Help for practicing bhs and back tuck at home

[dancesterx3]

I don't train at a gym but I really want to learn to do a bhs and back tuck. I don't have a trampoline. But have a very strong friend who could spot. But I don't know what types of exercises I can do to get the passes down.

 

[Aussie_coach]

I'm afraid that it really is not a good idea. Back handsprings and back tucks are not extremely hard skills to do, but if you don't learn to do them properly you could (and probably will) severely injure yourself.

Why not enroll in some tumbling classes at your local gym. many gyms offer tumbling for cheerleaders and the main skills that are focussed on are things like the back handspring and back tuck. You could probably learn them quite quickly without the risk of being a paraplegic.

Do not use your strong friend to spot unless he or she is actually an experienced gymnastics coach, there are a lot of things that can go seriously wrong.

 

[dancesterx3]

Because of my age there are no gyms that offer classes suitable for me. Though there is a place here where the whole room is a giant trampoline, would practicing there be useful or no?

 

[bogwoppit]

That would be useful IF there was a qualified person to teach you the correct way. They can be very dangerous skills. I cringe when I see people on youtube "throwing" these skills alone in their back yard on an old mattress. I always feel like I am waiting to see some dreadful disaster.

 

[dancesterx3]

Don't get me wrong, I've done gymnastics my whole life, I just haven't done it or thrown any passes since I was 16, I know HOW to do the BHS/Back Tuck, I just am not sure how strong my shoulders and arms are to hold me, thats why I was asking about the trampoline. Back when I was still in the Elite world, I was throwing way harder passes than that but I'm not even going to go into twists or harder elements. It's just been so long since I've done anything that I don't want to feel like well i did it my whole life I can do it now and be very very wrong.

 

[bogwoppit]

If you were an Elite gymnast you would know what drills you need to do for these skills. These would have been basic skills that you would warm up every gym session with. Nobody here will give you tips for learning these skills alone. The liability would be enormous!

 

[dancesterx3]

I know what drills I need to do for them, some of them I forgot how to do. It's been a long time since I did it rec and an even longer time since I did it elite. Also, I don't have the proper equipment like soft panels to fall back onto or foam pits. I didn't know that open gym literally meant open gym as in anyone can walk in there pay the cover price and use the equipment. So maybe, I'll go in there one night and doing that. At least there will be coaches there right?

 

[bogwoppit]

Just call and ask if there will be coaches, they will tell you. It is an excellent way of prcticing skills safely! Good luck, let us know how it goes.

 

[dancesterx3]

Thanks! I will keep you up to date on my progress. I just want to make sure I am doing it safely. It's not worth dying or becoming paralyzed for. We will see how the open gym goes, I never did open gym so I don't know how they work.

 

[gymdog]

If you lack confidence to that extent you need to find a qualified instructor. Something seems off to me here, but oh well. Either way, learning it safely is the appropriate thing to do. And if you've truly forgotten how to do drills for floor BHS, regardless of your previous level, then you need to "learn" BHS. You can do this safely and correctly with someone who can watch and has experience spotting and teaching it.

 

[Deleted member D3987]

recipe for disaster...

 

[Aussie_coach]

This is one of the reasons more gyms in the USA need to offer adult classes. Here in Australia virtually all gyms offer adult classes and there are even gyms dedicated to adult only classes. For example Urban Gymnastics that gym pretty much teaches only adults. Occasionally allowing teenagers into some classes, and there is no kid under 12 in their gym. Someone might make a fortune if they offered something similar in the US.