WAG Tips for spotting overweight gymnasts

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SweetSecrets15

Coach
Gymnast
Hey, I just started coaching this beginners rec class at my gym and I have this tiny 7 year old girl who is extremely overweight. She easily weighs more than me. Spotting her is hard but tolerable on most events, except bars! She has zero upper body strength or body coordination so spotting pullovers is horrifying. Every time I spot one, I feel like I'm going to drop her because she's so heavy. I have her pull up to her chin, then I grab her legs and lift her up and around the bar. Then I push her chest up so she can finish on top of the bar. It's really a struggle and I don't want to embarrass anybody, so does anyone have any tips? Is there an easier way to spot pullovers? I can't even imagine spotting a back hip circle...
 
Utilize mats to aid her and you. Put a block mat near enough so she can put her feet on it and pull her chin up assisted by the block ( even if its right under her anything for small step by herself or little assistance), and maybe even have her kick off it to get her legs over the bar at some point. Have all the girls do it (move the block closer or farther for difficulty) so she isn't the only one. Some will do it alone and that's great, but make sure to tell her she can do it. Even the smallest improvement needs to be congratulated. If she really can't, keep encouraging her to try and let her know you will keep trying and she will get better as she goes.
I had one girl in a rec tumbling class that was very self conscious about doing what the others were doing and was much heavier than them. We were doing handstands and cartwheels. For handstand she could not kick up and I was unable to hold her up safely. So I got some block mats and had them all do pike handstands to help them all find vertical. She was still apprehensive. I told her step by step what to do. She laid on the mat, put her hands on the ground and got as far as straightening her legs up off with feet on the mat and bum slightly lifted. I told her great job and encouraged her to keep trying and that she is brave for giving it a go. The others were clearly better and got praise. By her third try she was higher than the first. I said, see you can do it, you made an improvement in 3 tries. She smiled a lot after and felt a little better about herself.
 
Honestly, in situations like these you shouldn't spot, especially heavy spotting like assisting her throughout an entire pullover. If you continue to do so, you risk injury to yourself, and to the student as well, not to mention that it really won't help the athlete develop the skill since you are basically doing it for them. I agree with WSCoachLY; use smart mat set ups and use creative drills. They will go a long way in helping her with the skill by developing strength and body awareness, and putting her body in all sorts of different scenarios. There's absolutely nothing wrong with fully spotting once in a while to see her progress, but only once every few weeks or so. Look up videos on YouTube. There's lots of great coaches with cool drills who like to share their ideas on the internet!

I've dealt with students like this a number of times, and I've discovered that when they can learn on their own and celebrate little victories without a coach always helping, it goes a long way in boosting their confidence, and it's a lot more fun for them, too. It's also more effective for their learning process and helps them acquire skills faster.

Kudos to you for seeking advice! That's a sign of a coach who truly cares and wants to see their students succeed. Your kids are lucky to have you.
 
We do the drills with blocks, etc... we also have 2 coaches with most of our rec classes and they tag team spot, if needed. They do it for all the girls at first.
One drill I like as they get more strength is to use a cheese mat standing on end that they can "walk" up to help them get over. One coach is behind the mat to keep it from falling over (but you could rig something too) and the other coach is there to make sure they don't get hurt and spot that final little push if needed.
 
You need to put your own health and safety as a high priority when you are spotting. If you hpget injured spotting her then everyone else will miss out too.

If you have to heave a gymnast through a skill then they are not ready to do that skill with spot yet. Have her do a drill, ie e have a bar close to the wall with a mat up the wall and the gymnasts must be able to walk up the wall and flip over the bar by themselves. Once they can do that they should be able to donut without one foot on the wall and then with no feet before being spotted on the bar.

Skills like pullovers don't really need to be spotted at all for any gymnast, as there are so many drills that you can do.
 
Have the ones who can't chin or leg lift do assisted chin, and leg lift stations and a third station where they are elevated at a bar so that they don't have to chin and can try to jump their legs over?
 
I don't generally spot much for beginners/recreational students. They are far better off developing their own strength/coordination and body awareness though different activities and doing skills in a modified way. It also allows them to progress and develop at a rate they are comfortable with. I really feel for the kids who have coaches spot them through skills and their body is telling them 'OMG where am I, freak out'

It's also not a productive use of your coaching time/attention. I absolutely hate watching coaches put all their focus on spotting one kids with a skill beyond their current ability while the rest of the group is standing in a line or doing stations poorly because they never get any feedback.
 

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