The flare is pro level: a shoulder-heavy strength power move from gymnastics. How to build the strength base, practise it in parts and protect your shoulders.
How do I learn the flare — the move where the legs circle like a propeller and the body seems to float weightless above the floor? Plain speak up front: the flare is a top-tier strength power move. It originally comes from gymnastics (the "Thomas flair") and demands exceptional shoulder, core and hip strength.
This is no beginner move and no weekend project. And it's dangerous if you rush it: power moves are the most injury-prone movements in breaking, and the flare loads almost your entire weight onto shoulders and wrists — exactly the regions that suffer most statistically.
That's why this guide is pro level and uncompromising: strength base first, then the move. We look at what the flare really demands, how to build it and how to protect your shoulders.
### 1. Build the strength base honestly The flare is largely strength. You need strong shoulders (rotator cuff and deltoids), an extremely stable core and powerful hip flexors. Train shoulder strength and stability specifically — pros show clear strength profiles with a balanced ratio of external to internal rotation. Without this base the flare is impossible and risky.
### 2. Isolated part drills Before you attempt the whole flare, practise the parts: the powerful support and weight shift from one hand to the other, the wide leg circle (often first on an elevation) and the hip opening. This breakdown is especially important for the flare because the full movement is enormously demanding.
### 3. The leg circle (the "scissor") The heart of the flare is a wide, straddled leg circle in which the legs open and close like scissors while you shift your weight from hand to hand. The body stays low and the legs circle freely above the floor. That demands timing plus strength — both together.
### 4. Short, fresh attempts The flare fatigues you brutally fast. Practise it only fresh, in a few attempts with long breaks. Tired shoulders on the flare are a direct route to injury. Quality and protection beat any rep count here.
The flare is one of the most shoulder-heavy moves in breaking. Because power moves are statistically linked to shoulder injuries and are among the riskiest movements at all, maximum caution applies here: never without a massive strength base, never in fatigue, always thoroughly warmed up.
Actively build shoulder stability and strength before you increase volume. Persistent shoulder pain is a hard stop signal — with the flare, "training through" quickly becomes a long-term injury. Get guidance; no other move punishes bad technique so directly.
Use an elevation (parallettes, a flare mushroom or stable blocks) to learn the leg circle without your feet snagging on the floor. That way you groove the movement with more room and less weight pressure before you bring it flat to the ground.
Many gymnasts and breakers learn the flare exactly this way — the elevation removes the biggest frustration factor. Learn the movement in the air before you force it onto the floor.
### How hard is the flare to learn? Very hard — the flare is a pro-level move that demands exceptional shoulder and core strength and often takes many months. It's largely strength, not technique. Without a strong foundation it's neither doable nor safe. See it as a long-term goal, not a quick trick.
### Do I need a gymnastics background for the flare? No, but the strength gymnasts bring helps enormously — the flare comes from gymnastics. Without a gymnastics past you simply build that shoulder, core and hip strength deliberately yourself. It takes longer but is doable. What matters is the strength base, not the origin.
### Why does my shoulder hurt when practising the flare? Because the flare loads almost your entire weight onto the shoulders and power moves are statistically linked directly to shoulder problems. Immediately reduce the volume, strengthen the rotator cuff and never practise in fatigue. If the pain persists, pause and get it checked — the shoulder is your bottleneck in the flare.
### Can I learn the flare without a windmill? In theory yes, in practice unwise. The windmill builds the basic rotation and the habit of carrying weight over back and shoulders. That experience makes the flare more accessible and safer. Stick to the power-move ladder — it exists because each rung prepares the next.
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