Frameworks · Body · 181

Balance from the fingers, not the hips

Lock the line. Steer with the hands. Bail out clean.

PEWe reviewed 21 studies on it.Skills, practice and competing

Hand-drawn diagram of framework 181, Balance from the fingers, not the hips: Lock the line. Steer with the hands. Bail out clean.
Framework 181 · in one look
How to use it

For the handstand: lock the body into one straight line, then steer with the hands. Falling over: press into the fingertips. Falling back: into the heel of the hand. When the wrists can't save it, bail out cleanly. Never rescue it at the hips. Little and often, and early in the session while you're fresh.

How sure we are

P Evidence: promising. Good studies, but small or few. Use it and keep checking.

E Evidence: built from practice. What works for coaches and practitioners. Labelled that way.

Sources

Kerwin & Trewartha 2001 (small biomechanics studies) and a systematic review of 21 studies (MacDonald et al. 2025) · fatigue made handstands sway more side to side (Sabido et al. 2024, 14 acrobatic gymnasts, 🟡).

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