One of the main mistakes in the HSPU is to arch the back when pushing up. This can happen at every single progression and step of the progress. Arching of the back occurs due to a lack of strength or simply after developing the habit of arching the back after repeatedly training too difficult progressions. Not only does a HSPU with arched back not look great but also does risk of injuries increase quite drastically and you won’t train the targeted muscles.

Not at all. Even though you weren’t training as efficiently as you could have, you still developed specific muscles and coordination. If you realize that your back is arching you have to take a couple steps back. Work an easier progression or less reps. Build strength and awareness before revisiting this more advanced progression.

You can use a couple different strategies here to build the missing strength. Drop sets are a good approach if you are already able to do some reps with a straight back. Simply do as many reps as possible with top form, then drop down one progression and pump out a couple more reps. This can work no matter what progression you are currently at. In some cases like the L handstand push up it is easy. Simply place your knees on the box for the second half of the exercise. In other cases you have to get more creative.

Sometimes you might find yourself in a situation where the gap between 2 progressions seems too big. Here you could work with external weights. Look for a soft weighted vest to wear. Go to a progression where you can quite comfortably do 8 reps. With the added weight you should only be able to do 4-6 reps. Work your way up to 8 again. Then come back to the harder progression harvesting the fruits of the extra power you gained.

The only limit here is your creativity. Comment below or reach out in private if you have some ideas or limitations you are not too sure about!

If you are sure that you have enough specific strength yet your back still arches, the reason might simply be habit, lack of faith or lack of technique. Keep in mind that you are not just pushing up in the bottom position but also reversing the direction of the movement making this the hardest moment of the HSPU. Simply resisting for a moment and waiting for the movement to get easier does often help. When first training for the HSPU it is normal to feel for a moment as if it is impossible to push back up. Wait for a moment, have faith and let the direction of movement reverse.

You also want to make sure that you have adequate weight in your fingertips. If the weight drops towards the back of the hands you won’t be able to push with your arms and shoulders as your center of gravity is off.

One good way of forcing yourself to push back up without arching the back is to place a yoga block in front of your hands. This will force you to push upwards first before initiating the backwards movement with your face. This is highly useful as a natural reaction is often to move the face back towards the hands and with that to arch the back before pushing back up.

The yoga block trick will work for any progression and really works wonders.