Yuri Marmerstein, Acrobat and Teacher AMA - Bodyweightfitness

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Yuri Marmerstein, Acrobat and Teacher AMA
110 submitted 3 years ago by yuri_marmerstein [Actually Yuri Marmerstein] advertisement
Good Morning
My name is Yuri, and I'm here today to answer your
questions. Currently I travel to teach workshops on
hand balance and other acrobatic related skills for
adults(as well as how to develop related attributes).
In addition, I am a performer in Las Vegas.
I have not worked for any of the big companies like
Cirque or Dragone(though I have auditioned), I
mainly work corporate events performing.
There isn't necessarily anything unique in what I do
as it has been around forever, but I do think I can
give a particular perspective on what it means to
learn these skills as adult.
I started training as a young adult, and I had no real
resources or teachers. Most of the progress I made
was through self-experimentation and making Submit a new text post
mistakes.
I have trained in: capoeira, MMA, tumbling, martial
arts tricking, cheerleading, weightlifting, gymnastics bodyweightfitness
strength, dance, hand balancing and circus arts. All
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of these disciplines gives a unique perspective on
how the body works. 587 users here now
I think I am most known for my hand balancing,
Read our official FAQ before posting!
which I had developed a special obsession
for(though there was never a time when I trained only Try the Recommended Routine (RR)
handstands). See our /r/BWF Wiki for more
To me hand balance is interesting to practice and
teach because of the awareness and connection of
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[–] phrakture 12 points 3 years ago
Technique & Form
Hey Yuri,
You're awesome. I'm waiting for your book to come out. Bodyweight Fitness Tools
If you had to choose 5 exercises or movements to do for the rest Find a BWF park near you
of your life, what would they be?
Find a workout partner
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Build your own equipment
[–] yuri_marmerstein [Actually Yuri Marmerstein] [S] 4 points 3 years ago Download our app
I don't think I could do that, I want all the movements :)
Social Media
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[–] phrakture 4 points 3 years ago

Discord Chat Room
I was actually expecting one of those annoying-type Facebook
answers where "one exercise" is a string of like 5. "#1: Instagram
Ring Muscle Up to Handstand Press to Giant Swing" Twitter
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[–] jemelius 3 points 3 years ago
LOL /r/flexibility
permalink embed save parent /r/gainit
/r/loseit
[–] Antranik - Trusted User [superfuckingaweso.me] 12 points 3 years ago
/r/overcominggravity
Yuri, for a long time I kept practicing handstands. I built up to a /r/antranik
60sec stomach to wall handstand, worked on my wrists and
/r/bwfmemes
shoulder mobility, practiced heel pulls and hollow holds and I still
couldn't hold it for more than 5sec (10sec at best!) /r/poledancing
/r/eood
Then I realized why I was having so much trouble: my right
elbow doesn't lock out due to a bicycling accident and so I have
trouble feeling that bone-stacked feeling as my body will twist or
lean to one side. Experienced people will always tell me I'm
bending my right arm, but to me, that's as straight as it goes.
So for the past many months I've put off handstand training and
been working on restoring my elbow to full extension. I've been
doing a stretch recommended by Kit Laughlin and some other
stuff (like from your video about elbow extension). It's going slow,
since remodeling tissue takes time, but I'm starting to doubt it will
ever be normal
My dream would be to have my right elbow eventually be straight
or even have a tiny bit of hyper extension to help make hand
balancing easier, but what if I can never get it straight? Do you
think I should do handstand practice regardless if my elbow is
straight or not? And have you seen others get through my issue?
(I crave for that floating/light /stacked feeling.)
[–] yuri_marmerstein [Actually Yuri Marmerstein] [S] 11 points 3 years ago
Without looking at your elbow, I cannot give you a solid

answer. As you said, tissue remodeling takes time.
Though it is not common, there are people who are truly
lacking terminal elbow extension who still have achieved a
high level of hand balancing.
It may take some modification of your technique though.
For lacking elbow extension, Israeli hand balancer Yuval Oz
comes to mind: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=utc_vJV3Q6g
[–] r800iuser [Martial Arts] 6 points 3 years ago
Hey there Yuri! In every athletes life there is bound to be injuries.

I'm currently going through one myself albeit a pretty minor one.
My question is, how do you get through it? And how do you
refrain from getting frustrated from not being able to do what you
love the most?
RES night mode compatible
a community for 6 years
So when I was younger my solution to injury was to train advertisement

