The Stunt Gym!

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Training for all gymnastics by a good coach will be the learning of skills by parts.  A good coach will break a skill into several parts and use drills that help the gymnast move correctly in that part.  Gymnastic stunts take only a second to do, yet the gymnast has to make several movements in that stunt in the right order, at the right time and with the right amount of power.  The mind cannot do this.  Fortunately, the body is directed from the brain by the neural network, which gives us our feeling of touch, and is able to function in micro seconds.  Drills are used to train these nerves so that the body will do what it needs to do in a stunt automatically as a reflex.  This frees the gymnasts mind to know what is coming next in a routine.

The standing back handspring needs drill training for it to be performed effectively.  Many mistakes in the trick occur because of a lack of proper drills training.   The stunt can be divided into these 6 parts:

1. The sit and fall
2. The back dive
3. The handstand
4. The block
5. The snap down
6. The rebound.

So here we have six movements in a one second skill that has to be performed correctly in the right order, right time, right power, and the right form.  Let’s look at each phase of the skill.

The Sit and Fall

For a standing back handspring, as well as for the round off, back handspring,  the body must sit and fall backwards off balance in order for the flight of the back dive to travel correctly backwards.

The common mistake for a standing back handspring is for the gymnast to lean forward as he or she sits before the jump.  Doing so causes the flight to go up more than back.  As a result they end up with high back handsprings that land heavy in the handstand.

To train the correct beginning, have the gymnast sit on a box against a wall. The gymnast should sit so that he or she feels the wall with their back. Arms should swing down with the sit, then swing up at the same time the back hits the wall.

The Back Dive

From the sit and arm swing, the gymnast dives backward to a straight body position.  Placing a foam wedge on top of a landing mat will provide a soft landing for the drill as well as to give the sense of the angle for the dive.

The main point of confusion for a gymnast learning the back handspring is the thought that they must go to a handstand.  As a result they do not jump hard enough to put their body into flight.  The back dive is the back handspring.   The irony of the back handspring is that the lighter the jump the more dangerous the skill becomes.  The harder the jump the safer the skill and less painful the performance will be.  When doing this drill encourage the kids to go for distance on the jump.  Have them try to touch the top of the wedge with their hands.  Obviously, the wedge and mat have to be set a safe distance from the gymnast so that they do not dive past the mat.  If the gymnast is tall try placing a small stack of panel mats in front of the landing mat to increase the distance for the jump.  They should land with their legs straight and tight together with their arms straight and tight to their head.  Their whole bodies should be tight in the landing with their toes pointed.  Emphasize the toe point from the beginning of the jump, not just the landing on the mat.

The Handstand

It is important that the gymnast not rush past the handstand anxiously to get their feet on the ground.  The handstand landing has to be straight and tight.

Before doing this drill from the back handspring, have the gymnast kick to a handstand with the stomach facing the landing mat. Then they are to keep their body straight and tight as they fall on their stomach.   Teaching a back handspring presupposes that a handstand has been taught correctly first.  If the gymnast is relaxed on the landing he or she may injure their backs.  If they are landing correctly from the stand, then have them move about a body length away from the mat, or if your landing mat is large enough, have them stand on the mat for the back handspring.  Stop them in their handstand to straighten their bodies before the handstand flop landing.

The Block

Blocking is a term that has two meanings.  The original meaning was “to get in the way,” specifically with the feet when changing a forward or backward movement to a vertical movement as when flipping in the air.   As applied to the arms, however, blocking means “to push from the shoulders and wrists”.   If the handstand remains straight upon the landing, then the gymnast needs to vigorously block from the shoulders before snapping the legs down.   If the gymnast snaps the legs down first, there is no chance of a correct push of the upper torso for the stand.  If the block was performed at the right time correctly, the body should be in flight before landing on the feet.  If the hands remain on the ground when the feet hit, then there was no block.

There are many drills for working the block with the snap down.  Donkey hops, as see on the left, are blocks and snap downs done consecutively.  These are real gut busters.

The ability to block will hinge on the shoulder and arm strength of the gymnast.  If they haven’t the strength, then don’t expect them to block.  A conditioning program is vital and should begin on day 1 of any program.

The Snap Down

The snap down and block work together, so the separation is artificial.

The goal of the snap down is to bring the legs down forcefully while standing up quickly.  Using a box against the wall for the gymnast to kick to a handstand raises the athlete up, thus facilitating the stand upwards.

The main mistake of most beginners is that they fail to get their arms and upper torso up quickly from the snap down, thus causing their bodies to lean forward on the landing.   The only way another back handspring can be connected to the first, then is to squat deeply to help the body fall back again.  This is wrong and slows down the back handspring series when being learned.  Teach them to get up fast before introducing the series.

The Rebound

It should be a habit for the athletes to rebound after the skill.  In truth, correct tumbling is more rebounding than jumping.  The difference between a jump and a rebound is that in a jump the athlete bends the knees and jumps off the toes, whereas with a rebound the legs remain straight and the bounce comes from the arch of the foot and toe point.

Rebounding is faster than jumping because jumping requires more distance the body must travel with the knee bend and the straightening of the legs just to get off the ground, than the rebound which is very little movement.

The rebound should have pointed toes and feet. The arms should be up behind the ears.  The head should stay inside the arms in the neutral position of looking forward, not down.   The block and snap should have the feet land  far from the hands for the rebound.  When series are introduced the gymnast will have to learn to undercut.

A drill to help learn the rebound is to stiffen the legs and simple have them bounce on two feet all the way across the floor.