Front delts exercise
Wall Handstand Push-UpHow to do it, with form in numbers
- Main muscles
- Front delts
- Also works
- Triceps, Traps
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Level
- Advanced
How to do it
How do you do the Wall Handstand Push-Up?
- Place your hands about 20 cm from a wall, mat between them.
- Kick up to a handstand with heels resting on the wall.
- Lower slowly until the top of your head touches the mat.
- Press back up until your arms are straight.
Cues
- Head and hands make a triangle
- Elbows in, about 45°
- Squeeze glutes, body straight
Common mistakes
- Dropping onto your head: lower slowly and touch lightly.
- Arching your back: squeeze buttocks and stomach tight.
- Elbows flaring out: keep them at about 45°.
Form in detail
What does good form look like?
Starting position
Strict wall handstand push-up, back to the wall. Hands flat on the floor about 20 cm from the wall (accept 15–30 cm), shoulder-width to slightly wider (1.0–1.2× shoulder width), fingers pointing away from the wall and spread. A folded mat lies between the hands, slightly closer to the wall, to cushion the head.
The movement
The head travels down and slightly towards the wall to its spot on the mat; the body lowers as one rigid piece with the heels sliding on the wall. Only the elbows and shoulders move. The press reverses the same path to full lockout. No kipping: the hips and knees do not bend to drive the body up.
End position
(turnaround point): Elbows bent until the crown of the head lightly touches the mat, placed about 10–15 cm closer to the wall than the line of the hands, so head and hands form a
Tempo
2.5 s lowering, about 0.5 s light touch on the mat (no slam), 1.5 s pressing, about 0.5 s at lockout.
Form in numbers
What are the angles and distances?
| Measure | Target | Good range | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hands from wall | 20 cm | 15–30 cm | |
| Hand width | 1.1× shoulder width | 1.0–1.2× | |
| Body line (hip angle) | 180° | 175–185° | |
| Knee flexion | 0° | 0–5° | |
| Elbow at top | 178° | 172–180° | |
| Upper arm from torso at bottom | 45° | 30–45° | |
| Head-to-mat contact | light touch | 0 cm, no impact | |
| Lowering / pressing time | 2.5 s / 1.5 s | 2–3 s / 1–2 s |
The targets our 3D demo was built to, from the references below. Bodies differ, so treat the ranges as a guide for your own build.
For coaches
Use this demo in your clients’ programs
The Wall Handstand Push-Up is in Trainaq’s exercise library. Add it to a workout, and your client sees this demo in the free Trainaq app above the sets they log.
Sources