until it didn't hurt anymore.
There is a better approach(two actually):
1. Chances are that if you got hurt it was because of a
critical flaw in your being. Sure accidents happen, but
to some degree you were still not prepared, whether
it was your technique or lack of physical or mental
preparation. Backtrack to analyze what got you
injured, then reverse engineer the injury to grow past
it. Don't just make sure you don't have this injury
again, rehabilitate yourself to the point where it is no
longer even a concern.
Think active healing to come back stronger in what
hurt you in the first place.
2. Find a workaround. It is unlikely an injury will
completely incapacitate you. There must be
something you can work that increases your skill or MODERATORS message the moderators
attributes in your chosen field that doesn't aggravate
your injury. eshlow - Trusted User [Author of Overcoming Gravity 2]
The other option is to make it a meditation, and emnullzweiundneunzig - Trusted User [The Real Boxxy]
visualize your training in your mind. You would be Antranik - Trusted User [superfuckingaweso.me]
surprised how helpful this can be. Solfire [Trusted GTG Mod] [Dam Son]
permalink embed save parent SomethingsAwry - Trusted User [slightly less mean mod]
Potentia - Trusted User [Prize]
[–] The_Swoley_Ghost 7 points 3 years ago*
ThunderThighs [Weak Mod]
Hey Yuri! iwas in your Handstand Workshop in NYC a few weeks
SparkRippetoe [First Priest of Brodin]
ago.
kdz13 [Parrots the FAQ]
First, I just want to say that you're a great teacher and I went
Christopher - Trusted User [/u/ingochris]
home with a ton of tools that although related to handstands,
didn't strike me as things i'd be learning. ...and 7 more »
That drill where you held down our shoulders and hips and had
us try to touch our lower backs to the floor is GOLDEN. I've been < > discussions in r/bodyweightfitness X
bothering my friends everytime they come over. "Hold me down,
man, c'mon, it's not weird, i gotta get my alignment right". 74 · 17 comments
Alright, I have a few questions, I don't expect all of them to be Question about dips ( shoulder part )
answered, i'm just throwing ideas out:
MOST IMPORTANT : i CAN'T SEEM TO MAKE ANY
PROGRESS in my PLANCHE training and it's been years. I
CANNOT for the life of me get my knees off my elbows in the
straight-arm bakasana/frog stand. The ability to lean forward and
raise my butt up seems completely impossible despite closing in
on all my other physical goals and having gotten much stronger
in the past year.
1. Do you recomend training static strength holds all at once
in one workout or giving each a certain day or cluster?
(train planche and cross and front lever one after another
or give each its own day?)
2. How long should I be aiming to make my hand-balancing
skill work? If I start getting shakey/nervey pain up my
forearms, is it time ot quit for the day?
3. Are you a fan of a the "find your max hold time, and use
half of that time for your work sets" strategy for static
strength building?
4. Should most people train the manna even if we have no
real shot of ever getting it?
5. Any tips for pressing?
6. thoughts on people like Christopher Sommers and Ido
Portal?
7. You looked swole as fuck in person, it was really
motivating.
8. Are handstands best trained for like 15 minutes per day or
once or twice per week for an hour?
9. Do you ever train aerial straps?
10. What circus arts do you feel develop or require the most
general form of strength?
11. How long should we be trying something with no visible
improvement before we can say "okay, this isn't working, i
need a new strategy"?
12. So you're saying we don't need 100% super scapular
protraction or elevation for a proper handstand?
13. When are you coming back to NYC? (I'm sorry that our
city is so unfriendly, i read your blog post about teaching
beginners with no assumptions about what they know and
try to take it into consideration when giving tourists
directions now)
14. How did you get into tricking?
15. You posted a video of you squatting light the other day.
Have you ever tried powerlifting or seriously pursued any
form of squat or deadlift? How do you train your legs
usually?
16. How important is it at a certain point to just get a coach
and stop trying to figure everything out yourself? (hint
hint)
1. I prefer to limit this training to a couple per day, ideally poses that complement each other.
2. There is no set time, but I would say not to work under much stress of fatigue until some good movement
patterns are built. There is a time and place for endurance, but it's best not to push it in the beginning
3. I am a fan of sub maximal sets more often, at least in the beginning. I not to work with numbers too often
though.
4. You don't necessarily have to train the manna, but I do feel that pushing work in shoulder extension is great
rehab to correct and balance out the shoulder after things like planche, bench press, desk work, etc.
5. Pressing is a very general term, you'll have to be more specific.
6. I have taught at a couple of the older GB seminars and worked with Chris Sommer. I have never met Ido
but I have followed him for a while and his work has definitely inspired me quite a bit. I think they're both
doing great work progressing this kind of training, I just don't always agree with the attitude in which they
present their materials.
7. Thanks :)
8. I think you will see the most progress and gain the most awareness with a daily practice. Balance changes
from day to day, so training only once a week won't allow you to calibrate it.
9. Yes
10. A lot of the circus mentality is about finding a way to "cheat". Trying to make something look hard to the
untrained eye when in fact it is quite easy for the performer. Because of this, many apparatuses don't
require much raw strength to excel at.
Straps is a circus apparatus that is definitely very strength heavy compared to others.
11. Depends on the movement in question, but if I were really strict I would not allow for more than two
repetitions of the same mistake in a row without changing something.
12. Correct. Neither of them are universal concepts in hand balancing, though a lot of people could benefit from
these cues. "Proper" is very much depending on the individual and goals.
13. All good, I generally have a tendency to get lost easily. No plans to return to NYC yet, but I will be back.
14. When I started capoeira in 2004, internet searches let to sites like Bilang and TricksTutorials
15. I never went full on powerlifter, but for a time I did focus on squats, deads, O lifts, and old time strongman
lifts. My current leg training includes ballet, capoeira, basic floor acrobatics, some easy pistol and hamstring
work, and the occasional sprint. I have the disease where I gain leg mass very easily ;)
16. Never stop trying to figure things out for yourself, but it is incredibly valuable to seek out guidance every so
often.
[–] Antranik - Trusted User [superfuckingaweso.me] 2 points 3 years ago
I CANNOT for the life of me get my knees off my elbows in the straight-arm bakasana/frog stand.
Have you tried raising one knee off? Doesn't have to be much, just like even a centimeter off at first, one knee at a
time and over the weeks you may be able to extend more, albeit that is a very slow process, but, most challenging
things are.
[–] SwervePurposely 1 point 3 years ago

