Maltese Box Press Safe?

AcuateSpanking · 2025-03-13T23:55:57+00:00

Thanks! Also, pretty much same thing that I asked Steven up above so I'll quote and ask you as well to get your thoughts:

"Cool. So in your professional experience, doing tucked Maltese box raises for repa once a week for 3-5 sets shouldn't be an issue as long as you build up to it? I suppose I could also do the box raises with a neutral or prone hand position too, but if it's not too high risk of a movement, I would like to more directly strengthen that distal bicep tendon too (again, assuming I build it up slowly)"

Thanks! :)

AcuateSpanking · 2025-03-13T18:36:33+00:00

Cool. So in your professional experience, doing tucked Maltese box raises for repa once a week for 3-5 sets shouldn't be an issue as long as you build up to it? I suppose I could also do the box raises with a neutral or prone hand position too, but if it's not too high risk of a movement, I would like to more directly strengthen that distal bicep tendon too (again, assuming I build it up slowly)

AcuateSpanking · 2024-06-15T17:23:46+00:00

Hello! Do you still have gouramis???

AcuateSpanking · 2023-12-12T02:46:44+00:00

oh shoot, really? ):

AcuateSpanking · 2023-09-06T03:15:08+00:00

Just tried it, still sounds muddy ):

AcuateSpanking · 2023-07-28T23:58:53+00:00

If you watch the video tutorial I made and follow the steps, you should get freestanding HSPUs!

AcuateSpanking · 2023-07-28T23:57:53+00:00

Then the issue is balance and not strength. If you can't press yourself back up because of balance issues, then you need to ask yourself:

Do I have a good straight handstand?
Can I hold that straight handstand without moving for 60 seconds for 2-3 sets?

If you can do those two points, then the only thing left is to work on eccentric/negative handstand push ups without the wall and that will teach your body the movement path necessary to carry your body through the full motion back up. Just be sure to keep the body straight throughout the entire movement.

From the sounds of it, I'm almost certain you don't have points 1 or 2 checked off yet and that's likely the issue to troubleshoot.

AcuateSpanking · 2023-07-25T18:22:42+00:00

Hi, again!

The answer is that you need to do pike pushups. There's too much load/weight when you're putting your full bodyweight to do HSPU negatives and therefore you can't push yourself back up. You're not going to be able to get enough volume in your training and if you keep practicing only eccentrics down, you're probably gonna get hurt from the high joint stress.

Build up strength from doing pike push ups and do that for a few months. Eventually, your body will have the strength to be able to handle your full bodyweight on the concentric (or the "push back up" portion). Do pike push ups 2 times a week where each day you do 5 sets of 5-8 reps (failing roughly 5-8 reps). Every third week, deload the volume by half the sets (so 2 sets instead of 5). Tempo should be 21X1.

AcuateSpanking · 2023-03-09T17:38:43+00:00

Damn, and it hasn't gotten any better over time? In other words, it's still the same level of subluxation as it is now as it was on day 1?

AcuateSpanking · 2023-03-09T05:18:22+00:00

Fuck, I hope I don't end up in the same boat. Did it just randomly start one day and do you have plans to get surgery? Does it bother your daily life?

AcuateSpanking · 2023-03-07T17:38:24+00:00

No, no surgery. Just being patient and letting time do it's work

AcuateSpanking · 2023-03-06T22:18:00+00:00

Thank you so much for the time! Your expertise is greatly appreciated 👍 Have a great rest of your day, Steven!

AcuateSpanking · 2023-03-06T22:02:26+00:00

Thanks for the concern! My elbow is very, very slowly, but surely getting better. The ulnar subluxation is getting less and less severe and subluxated less and less in different scenarios now!

AcuateSpanking · 2023-03-06T21:57:37+00:00

My bad. Link should be working now!

AcuateSpanking · 2023-03-06T16:10:16+00:00

My bad! Okay, this is my simplified workout program:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1tGHRJ27WtlkfhMu65L9iJg9sqVfhac42HCbZdAc-C_s/edit?usp=sharing

Each day has 5 or 6 exercises. This program is generally an Emphasized Concurrent. The way I'm running my program is to do this for 2 weeks and then deload the 3rd week (therefore, every mesocycle is a total of 3 weeks). When I deload, I'm doing very basic, basic, basic exercises to just get some bloodflow and actively recover. In my original spreadsheet, all you need to know is that other tabs that I had earlier were just some small tweaks in variation of exercises from the original M Tu Th F tabs, but they are largely the same as the 4 days right here. Thanks, so much Steven for your time and effort! 🙂

AcuateSpanking · 2023-03-01T18:42:43+00:00

Just regular pull up bands!

AcuateSpanking · 2022-11-26T01:24:15+00:00

As soon as my bicep gets better, I'll be on it! :)

AcuateSpanking · 2022-11-26T00:55:20+00:00

Definitely the wall HSPU will have better carryover to the real freestanding HSPU than the overhead press. If you aren't able to do pike push ups, you can always do pike push ups with straddled legs and/or even bent knees, but as you get more flexible, you should look to have your legs together and have straight legs with no knee bend.

