WAG Level 5 Vault Arm Circle

[sglemon]

This comes out of a discussion tonight. What is the general train of thought on arm circles, which is better, large or small? What is currently being taught? If a gymnast is doing one type and another type is now being taught, does that hurt the vault score?

Sorry for being so general.

 

[fliptwisttwirl]

I'd say generally you don't see very many big arm circles going into a front handspring on vault. You don't have much time from when your feet hit the board till your hands are going to hit. It's more of an "arm thrust" quickly to the table to block off.

 

[Deleted member D3987]

This comes out of a discussion tonight. What is the general train of thought on arm circles, which is better, large or small? What is currently being taught? If a gymnast is doing one type and another type is now being taught, does that hurt the vault score?

Sorry for being so general.

the general thought is that there should be an arm circle. they're usually not very big. quick and abrupt. and they can vary from athlete to athlete depending on what you're trying to accomplish.

 

[profmom]

It's interesting -- I don't remember DD working on the mechanics of the arm circle all that much at L5, but the boys work on it a lot. (But then, DS's coach also claims that DS is the only human being on the planet who had to be taught to swing his arms while he runs.)

 

[gymmutti]

My youngest dd had to be taught how to swing her arms when running too. And it did not come naturally to her I the least! You can tell your son's coach that there are at least two kids in the world, not just one!

 

[iwannacoach]

If you've ever heard the phase "less is more" you can apply it to the "arm circle" in vaulting. I think a large arm circle slows down the pre-flight's forward motion because of the way gymnasts adjust their hurdle posture to create time for the arm circle. There are some less frequently seen vaults that work well with a slower/higher pre-flight, but those are usually not a coaches first choice for kids.

 

[BlairBob]

Medium to small arm circle by the time they are doing FHS vaults. It should only be big in L1 or 2 when they are learning to punch the board during their first 6 months.

They should be encouraged to start bending their arms in the arm circle to speed up the circle as soon as possible. Big arm circles only work on trampoline really because of how slow the bounce of a tramp is.

 

[OzZee]

My youngest dd had to be taught how to swing her arms when running too. And it did not come naturally to her I the least! You can tell your son's coach that there are at least two kids in the world, not just one!

LOL add mine, she still doesn't have it but at least she doesn't run like a fairy anymore! (seriously on tippy toes with hands flapping at the side)

 

[mommyof1]

LOL add mine, she still doesn't have it but at least she doesn't run like a fairy anymore! (seriously on tippy toes with hands flapping at the side)

Mine had to be taught to swing her arms too! Her coach used to tell her to stop running like a girl.