If I were you, I would not be working your bakasana to planche progression. I would work on your lolasana (tuck
planche). Straight arms, slide your knees in and slowly lift them off the ground. Then work on slowly extending
your back/legs, one at a time.
I feel that trying to lift legs off of knees in straight arm bakasana would be a very hard way to start working on
planche. The way I suggested would also let you angle your wrists slightly outward if mobility is currently an issue.
[–] The_Swoley_Ghost 1 point 3 years ago

Thank you! I'll give that a try! I have gotten to the point where on a fresh day i can hold my bakasana with
straight arms and a pretty severe lean for upwards of 15 seconds but even pulling the knees off for one
second seems impossible.
So to be clear: you're suggesting kneeling on the floor and then just trying to tuck them up while keeping your
arms straight and supporting you on the floor?
[–] Ayyr 6 points 3 years ago

Yuri, what would you recommend as a safe path for a solo practitioner wanting to achieve hand balancing skills mainly,
along with gymnastics strength, with the internet and some props as his only resources?
Some book or online program could be added but only in the long run.
Watch and read as much as you can, then experiment to individualize the concepts in question.
Take your time, have fun, and don't be afraid to seek out guidance on occasion.
[–] John-Peters 5 points 3 years ago

Hi Yuri,
What are your thoughts on the number of sets usually required daily in order to achieve a straddle one arm HS? Ryan
Hurst from GMB worked up to 50 sets per arm under Steve Atlas and Johnny Sapinoso did 30-60 sets per arm daily
under Ido Portal. How would you structure someone’s training if they are training twice per day pursuing a straddle one
arm HS and how would you breakdown there sets? I’m aware that it’s an individual journey to the one arm handstand
but some general recommendations would be helpful.
Do you find static HS endurance holds against the wall useful? I’ve worked up to a 1:30min one arm belly to wall HS
and a 4:00min two arm belly to wall HS. I’ve been doing one set of endurance work daily alternating days between two
arm belly to wall HS and one arm belly to wall HS holds prior to my freestanding work. How often do you include
endurance work in your training and how do you implement it?
Thank you so much for all the information on handbalancing you have provided. It has been a great help.
It's not so much about numbers as it is about feeling. There is also a point where more repetitions will not help the
cause until some universal factors are fixed.
Very general answer, but I would focus the first session on pure positioning and skill work then the second session
would focus on conditioning, strength, and endurance.
The goal of session 1 would be to use as little force as possible for everything. Save energy, don't press, be
conscious of your alignment and go slow. The goal is to increase body awareness here. You shouldn't feel worn
out after this session. Some of the drills I show in this video are great for it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=ytjIgIe5CVQ
Second session would be more focused on things like presses, HSPU, air baby, and other higher energy cost
movements. While these movements aren't essential prereqs for OAH, they will help immensely.
Honestly, you can work endurance every set by just holding everything a little bit longer, or holding a regular two
arm handstand for a while after the set is finished.
I haven't found extended one arm static holds against the wall too useful for balance, but I definitely use the wall
as an aid for learning weight shifts.
As far as endurance, my favorite thing to do would be a kind of drop set where I go as long as I can away from the
wall(but close by) then finish out the set against the wall. Typically I would play music and alternate hands every 2
or 3 8-counts. This helped a lot to make the time pass by.
A true max endurance hold to failure is quite stressful on the CNS, so I wouldn't do more than once or twice a
week.
[+] [deleted] 3 years ago (1 child)
[–] gordonary 3 points 3 years ago

Hi Yuri! i notice that often when i gain strength by degree, i proportionately lose some flexibility. Any tips on how to
equalize progress in both domains?
Strength and flexibility are general attributes, and usually to make gains in one means losses in the other.
It's about knowing your weaknesses and understanding the downside to the kind of training you do.
There are good flexibility protocols that actually build strength in the end range of motion, check out some of Kit
Laughlin's work.
[–] Joe_Gebele 3 points 3 years ago*

Yuri, since you've been involved in so many different practices; what skills/movements are the most bang for buck for
the generalist? It could be based on strength, mobility, whatever.
There is definitely not one answer to this as a lot of skills and movements can actually act as a detriment to others.
General movements we can all benefit from are rope climbs, handstand pushups, and one legged squats.
However, the real benefit to a generalist is to identify areas where they are weak and hammer those out.
[–] anandamide23 3 points 3 years ago

Hey Yuri,
three questions:
1. Would a beginner (20 sec. freestanding max, ugly bodyline, need up to 5 kick-ups) benefit from your online
coaching, or is it only for more advanced?
2. I have a hard time to keep my ribs in, but only when i'm freestanding or back to the wall, no problem with hollow
holds or stomach to the wall HS. Do you hava any specific drills for this problem?
3. Whats your favourite TV-show? :-)

