Hand Placement in Back Handsprings

[gymnast_bre]

I noticed in my back handsprings my hands face out to the sides instead of the way you would put them in a handstand. Is that okay?

 

[All Chalked Up]

Do you mean on floor or beam? My hands face out for BHS on beam (even though you're not really supposed to because of the slippage factor), but on floor you should have "handstand hands".

 

[gymnast_bre]

On floor. How can I go about fixing it then? There's just so much to focus on as your hands are touching the ground...

 

[gymnastbeth]

I used to do this, and if I remember correctly, it's really bad for your wrists. Do a couple standing BHS's with chalk on your hands so you can really visualize where they land. You can also go back to doing them over a BHS trainer a few times "slow-mo" just so you can get your hands lined up right. I found that my hands used to point out more when my arms weren't straight, so you could also focus on general form in the BHS. (Pushing out with your legs and not up) Other than that it's merely repetition with hands facing the right way. Good luck!