Carthweels & Handstands!

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EMDG

Coach
Gymnast
Hi!

So I had my first gymnastics class yesterday and I very obviously struggled with carthweels, so I spent the entire class on that skill, succeeding to at least land on my feet even though it wasn't really pretty.

I'm planning on going to open gym next Monday so I can learn to do a carthweel and maybe a handstand for my next class. The coach said that when I put my hands on the floor, I tend to close my shoulders and my hands always stay on the ground after my first foot touches the ground, which makes me fall. She said that it looks like my form is good for the first half of it, but it looks like I "let go" once my feet are in the air.

Knowing that, I was wondering if any one had tips or drills that I could do at the open gym to get that second half of the carthweel. Additionally, I wanted to know what drills you did to learn your handstand.

Thank you!!

P.S.: I'm not exactly sure if I'm posting this in the right forum, but if it is not, I am very sorry about that.
 
Concerning the cartwheel, you need to push away from the floor with your shoulders and wrists as well as consciously (1/4) turn your hips when reaching vertical (think going from middle splits to side splits). In my opinion, having a solid handstand (or at least being able to kick all the way up and come back down finishing in a lunge) would be helpful. The "getting back down" part is very similar to that of a cartwheel.

I find it hard to recommend specific drills though without video footage of what you're doing wrong. Why not ask the coach to give you drills to work on next time you're in class?
You've also sort of answered your own question: Work on keeping the shoulders open (if you're capable: handstands with stomach facing a wall, half handstands or even just leaning against a wall in pushing your shoulders down towards the floor, head tucked in) and pushing through your wrists & shoulders (i.e. shoulder shrugs against a wall). And for your own sake, be safe, don't force your body to do things it isn't ready for. You seem to be pretty new to the sport, so my mindset isn't going to be the same as yours.

But congrats on starting gymnastics at an age most people would consider "old", I admire that determination and hope you'll love it!
 
First off, thank you so much for answering so quickly!

I will deffinitely ask the coach for drills, I don't know why I didn't think of it during the class. I didn't know how to keep my shoulders open and I think the fact that I couldn't just decompose the movement and stay in a handstand to figure how to place my shoulders didn't help. I will definitely try to do the half handstand and now that you've mentionned the shoulder shrugs against a wall, I think I know what I can do to correct my form.

I've been weight lifting for about a year and even though it's totally different from gymnastics, it's taught me a lot about my body and its limits, which I'm very grateful for, right now!

Thank you! I thought I was too old at 14, when I first started to want to start gymnastics, so I just forgot about it until they installed the rings at the gym I was lifting at. I'm already in love with gymnastics even though I spent the entire class doing one thing that is considered extremely basic. I can't wait for the other classes and to finally have time to go to open gym a few times a week!
 
Keep your arms by your ears and try to get your feet over your head instead of to the side. Picture a rainbow.
 

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