1. My online coaching is for any level. Chances are I can see some things you can't in your own body, and I
can offer solutions on how to progress. It's about understanding certain concepts to always keep in the
back of your mind when training.
2. it's psychological. You are not truly comfortable with the position when you don't have a guide like the floor
or the wall available. Add balance to the equation, and you will instantly find your old habits. The key is to
remember what it feels like in your body to make the correction.
Hand-on coaching can help a lot at this point.
3. Haven't watched much TV in the last few years, but Metalocalypse and Game of Thrones stand out to me.
[+] [deleted] 3 years ago (3 children)
[–] Mortgasm [Circus Arts] 3 points 3 years ago
Yuri, what have been the biggest issues with older athletes (say 40 and up although I acknowledge that's an arbitrary
line I've drawn.) How do you train or condition differently and do you see the same levels of handbalancing success in
this group?
Two issues:
Disconnection to one's own body Psychological resistance to learning the skill in question
I wouldn't say I change or condition any differently, but I will take more time with exercises that build body
awareness. In my second point, it's about showing the athlete what it feels like to safely hold and bail out of the
position. Once this is established, the subconscious can lower its guard.
[–] Darumana 3 points 3 years ago

Hi Yuri,
I am a great admirer of your work. I have a question regarding the cultural aspect of hand standing. I have heard (on
GB forum) that there are 3 main schools of hand balancing: Soviet, Chinese and French. Do you know the differences
in methodology between this schools? Of course not a deep explanation but just general concepts of training and
interpretation.
I used to think about this more, then the longer I spent in the circus world the more I realized it was all trivial.
With the chinese you'll get brutal stretching from a young age and more focus on on developing numbers and work
capacity then emphasis on form.
Russians are pretty strict with form and positioning. The french style is mostly based on master Claude Victoria,
who I have never trained with but I had a few friends who trained under him.
There are 3 resources on this, first off the Chinese Circus School documentary that came out some time ago.
Ido Portal's old blog has an entry about his training with Claude Victoria.
Sammy Dinneen also write a couple essays about his time at the Kiev Circus school. You'll have to do a little bit of
digging to find these.
Ultimately training with an old school circus master works the best if you have the same teacher every day for a
few years. Mostly you'll get very little theory, very basic cues, and spotting on exercises you may not be ready to
do yet.
It's a method that definitely works for many, but not my preference.
[–] Darumana 1 point 3 years ago

Thank you
[–] pabloqc 4 points 3 years ago*

Hi Yuri :)
I have been training for a few years, I could say that I am a handstand junkie, but I am started to feel frustrated
because I cannot stay more than 5-7 seconds on freestanding. I usually perform 20 sets of 1 min stomach-to-wall
handstand / back-to-wall handstand. I have mobility, my shoulders are open, my elbows and wrist work fine, my back is
quite straight, I am used to engage my lower body during the practice.. but I don't know the best way to jump to
practice free-standing handstand. What would be your recommendation? work with a partner as spotter? the wall?
both?. Thanks! :)
Without physically working with you, I cannot spot the real issue. I can give you a couple concepts to work with
though:
1. Entry to handstand is about precise placement. You want to use your momentum to place every part of your
body exactly where you want it to get in your line. When you do it right it should feel like you get stuck in a
handstand. Learn what it feels like to hit exactly the right point, then build the awareness of what it is to kick
too far or not far enough.
Using the wall or a spotter can help, but it may build too big of a reliance.
2. Remember that balance happens not just in the handstand but on the way up as well. i actually start in a
position where I already have the majority of my weight on my hands. This gives me a lot more control to
adjust the balance on the way up.
The standard gymnast kickup doesn't allow you to correct your balance until you are already in the final
position.
[–] ReverendBizarre - Trusted User 5 points 3 years ago

I had a similar problem and changing the way I entered the handstand helped me a lot.
It started with my yoga teacher giving me the same cue Yuri mentions where I put more weight in my hands.
Essentially starting from some kind of downward dog and then leaning forward and moving your torso over your
hands (kind of like you're about to press into it, but you still jump).
I usually direct people to this video by Kino MacGregor and in particular, what happens from 4:00 and onward.
[–] kielium 2 points 3 years ago

hey Yuri, I've been training using my own bodyweight for just under a year now, everything from planche practice to
handstands have become part of my workout routine, for someone practicing these type of moves and putting
increased pressure on my joints (elbows and wrists especially) how often do you think i should train? right now its only
3 times a week (a push day, pull day, and legs + core day) think its safe to increase that to 5 or 6 times a week? or
what can you recommend for the days in-between.
I'm 6'2 and a pretty well built dude, but i don't want permanently damage any tendons or ligaments.
The strength of the connective tissue needs to be built up slowly. With that said, there is no reason you can't train
every day. You just have to be smart about it
When training every day you need to know when to stop to leave some fuel in the tank for the next day. You can
make tremendous progress this way, but for a lot of people it's hard to know when to stop for that day.
The other option is to do light training in the same elements on your off days. This could include body line work,
bands, cues, proprioception, etc. Stuff that is useful for the training but does not stress your body or CNS much.
Also, on off days you can do a super long warmup and short training to keep the skills in your system.
Ultimately it comes down to knowing your body and listening to its signals.
[–] Titty_Sprinkle 2 points 3 years ago

