Where would we be without Velcro?

Wade Petersen was mentioning to me about how he was thinking for a way to show square hips with posts sticking out the sides.  So I came up with this:


Also thought about maybe attaching flashlights or laser pointers to the sides (Al Luber used to talk to the kids about pretending like they had headlights).

And the bottom idea I had a couple of years ago and had bought the material but never executed the idea until this past week:

Round off turnover and developing a long backhandspring

Back handspring and round off drills for pike down technique

The pike down action has been somewhat controversial.

Last month, after posting a video clip taken by Irving Nochez onto my gym's FB page, I offered the following explanation, as I understand it:

Can anyone identify the clinician in the video clip? It looks to be Valeri Liukin; but I'm not 100% sure.
At any event, notice that the lecturer has the coach doing the traditional turnover with arms and chest up fast? Then has her do it without standing upright, but keeping the chest low, ending in a pike sit?
I've been asked a few times "Why are you teaching kids to pike down?" out of round-offs and backhandsprings. To save myself some time, here's a concise answer I gave in a comment on a previous video a while back ago:
"As a gymnast and as a coach, I was always told, "Arms by the ears; arms and chest up fast". The problem with young kids (or beginners) is that when they try and connect a RO and BHS without having learned how to turnover a fast RO, get off the hands, and land off-balanced right away, what happens is the classic undercutting where the knees buckle forward, the head throws back early, causing the chest to go out, resulting in a high, loopy back handspring.
I first got the idea of allowing kids to pike down from an Australian coach, Wade Petersen (who is now our head boys coach since last February; and who I think will eventually oversee all the programs at GW).
He has a back tumbling video (it used to be on YouTube but he's since deleted his channel) where one of the drills is to sit in a pike and slide down to your back (a sit up exercise). That's, in part, where I got my inspiration for the pike sit on the block, followed by the fall to handstand (essentially doing the same job as an octagon barrel or pac-man). I want my gymnasts to get it out of their heads that a backhandspring is an archy, bridgie action; I want them to think of it more as a stretched handstand.
Wade teaches both round-offs- ones where the objective is to get the arms and chest up and the strong turnover; the other technique (the pike down) for physically weak kids who can't do that. What's important isn't that they get their chest and arms up quick for the turnover, but that they land off balanced right away (due to the pike down, the hips are already behind the feet) and hold the coiled shape (the hollow in the chest) as long as possible before unraveling occurs into the backhandspring.
I hope my explanation makes theoretical sense. Clarity over agreement.
I've seen others teach the pike down method, too, btw. At National Congress, both Justin Laury and Ivan Ivanov teach the pike action. Their explanations are slightly different. But they are really emphasizing the pike. Ivanov also showed video footage of Valeri Liukin teaching kids to pike. It's essentially an overexaggerated scooped hollow position and eventually it should look "normal". Just the drilling of the position and shape is pronounced (i.e., exaggerated). ;)In Laury's presentation at National Congress, he also showed video footage of kids basically doing a round-off rebound into a piked seat drop shape; he'd catch them and then they'd unfurl into the back handspring. Wade's old video had one of his kids rebound the same way onto an 8 inch mat, and then unfurl into a supine, lying position.
I hope this helps. I know it's a bit unorthodox.

Front headsprings as connected front tumbling drill

Handstand Flatback Drill

I got this idea originally from Swing Big:

Whack-a-Gymnast

Staying tight and focused:




This was my favorite ball, until I pumped too much air into it and it exploded.  I guess it's still my favorite, but it leaks air and no longer has its cloth covering.  I think the product is no longer available.  It's a shame because it was a great beach ball that I could attach Velcro to, for other drills.

When deflated at the right amount, the ball really does make a great booming sound when it impacts.

Vault Idle Stations Circuits

Encouraging the Tap

Abductors & Adductors with Resistance Bands

Core Posture Alignment Awareness and Strengthening Exercise/Test

Hollow Push-up Beam Crawls while Piggybacking Foam Block

Since we did not have all the beams, I thought I'd kill some time on the two high beams we did have with a little conditioning and concentration game. The Hot Shots loved it so much, we spent 2/3rds of our beam time on it. I figured they were getting stronger working their core and support strength. Since they were enthused about it, why not?

At first, they had trouble; then they started figuring out a certain "cheat"- foam block on the upperback and behind the head. I might have to create a rule on no resting the foam behind the neck; but if it helped them keep their round turtle back, I couldn't really complain.

Bungee bar candle lever

Finding body alignment on the foam rollers

All sorts of creative uses for foam rollers beyond the original intent.


Here's one:

Stinky Roundoffs

Our level 5s who just got done with compulsory season are going to try and jump right into the optional season as new 7s.  They aren't entirely ready and are still acquiring skills (*cough*giants*cough*); but they've definitely come a long way in a short time.

Last Saturday one of their return stations was round-off slams.  We once worked with putting a whoopie cushion up as a target a long time ago.  Decided to pull it back out and use it (I bought three of these, with two still functional).

I think the rec parents in the bleachers were greatly entertained.

Bungee Bar Handstands

Spotted Tsuk Drill

I won't be spotting them like this that often; but I wanted to try and give Marissa a sense of what it's like. Once they've done enough progressions and get their timers stronger, it should be less of me and more of them, so that anyone could stand in there and spot 'em- easy! Or better yet, no spot. Unfortunately there's not enough space here for them to generate much of a run.

Chin Pillows

Some brilliant ideas work better than others.  This was not one of them:

This is related to the "sticky toes".

Oh, well.  I think the concept is still good- just not the execution of it   I've also thought of experimenting with some sort of modified neck brace.





How about a strip of velcro attached from a mouthpiece to the front top of a leotard?  I kid.  (Actually, as I type this, I think I have a clip somewhere of kids putting the front of their leotard in their mouths to back extension roll and feel their head position).

Backhandspring Shape Drill

We only have one vault table and I normally don't get to do this drill setup with my girls on a regular basis.  This was a preteam/new level 3 kid on Saturday.  She made some big improvements on her backhandspring.

Press/Stalder/Cast Handstand Shape Conditioning

Have not done this exercise in a very long time:

That's a preteam/new level 3 kid.  Thought I'd try it with her at the end of her practice.


Below, I think this was a level 5 kid; maybe training old level 6:

Assisted Press Handstand Station