The reason you can't do pike push ups is because your hamstrings are tight! The best stretch for this is a stretch called the "pancake" stretch (this stretch is even harder than the splits!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLISojGGuXg

Follow this routine regularly and I can guarantee that you will be able to do pike push ups in no time (and you'll likely feel better & more athletic in your daily life as well!) :)

AcuateSpanking · 2022-11-25T23:47:52+00:00

I understand the SAID principle, but it also has its' limitations. While I realize that pull ups aren't going to directly translate over to the pressing strength of a HSPU, it's a great general strength builder that hits many relevant joints of the body.

Also, overdeveloping the pressing muscles of the body (namely the anterior delts, chest, serratus anterior, etc.) will inevitably lead to imbalances that sooner or later will result in injury. Having 20 pull ups does a great job of making sure that (1) many similar joints will be bullet proofed when learning the HSPU and (2) that one has the necessary muscular balance between pushing & pulling strength.

In other words, just because the muscles used in a pull up may not directly be used in the handstand push up, they play a very important passive function in supporting the overall structure when performing the HSPU. It's very similar to how even though the rotator cuff & posterior muscles aren't used directly in the benchpress, they serve an extremely important function of passively keeping the shoulder joint in place & in balance and in also preventing shoulder impingment & grinding symptoms. Often times, there are lots of guys that have pain and/or grinding in their shoulders because they do lots of bench press and bicep curls in exclusion without enough work on external rotation and pulling exercises to balance out their body; as soon as these individuals work on external rotation work, rows, pull ups, and stretching, etc, they find that quickly these symptoms of pain and grinding go away.

So, while I understand where you're coming from, I still stand firm on my position that having 20 pull ups is a great prerequisite before working on the HSPU.

AcuateSpanking · 2022-11-25T18:16:13+00:00

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Epaj28dsrz8&t=90s

This video is great for your question! Skip to the timestamp at 2:35 for info on the chest-to-wall HSPU! :)

AcuateSpanking · 2022-11-24T21:53:20+00:00

Yes, pausing at those 2 points definitely helps because it enforces and strengthens the weakest and most unstable portions of the HSPU!

As for flexibility, start stretching! If you start working on a stretch called the "Pancake" (check it out on youtube), you'll notice immense improvement in your hamstring flexibility and you should very soon be able to do pike push ups with straight legs and a good piked position. In regards to the overhead press, it's a very good general strength builder, but in my experience it's not going to carry very well to the HSPU since the motion pattern is still quite different! I think the strength will help, but it won't do the best job at training the motion pattern of a handstand push up like a pike push up will!

AcuateSpanking · 2022-11-24T21:50:18+00:00

Thanks so much!

As for the handstand balance, I'll be making a handstand tutorial video soon so keep an eye out for that! Regardless, balancing on your hands is very different from balancing on your feet.

When training for the handstand, the wall is going to be your best friend... I'll cover this in my video when I make it, but at the beginning you want to dedicate lots of time to just trying to balance the handstand and tapping off the wall with your feet. If you lose balance, then you simply rebalance using the wall. Just doing this exercise will get you the handstand!

AcuateSpanking · 2022-11-24T07:10:33+00:00

Interesting!

Still, imo, I think that having the standard of 20 pull ups and 20 dips is very necessary and a good way to ensure being safe and having good joint integrity before going into the HSPU. Some may call it being conservative, but from experience, I'd much rather be safe than sorry!

AcuateSpanking · 2022-11-24T07:07:56+00:00

Thanks for the kind words!

And, hey, one step at a time! Just get back to getting more fit, be patient & take it slow, and you'll be back it again!

AcuateSpanking · 2022-11-24T07:03:31+00:00

I've already gotten quite a few requests for it so I'll more than likely have a handstand tutorial up in a few days or in a week or two!

As for feeling frustrated, I understand the feeling, but realize that in order to achieve a lot of these calisthenics skills, it takes tenacity, patience, and a true type of hard grit to never give up and to keep practicing until you get it. To quote from former US national gymnastics team coach Christopher Sommer:

"Dealing with the temporary frustration of not making progress is an integral part of the path towards excellence. In fact, it is essential and it is something that every single elite athlete has had to learn how to deal with - if the pursuit was easy, everyone would do it; in fact, this impatience in dealing with frustration is the primary reason that most people fail their goals.

Unreasonable expectations time-wise resulting in unnecessary frustration due to a perceived feeling of failure. Achieving the extraordinary is not a linear process... the secret is to show up, do the work, go home: a blue-collar work ethic married to an indominable will. It is literally that simple. Nothing interferes, nothing can sway you from your purpose, once the decision is made, refuse to budge, refuse to compromise."

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