First of all, thank you for doing this AMA!
I have spent the past 3 years practicing handbalancing, and the past year I have begun training on canes. I am making
steady progress transferring my flat ground techniques onto the canes, such as 1 hand, scorpion, presses and levers.
My question is, what methodology would you suggest for maximizing progress on canes? My workout routine is
approaching 2hrs 3x/week as I work on planche, rings, bar work, handstands, l-sits, and then weightlifting. While I have
decent progress and routine, I feel a bit lost in what area I should be focusing to improve my cane work as my main
goal.
Basically, what are your tips for improving cane handbalancing beyond the beginner stage?
Hand balancing on an apparatus entails getting used to the equipment. All equipment has its own idiosyncrasies
and imperfections. It moves a certain way.
The goal is to make the canes an extension of your body. If you do it right, HS on canes should be considerably
easier than floor. Of course it depends on the quality of the canes as well.
Mostly it's just about taking the time to get used to the canes. It took me a while to be able to use canes properly.
[–] GrackX 2 points 3 years ago

Hey Yuri, I've been a following your instagram for a while. Any plans for a workshop in the DC area?
If you know of a gym willing to host and can get the minimum number of people there, I will be happy to come to
DC
[–] Mortgasm [Circus Arts] 1 point 3 years ago
yes please - DC!

[–] heavybones 2 points 3 years ago*

Hey, Yuri! Fellow redhead/redbeard here. I have a question about prioritising.
Lately I've been doing a straight arm/bent arm/legs training split, which I repeat for a total of 6 days a week. Mostly
rings and one-legged stuff. But capoeira is my main sport, which I have absolutely fallen in love with. However, I feel
like I'm not practicing as much as I should (2-3 times per week).
Should I be scaling back to full-body strength 2-3 times per week and train capoeira most days? What was your
approach to capoeira? I know guys who train nothing but capoeira, but fuck themselves up all the time and it kinda
seems like it's because they don't do strength training.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks! :)
EDIT: formatting.
I think that the main goal is longevity. There is no point in going HAM if it just injures you. I completely agree, I see
many people who do only capoeira and are constantly injured. I don't think capoeira is an end all when it comes to
movement, and it should be supplemented with some cross training.
I've actually injures my knees quite a few times just doing basic capoeira movements.
I'm also training capoeira 2-3 times a week right now
If you want to make capoeira your priority, you should be doing it as much as possible. However, you need to
understand the risks it poses and the damage it does to your body. The more you train, the harder you will have to
work to recover.
I am a very big proponent of capoeira combined with some cross training.
[–] heavybones 1 point 3 years ago

Gotcha. Thanks so much for answering. Made my day!
[–] Babyyeti 2 points 3 years ago

Hi, you recentley wrote about training BJJ in your blog.
In your opinion what bodyweight exercises would have a particularly high carryover to grappling?
[–] yinyangbalance 1 point 3 years ago*

Hello Yuri, thank you for this AMA
1.My biggest problem with handstands is endurance. I seem to have extremely slow improvement on this. In the
last year i may have gone from 20 to about 40 seconds (wall or not). What is the best approach for endurance
gains? On august because of how life situation was i went from a 20 second freestanding max to 37 sec
freestanding, while training everyday twice, except weekends. Any tips for endurance?
2.My other big problem is flexibility. My shoulders are very inflexible. My handstand is very arched and till a few
weeks ago i always did it with bent elbows. When i tried to make them straight they would hurt after a lot. Now
they are slowly getting stronger and i only do handstand with locked elbows (or the best i can get to locked, my
elbows dont hyperextend) but my holds have been much less. Any best bang for buck shoulder stretches? And
why all the hate for arched handstands from people? Isnt arched ok too?
3.Any tips for one arm wall handstand? (just endurance for wall, not balance). Is 60 second 2 arm handstand
endurance enough for this?
4.Do you think a push from one arm elbow lever to one arm handstand is possible for a non gifted but quite
dedicated person? (with tons of momentum of course). I can do a straddle one arm elbow lever for quite a long
time, and now i start to get it with closed legs and i dream of the push (it also made my wrists much stronger).
5.I recently saw John Seidel do a nice freestanding handstand at age 76 in a picture. And ive seen his video
doing a show with one arm handstands at 52. Who is the oldest person you are aware of that has done an one
arm handstand? Do you think its a skill someone can take to old age?
Thanks a lot
1. Endurance is firstly about finding the least energetically demanding state, then secondly it is about the
mentality to stay up. A lot of the time it is the way the HS is performed that holds back endurance.
However, my favorite exercise to use here is a drop set. Do as long as you can facing away from the wall,
immediately go to the wall and do as long as you can, then continue in a pushup position. All this is without
your hands leaving the floor.
2. There is nothing wrong with an arched handstand, though it's not the most mechanically sound position.
Bent elbows however, I will not accept. This is very important for handstand mechanics and moving on to
more advanced skills. Check my youtube for some elbow exercises.
As far as shoulders go, you have to identify what is causing the tightness. Sometimes it's a psychological
issue of not having the frame of reference to support yourself with open shoulders. I wish it were as simple
as "do this stretch to fix it" but it rarely ever is.
3. The biggest mistake I see is people turning their hips. Try to keep your hips square to the wall
4. Definitely possible, but this is a very high level skill and is incredibly technical. It takes professional hand
balancers years to learn this. Also keep in mind, a OAH is much more difficult to control than a one arm
elbow lever, so that's what you're going to be kicking into. If this is your goal and so far your two arm max
hold is only 40 seconds, you have a lot of work ahead of you.
5. In person, I've seen guys in their late 40s/early 50s do OAH. I've heard of older guys, but cannot confirm.
As long as you are smart about your training and don't break yourself, it's definitely a skill you can do for a
long time.
[–] [deleted] 1 point 3 years ago

