mental block on backhandsprings

[iamagymbabe]

i've just started learning backhandsprings in a covered pit and iv'e got a really bad mental block of them. i'll get ready and instead of jumping back and looking for the floor, i end up falling backwards or landing on my head. i don't know how to get over it! HELP!

 

[Mack_the_Ripper]

It seems to me that you're letting the "backwards" thing get ahead of the "jumping" thing. You're thinking so much about going backwards that you're starting to before you jump. Do some backwards-moving jumps, and then if you can do BHS on a trampoline, do it there. Think "Jump hard!" to yourself, and make sure your feet leave the ground before you go backwards.