the only inellegant thing was the fact that almost all of my weight was off my hands.

I was pretty much straight up & down w/ NO tripod action going (could almost have lifted my hands) —the second time up, didn’t have that, but felt less stable.

what was that?

Noticing I’m MORE stable w/ perpendicular elbows than w/ arms on the ground clasped around my head… this way is WAY easier…

even standing on my tippy-toes in elbow-dog is a bit much…

...maybe for a few seconds, but not for many breaths..