Do you have any tips on a simple cartwheel? I can't seem to straighten my legs and not pike.
Sounds like two things:

1. you are not falling forward into your CW to generate enough power
2. You are not kicking the back leg directly up, but rather to the side.
This is a complex issue though, and not one I can really solve over Reddit
[–] [deleted] 1 point 3 years ago

Cheers, i'll use these two tips. See what else might be an issue.
[–] kyphotic 1 point 3 years ago

weightlifting
So out of curiosity, what are/were your lifting numbers? Do you still lift stuff?
nothing crazy, at a bodyweight of 160-165 lbs I was doing this:

75kg snatch with somewhat questionable form 100kg clean and jerk with somewhat less questionable form squat
315 lb for several reps deadlift 410 lbs(this was a 1rm from what I remember) 70kg bent press with barbell(was
very close to bodyweight) 60kg barbell turkish getup
Not currently lifting, but mostly out of the lack of access to heavy weights
[–] kr0n_0 1 point 3 years ago*

Hi Yuri!
Thanks for doing this AMA!
A question about the aerial cartwheel: I've been training on and off for some time to get the aerial, by with no
success so far. I feel like I'm missing a piece but can't tell which one. I'm able to do one hand cartwheels, one
hand roundoffs, butterfly kicks, easily... But for the aerial no matter how high I jump, how hard I throw the leg or
how much I twist the torso with the arms... I always end up with a hand in the floor... besides sometimes I feel
like I'm using too much force... The way I've been training for it is basically trying to remove the hand, from the
one hand cartwheel, and using the floor the least amount of time (like is burning). Maybe I'm approaching it
wrong...
Any tips?
I've started to lift recently (6 months) and although I'm still lifting just my body weight; I'm starting to feel it in
other areas of my movement (mainly dance, gymnastics and tumbling). I've been following a 3-day full body
hypertrophy routine, but as said, I'm struggling with making all work together.
Any tips on integrating weightlifting with other movement practices? Also it'd be really helpful to me if you can elaborate
about your weekly training regime, how many hours do you do this and that, etc. , wether it includes lifting or not!
Again, thanks for doing this AMA and thanks for being awesome. I've been following you for a while and I love your no-
attitude approach (it's like fresh air). You seem like a very down to earth guy doing awesome stuff! Thanks for the
inspiration!
For the aerial, sometimes it's just forcing yourself to not put your hands down. Sounds like you are physically
prepared but are not ready to take the next step psychologically. Not enough information to really tell though.
I can't elaborate too much about my training because it changes all the time. It depends on if I'm traveling, have
gigs in Vegas, or have a particular interest I am trying to fulfill.
In general, it's helpful to have one main obsession, then add in the other supplemental disciplines. You can switch
these all out as needed, but it can be very difficult to truly focus on more than one thing.
[–] c2ground 1 point 3 years ago

Hey Yuri. I can hold a 60sec freestanding handstand fairly consistently at this point and have started working towards
my one arm handstand in a straddle. Could you describe the sequence that you go through when transitioning into a
one arm handstand? What is supposed to be turned on? Side flexion? etc.?
I will try to make it as simple as possible, because this can be quite complex. Two steps: 1. Set the shoulder. Make
sure the shoulder is directly over the hand(whether that takes movement or not). Then slowly shift weight over to
that arm maintaining engagement of supporting arm while gently relaxing the free arm.
2. Once the shoulder feels solid, I add a tilt of the body. No side flexion here, that involves breaking the position. I
am not trying to break any lines. The whole body should tilt as one piece. How far to tilt depends on several
factors.
3. The tilt serves to take more weight into the supporting arm, which should remain solid. Once the free arm feels
almost weightless, I bend the elbow and go to fingertips.
4. Making sure the free hand takes no weight, I lift as a develope going from the elbow up to straightening the arm.
The key here is to keep the arm relaxed as you move it to a particular point in space.
Note that during this whole sequence the focus should be on your balance.
[–] sallgonepetetong 1 point 3 years ago

