Nope!
It goes towards fixing bad habits. In essence, I’m spending time on things I shouldn’t really be spending time on if the athlete was taught the correct technique from the start. And one such skill that I’m always spending time on correcting is… of course, the back handspring.
This is why it’s exciting when I get brand new athlete with a clean slate. It allows me to hammer in the basics right from the start so that I don’t have to deal with issues down the road. And one of my favorite drills for this is the 3 Quarter Back Handspring.
Take a look below…
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Here’s Why It’s Awesome
- Allows me to check for open legs and fix it now instead of later
- Allows me to check for open shoulders
- Allows me to check for the athlete’s visuals (are they looking at the right spot)
- Allows me to check for the proper shapes and tightness
- Allows me to check for proper hand placement
- It’s safe – since over 90% of injuries happen during the landing phase, removing it almost eliminates all risk
So as you can see, what seems like an innocent (and basic) little drill can actually accomplish quite a lot. I used to go directly into front support many years ago for similar reasons, but it’s still a hard landing. Plus, there’s still a vast range where the legs could come apart. This is why I now throw in the 3/4 drill first — and once it’s perfect, I allow them to land in front support.
One common question I get is: “Can this be done for standing back handsprings?”
The answer is yes, absolutely. However, as some of you know I’m a big believer in teaching the RO BHS first. To find out why, Click Here for a more in-depth explanation.
Hope you get a chance to play around with this drill, especially with your newbie athletes. It will literally save you months of work down the line.
Until next time, train hard, eat well and stay fierce!
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For over 15 years, Coach Sahil has been on a mission to help athletes master their tumbling and acrobatic skills in the shortest amount of time possible without sacrificing safety or the quality of their technique. As a former Power Tumbler and Power Lifter himself, he fully understands the inner struggles of an athlete and how to help them get to the next level. To date, he has worked with thousands of athletes around the World and provided training to hundreds of coaches in almost every country you can imagine. He is also a Certified Gymnastics Coach, founder of Addicted To Tumbling, and former co-owner of a gym. He is also the author of the best-selling book The Cheer Diet.
