After today's earlier posy on GYMNASTS , it seems appropriate to follow up with acrobatics - specially hand balancing. The art of this - at least as told by us - is what you do with the rest of your body. Nothing can be limp or loose - every muscle needs to be tense and to hold your body completely still once balance is reached - and then you can stay there! Two hands, or even just one. Ideally, you move slowly into the balance position because any sudden lunge or jerky movement can throw you off balance and result in the need to take a 'step' to regain it - or end up with you rolling out of it or, (better) turning your shoulder so that you can see the floor and then landing on your feet. We'll begin in the company of a young gymnast from the south-west of England who has made handstanding his life's work! One hand or two? In particular, look at what his fingers are doing, and how straight and tense he holds his body. Although you can't see it in these pictures,

Guys getting it together - or just getting together - in pairs or larger groups - in various ways... ...oh, this theme is too hard to explain! See what you make of the pictures and the videos, none of which fit directly into any of our usual categories here. A shorter post than usual.

A sort of mixed-bag post... on how good examples motivate others in fitness and sports skills. Let's start with a pair of young acrobatic gymnasts in California who went to a show put on by some professionals (Jack and Tiego) and then explored some of their training videos. This is what they saw: ...then they found this on Tiego's instagram: ...and then they had a go... ...OK, got to work on releasing the arms... and then (wait for it after the repeat of Jack and Tiego): Seriously good work there, wouldn't you say! This could be their next challenge: Maybe the acro boys will give that one a go. Meanwhile, working in pairs means that each challenges the other a bit: Maybe the influencer is dad - especially when he takes part too:   ...and then Odin (in the previous videos), inspires brother Loki: Here, dad is the influencer, challenging his two young sons:   This one is quite challenging for two groups of two:  This influencer is determined to show off his outdoor workout -