Hey Yuri , I'm not sure I'd I've missed the boat but...
To what extent do you think training and increasing leg size hinders hand balancing skills?
Thanks for your time
Most hand balancers do zero leg training. Some even go out of their way to not use their legs.
It definitely makes the skills easier.
I've been told by my mentor in aerial arts to stop training my legs.
Really body type is either a blessing or a hindrance but not a barrier. You can make it work But chances are to
reach a high level of hand balancing you will get skinnier legs simply by the time sacrifice required to put in the
hours of training.
[–] bromansir 1 point 3 years ago

I give you, Bert Asseratti. http://www.dieselcrew.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Assirati.jpg
[–] kronik85 1 point 3 years ago

well known for achieving a professional level of hand balancing.... yuri is talking about what the average
professional hand balancer does for legs.
[–] bromansir 1 point 3 years ago

Agreed! I just remembered seeing this and thought it was interesting...I don't think there are too
many, if any, big men who are able to do such feets anymore. Unfortunately, much of the fitness
population imposes limits on themselves as far as what they can and can't do. (paralysis by
analysis). Old time strongmen and "physical culture" members practiced a variety of gymnastics and
heavy lifting. All experimentation because they didn't have the internet or really any reference
material on what could be done.
[–] ImChrisBrown 1 point 3 years ago

Yuri,
My wrists suck. I stretch them nearly every day in 5 different positions (3 palm down, 2 palm up) for at least 5 minutes if
not 10. I'm seeing very little to no progress in my passive wrist flexion.
When on the ground for handstand practice I can get 90* and I'm hitting 30-40 second freestanding hs when I start
stomach to wall. It usually causes some discomfort and I find myself breaking to stretch my wrists during my handstand
practice. I currently practice handstands for 6.5 minutes after my stretching and then bodyline work.
What can I do to improve my wrists!?
[–] yuri_marmerstein [Actually Yuri Marmerstein] [S] 1 point 3 years ago
There are many things you can do. One of my favorite wrist rehab/prehab tools is the rice bucket before and after
training.
For something handstand specific, try the Elevated Finger Support found on my youtube.
[–] Antranik - Trusted User [superfuckingaweso.me] 1 point 3 years ago
Elevated Finger Support

Fingers Elevated Support by Yuri: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bj565bmTmDo
[–] Homme_de_terre 1 point 3 years ago

Hi Yuri,
I intend to try achieving free HS by developing press HS, rather than via the usual route of weaning oneself off wall
support (my reason: probable lack of suitable surface to protect from fall).
Do you think this is a feasible approach?
It's possible as there is not necessarily one universal method to learning.

I actually never used a wall when I was learning HS.
With that being said, it is very easy to develop some unsavory movement patterns without the wall as a guide.
One of the first things I teach is how to fall, and I use the wall for that.
[–] Homme_de_terre 1 point 3 years ago

Thanks for your answer!
The only way to find out is to give it a try, I suppose. But first I will need to work on getting good pike flexibility
(almost there), pike compression, and shoulder strength (I'm progressing to stomach-to-wall HS soon).
Two more questions, if you don't mind. I recall your background was in science. Which field of science, and
why did you switch to handbalancing?
I studied physics in College, and I did work in the field of radiation spectroscopy
After getting out into the real world, working for less than a year, I couldn't imagine doing this for the next
40
After my contract was up, I spent the next few years coaching gymnastics for little money, training, and
learning as much as I could about what I was passionate about
[–] tomdomination 1 point 3 years ago

Hi Yuri, i am fairly new to bodyweight training, and was wondering if you had every done rope climbing as a form of
exercise?
if you could give me some tips on exercises that compliment this i would really appreciate it. Thanks!
yes, I love to climb me some rope.

First being able to do a few pullups prior to getting on a rope is incredibly helpful. Also learning to climb with your
legs is also a good thing to have in case you slip or get tired up high.
After that it's working on not losing height in the transition of switching hands during your rope step. It's a bit more
than I can explain on here but rope climb is pretty advanced, so make sure you have a base of pulling strength on
rings or a bar prior to that.
[–] tomdomination 1 point 3 years ago

thankyou very much!
would you suggest weighted leg exercises or bodyweight leg exercises for increasing leg strength for rope
climb?
[–] admirals_go_nuts 1 point 3 years ago

Are there any good back strengthening exercises to support the spine of elderly people?
Generally backbending is something the elderly lose, so that's an important one.

