Coaches Twisting out of round off

[gymisforeveryone]

I coach a group of 12-15 year old gymnasts who are starting to compete optional level.

They are late starters training low hours and most of them have bad habits, fears or injuries which forces us to make up routines that consists of more uncommon (and less comprehensive) tumbling passes etc.

One of them can't or doesn't want to do back handsprings because of wrist pain and one other girl has so piked back handsprings I prefer her not to do them in her routine. They have both worked on RO-BTs and RO-LOs and they do well with those. Now I would want to increase the difficulty and add twisting. And here comes the problem:

I find teaching twisting very difficult since I never did it as a gymnast. I get a headache when I even try to understand which way a gymnast is twisting. I was at a camp where the coaches made the lefty gymnasts do left twisting drills like 360 degree straight jumps off blocks (so they turned left). And the righty gymnasts had to twist right. The kids they were teaching were young (7-9 year olds)

So at last practice I tried to figure out if my gymnast were following this guideline by nature. Well, it all ended up confusing me even more! I made them do straight 360 degree jumps and these into the pit: Some of them changed the twisting direction when I made them do a half twist in the air. At least I think they changed it - I find it VERY hard to understand which direction they twist when they turn upside down! How do you other coaches figure it out?

I have heard that twisting direction matters more when a gymnasts does the twisting out of round off. So please help me understand! Should I make them twist left if they do left handed round-offs? Or is it still possible to twist right out of left leg round-off?

Thank you!

 

[gymdog]

Look for stomach or back when the first twist and determine whether that's right or left. In the video, stomach first was right and back first was left.

It's hard to a right hand RO, immediate left twist because the end of the skill isn't really opening into the same direction. Think about taking off really early out of a right roundoff, like with barely completing the roundoff, the torso would be oriented slighting reaching into a right twist. But right RO, left full is manageable. Right RO, left double full might be tricky.

Also, if you're doing for example RO 1.5 twist step out then it's hard to step out right from a left twist.

However, if they are unable to do BHSs properly, it is possible they are physically and psychologically unprepared to do twisting technique to a gymnastics standard.

 

[Short Balding Guy]

GFE: In my experience athletes show me back twist direction preference when they are asked to bounce a twisting straight jump ( 1/2 or 1/1) on tramp or tumble track. If I, the coach, have a preference, I like twisting direction to match with R/O direction.

R/O (late twist) 1/1's are an excellent intermediate skill to learn. A strong R/O and strong layout are my entrance requirments. A R/O Arabian (early twist) could be another option to have the athletes learn. I have a couple of athletes in the gym competeing a R/O Arabian Front 1/1. They enjoy having a different pass when we go to meets.

With repect Coach, I read your query a couple of times and in the gym I would consider corrrecting the flight from hands to feet in a RO (thinking it would be the highest priority in the athletes tumbling skills and BHS. Strong BHS skills could be worked simultaneousely with the RO. Long term, improving those skills would go a long way for a beginning Optional gymnast. Floor and Beam coaches would love you for doing the hard work.

Best wishes for you and your athletes in the gym. SBG -

 

[Deleted member D3987]

get out a large spoon. the convex is the stomach and the concave the back/butt. now practice.