Pause & Pose: Handstand Pike

It's almost the weekend and we're ready to kick up our heels... literally. Today, Jessica James is showing us how to have fun with the handstand pike. With a little practice, this pose becomes an enjoyable act of balance.

Handstand Pike

Adho Mukha Vrksasana Variation

Level 3

Benefits: Piking to the front of your mat or into a handstand is a beautifully dynamic way to move around your mat. It works to strengthen your arms, chest, shoulders and core while building balance and confidence. This powerful move involves your legs as well as your upper body, increasing your caloric burn and oxygen intake. Once this move is mastered it opens a whole world of transitions in yoga.

Honest Tip: Getting started in this transition requires a sense of play —  it will feel crazy at first, it should! Start in a cat pounce, inhale, and as you exhale spring up and try to get your hips over your shoulders. Think "shoulders over wrists, ribs over shoulders, hips over ribs." At the very beginning, start with donkey kicks by bending your knees and kicking your butt as you spring forward. If you have a solid headstand practice, lower your toes all the way to the ground and then left them back up halfway. Repeat a few times. This will activate the core work that this transition requires.

No go pause, pose and find peace.