[–] Gurei 1 point 3 years ago

Hi Yuri! Thanks a lot for sharing your knowledge!
1) What do you see as common weak links during planche training and how you address them? Does having a
magnificent beard help because of the counterweight? My ability to do a straddle planche is kinda fluctuating so I'm
doing a bent leg straddle planche instead.
2) What's you approach to bodyweight strength training? I remember a post in your fb page (you were doing a human
flag or talking about it, I believe) where you talked about doing it everyday as skill work. I'm using high frequency
training right now and this is giving me great strength gains but I'm not sure how to productively periodize my training.
3) How do you prehab people's joints (specially wrists and shoulders) to keep them injury free?
4) How do you develop acrobatics in your method? Actually, can you talk a little about your method?
5) My HS questions. I have a decent line and endurance against the wall but I'm having trouble moving towards a free
HS. What drills do you commonly use to help people accomplish this?
Also, sometimes when I'm free balancing, my back starts to arch and I have absolutely no idea about what/how to
move/contract to correct this and end losing my balance. Any tips?
"I think the most important element is building a connection between your hands and the floor." How do you build and
train this?
6) What's your approach to nutrition and supplementation? You surely didn't get this big by accident!
1. Opposition of reaching in opposite directions, but mostly not being able to lean forward enough.
2. Too general of a question. My approach to bodyweight strength training? Do it
3. Again too general of a question. I have several shoulder and wrist protocols, as well as an incredibly
thorough wrist warmup that I cover at my workshops. My suggestion would be to take one to learn it in
person.
4. I have no method, how I train someone depends on their physical and psychological state. I don't have a
set method because I treat students as individuals. Two students working on the same skill at the same
level may get completely opposing instructions depending on their characteristics.
5. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wspEkEzsZyQ
This is all stuff that I write about often. To hold form in your case, a hands-on correction would be the most helpful.
Building connection with hands and floor is about understanding the general concept of balance as it applies to
your body.
Again, I have put out material on this and it will be covered in great detail in my book and my workshops.
1. Eat food, make gains. My supplementation is very basic, mostly just some protein powder, vitamins, ZMA at
the moment.
It is possibly to build your physique without supplements, it's all how you perceive your gains.
[–] Gurei 1 point 3 years ago

I'll surely attend to a workshop of yours, eventually.
Thanks a lot for the straight answers, Yuri!
[–] Alby0410 1 point 3 years ago

Hey Yuri, I love your work, and I think I'll be going through an online coaching session with you soon! Until then I was
hoping you could answer some questions.
What would you consider the prerequisites for starting handstand presses? My max handstand hold was approx 20sec
and I can hold 10s within a few kick ups, but I really do not like kicking into handstand. I've managed to get a tuck
press down fairly well, even getting three in a row once. But, my Straddle press always comes out with bent legs. Is
this just a lack of pancake flexibility? I can get stomach to the floor after about a minute of stretching but it's not
comfortable and always leaves me feeling quite sore and stiff directly after the stretch. Or should I work more on
straddle L (I can hold one for ~10s hands forward) and compression.
Generally you should already have some control of a freestanding balance, so a consistent 20-30 seconds is good
to have prior to beginning real press work.
However, you should be working active hip compression way sooner, and you can add in a lot of indirect press
assistance work before actually being ready for presses.
As far as flexibility goes, look up Kit Laughlin's "Master the Pancake" program.
[–] PlanchePRO [American Ninja Warrior] 1 point 3 years ago
Do you think some people will never gain the shoulder mobility to achieve a straight handstand? I think I may be part of
that group :(
Is there any point to practicing handstands if you have poor shoulder mobility? Won't you learn it with "bad" form?
Good and bad form is very subjective, but I think most people can achieve a straight handstand.
You do not need open shoulders to do a "good" handstand.
A friend of mine is a former olympic gymnast, has been performing with cirque for the last 18 years. He has had 7
shoulder surgeries and can't open his shoulders. Does handstands with closed shoulders and an arched back
similar to the old school technique. He is working with what is given.
It's helpful in many ways to have open shoulders, but by no means required.
Keep training handstands anyway
[–] red1392 [Weak] 1 point 3 years ago
Hey Yuri. Extremely late to the party but I finally came up with a question! You have a pretty solid planche - as far as
isometric straight arm holds go, what times would you aim for at each stage i.e. tuck, advanced tuck, straddle before
moving on to the next and what 'working set' hold time ranges do you find it most effective to work with? Cheers!
Was nice meeting you in Sydney. You should come around again sometime!
[–] SCNewbie 1 point 3 years ago

You have the most badass name in the galaxy. Keep cool Yuri
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Want to add to the discussion? Bodyweight Training Info

[–] phrakture 4 points 3 years ago

Without looking at your elbow, I cannot give you a solid

[–] r800iuser [Martial Arts] 6 points 3 years ago

Hey there Yuri! In every athletes life there is bound to be injuries.

So when I was younger my solution to injury was to train advertisement

[–] yuri_marmerstein [Actually Yuri Marmerstein] [S] 14 points 3 years ago

[–] Antranik - Trusted User [superfuckingaweso.me] 2 points 3 years ago

[–] SwervePurposely 1 point 3 years ago

[–] The_Swoley_Ghost 1 point 3 years ago

[–] Ayyr 6 points 3 years ago

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[–] John-Peters 5 points 3 years ago

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[–] gordonary 3 points 3 years ago

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[–] Joe_Gebele 3 points 3 years ago*

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[–] Mortgasm [Circus Arts] 1 point 3 years ago

yes please - DC!

[–] heavybones 2 points 3 years ago*

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[–] yuri_marmerstein [Actually Yuri Marmerstein] [S] 2 points 3 years ago

Sounds like two things:

[–] [deleted] 1 point 3 years ago

[–] kyphotic 1 point 3 years ago

[–] yuri_marmerstein [Actually Yuri Marmerstein] [S] 2 points 3 years ago

nothing crazy, at a bodyweight of 160-165 lbs I was doing this:

[–] kr0n_0 1 point 3 years ago*

[–] yuri_marmerstein [Actually Yuri Marmerstein] [S] 3 points 3 years ago

[–] c2ground 1 point 3 years ago

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