The Handstand

Perhaps you are ready now to actually try a bona-fide handstand. Here are the usual Iyengar-style instructions:


Go into Downward Facing Dog with your hands a couple of inches away from the wall. Take a few minutes to ground yourself. Get a good picture of your pelvis. Notice where it is in space. Feel how heavy it is. Imagine it swinging up against the wall. Then lift one leg and ground yourself again. Level your pelvis so that both hips are parallel to the floor. Drop the hip with the lifted leg.
Now, just kick up. Try swinging your lifted leg a couple of times to build momentum. Synchronise pushing up your grounded leg as you swing up. The hips are what will really lift you- not your legs. But concentrating on your hips isn't as helpful as concentrating on those legs. Don't worry about being too violent.If your feet crash against the wall, at least you made it there! Its better to be too forceful than to dissipate your strength by repeatedly being not forceful enough.This technique may take a few sessions to become successful. They key is to just try a couple of times, and, if you can't make it, go back to Half-Handstand for a while.


If I can do this, you can do it even better. Go for it!!

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