Coaches Gymnasts Can't Full Turn on BB

[coachmolly]

I am really struggling with a group of girls who just cannot seem to full turn on beam. We have a handful who can get around, and generally land them, but another bunch who cannot even get their foot around. One girl in particular, preps for the turn, does a 1/4-1/2ish turn then puts her other foot down and turns herself the rest of the way, both on low and high beams. We've worked through the steps of turning, body positions, making sure they are up in releve, but nothing seems to be making sense. Part of me feels like it might be some kind of fear, or just a programed thought that they can't do it and therefore won't try or would rather fake it than fall, but I just don't know. It's to the point where they really aren't trying anymore because they are so content with not being able to do it. I would rather see them go for it and fall than do the fake turn they have been doing to get them moving in the right direction, but maybe that's incorrect logic on my part.
I'm just hoping for maybe some ideas on how to reword things to get something to resonate with them or perhaps a way to motivate them to keep working at it. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Short Balding Guy]

Often heard from my lips in our gym: Perfect FX skills are performed on BB.

Easy- Work the skills on FX, ground beams, very low beams.

Harder- Turn complex: Technique work may need some of the following:
(1) Chugs (1/4 turns in coupe or passé).
(2) Lunge - lifts. From lunge, lift the leg with level hips, hold and finish.
(3) 3 step lock, hold, drop heel (coupe or passé )snap 1/2 turns
(4) 3 step lock, hold, drop heel (coupe or passé )snap 1/1 turns
(5) High relieve develope's . Have the gymnast hold the leg out for 3 sec. (This works turn completion/balance)
(6) Balance board work as side stations.
(7) Lunge 1/2 turns with open support leg (other leg passé or coupe as skill dictates).
(8) Lunge 1/1 turns.
(9) Spotting completions (working early spotting and stopping outside shoulder).

Hardest - Motivation
(1) Acheivable goals - be it 1/4, 1/2 or 1/1 turns in a box on FX. The athlete completes turn in relieve and then "finishes." We reward with Tumble Track trips (I call them "vacations") or a stated time on our weight machines (we used to operate a fitness club and have brought the equipment into the gymnastics gym). The girls love this.
(2) Low Beam - same as above. I use "gymnasts judges" to identify if they complete the turn with -.1 or less deductions. The girls know the deductions for wobble and completion. They enjoy helping each other and often offer advice.
(3) others that I am not remembering at this moment…..

I do make the girls from USAG L4 on execute the turns using both legs even though they compete using 1 side L3-5. This has paid off well when they go on to L6-10.

Coach Molly, I have only started answering your question. I hope other sage wisdom comes your way.

Best in the gym, SBG -

 

[Nicole19]

I've had some success teaching them "how" to use their heel. We imagine a soccer ball sitting beside the inside their turning foot. When they lift onto relieve they have to "kick" the soccer ball with their heel, giving them some drive to the turn initiated by the heel. I hope this makes sense!

 

[gymjunkie]

Which of the "three acceptable turn preps" are you having them do?

 

[coachmolly]

This is a high school team. The majority have never done anything beyond rec gym, if that, and have had no work with dance-y type stuff. We practice Nov-Feb with 1 month to get ready for the first meet, so not a ton of time to work on little details. So that might give you a better idea of what I'm working with.
For turn prep, I let them do what feels most comfortable to them for the most part- though I teach step through a slight lunge with arms in forward middle up to high releve with arms in crown or step onto a straight leg with arms in the same positions.

 

[aileenmaryf]

I am somewhat in the same boat as you. I also coach high school gymnastics and have 4-5 new girls who have done little to no gymnastics and have similar problems with full turns. I haven't really pushed them a whole bunch because the girls who don't have full turns are most likely not competing right away, but I have surprisingly seen more progress than I even expected. I make them do full turns on the floor, then on a line (usually on the seam of the carpet on floor), then they move to the floor beam. When they have consistently started putting their foot down in front of them, then I make them move to the low beam (its a very old crappy beam that is a little below knee height). If they do them well, I let them move to HB.

Sometimes I have competitions to see who can stick 5 first--- or who can stick the most in so many minutes--- and when they are done the winner gets a fruit snack (you would be surprised by what most high schoolers will do for fruit snacks).

If I still have girls who are majorly struggling, I let them get comfortable with doing 1/2 toe turn, pivot turn until they get it down.

Hope this was helpful and good luck on your season!

 

[coachmolly]

Thanks! I have a few girls that have picked it up incredibly fast, but one girl in particular is really struggling. She can do a nice 1 1/2 turn on the floor, so she gets the general concept, it's just that mastering it on beam has been a constant struggle. The rest of her beam is pretty decent, so we want her to compete (she's our sole AAer), but getting through this block has been tough. Because her turns are good on the floor, I feel like this has a big mental component, but there are a few others (those not likely to compete beam anytime soon) who are also struggling. I'll do some messing around with some of your suggestions and see what happens. They certainly won't hurt! Thanks again!

 

[Pineapple_Lump]

If it is a mental thing, get her to start her pivot from a side passe. Start with the half, she will have to pull her arms down quickly and lift fast to the releve to make it around (while moving leg to the forward passe). We do all our pivots on beam like this, as it requires good body alignment and technique to make it. If you can't half pivot and finish in forward passe, you are unlikely to make a full. By standing on the turning leg you can only generate the turn speed with the releve lift, which gives most children more control.

 

[CoachTodd]

Something simple to try is to start with the foot in forth position and spot the end of the beam. It's worth a shot. 4th position kind of gives them a 1/4 turn head start and pulling up to the toe turn shape helps to feel the heel drive around.

 

[gopuckgo]

Funny but a lot of gymnasts struggle with full turns on beam. My little one still only lands about half of them. She throws perfect doubles and 1 1/2 on floor too. I always think okay you can throw BHS BHS BLO on beam, but will lose it on a simple full turn!! Go figure.

 

[iwannacoach]

You should ask them what their mental model is and see if it agrees with your model. There have been some good posts relating to technique, drills, and progression from beginning to end.....

But all of those good ideas don't work if the girls try to motivate a left foot turn to the left by reaching around their center with their right side, without first reaching back with their left shoulder, the whole thing goes kybosh and peters out at best with a half turn that wants to fall to the same side they're turning toward.

That's just an example, but it's also a very typical error made by kids who do what seems sensible and obvious to get the turn to go around. The thing is...... gymnastics seldom makes sense to a beginner.

 

[txgymfan]

Funny but a lot of gymnasts struggle with full turns on beam. My little one still only lands about half of them. She throws perfect doubles and 1 1/2 on floor too. I always think okay you can throw BHS BHS BLO on beam, but will lose it on a simple full turn!! Go figure.

Watch videos from USA Nationals (AKA VISA's) and you will see elite gymnasts that can do much more than the BHS BHS BLO wobble or fall on a full turn. It surprises me every year. I always think "really you can defy most laws of physics and do the seemingly impossible but you still mess up on a full turn".

 

[coachmolly]

Thanks so much for all of the replies! I just wanted to stop in and give an update. I asked her to do a heel snap type turn from side passe like Pineapple_Lump suggested as she has a very strange turn-prep (twists at the hips, really winds up for it) and the success was almost instant. There is still plenty of room for progress, but she was getting closer than she has in a long time and with much greater consistency. I told her that she did not need to keep initiating the turn that way, but she felt so much more comfortable with it that she wants to keep it that way at least for the time being.
I have a few more girls who are struggling so I look forward to trying some more of these ideas. Thanks again!