Olympic Level Coach Shares His Tumbling & Conditioning Secrets For High Performance

Ever wonder how Olympic level gymnasts can achieve such a tremendous amount of power in their tumbling passes from seemingly nothing?

We know it’s hard work, but everyone knows that. But what about the stuff that goes on behind the scenes? What are the underlying principals of high performance, technique and strength that allows these amazing athletes to do what they do?

Well to answer those questions, I recently recorded an interview with Nick Ruddock who is Former National Coach to GBR WAG Gymnastics Team, a Technical Expert for the Union of European Gymnastics, Consultant to over a dozen international federations
and Former coach to European, World & Olympic Medallists.

So grab a pen and get ready to take some serious notes! The play button is located below (you’ll also want to grab Nick’s resources as you listen, which are free)

Nick’s Resources

• Website: www.nickruddock.com
• Physical Prep Octagon: Click Here to Download
• GymCOn Conference: www.gymcon.co.uk
• Gymnastics Growth Club: Click Here To Join 

Time Stamped Show Notes

• 2:25 – Nick talks about his accomplishments as a coach and the mentors he’s had that have helped him get to where he is today.
• 3:05 – We discuss Nick’s physical preparation Octagon (it’s a FREE download by the way) which includes all the essential movements every great gymnast or tumbler needs in order to become successful.
• 5:45 – Ever have athletes that do a RO BHS with bent legs and can’t seem to generate power? Nick talks about how to train athletes so they know the difference between jumping and rebounding.
• 11:15 – We talk about the right way and the wrong way to use drills
• 11:49 – I ask Nick a question I’ve personally been getting a lot: How do I develop powerful tumblers (i.e Simone Biles)
• 13:00 – Nick talks about why “Strength underpins power” and how you can use this very important training concept to help your athletes achieve stronger, faster and even safer tumbling.
• 14:25 – The easiest way to develop strength amongst your athletes. This modification literally takes a few minutes to implement.
• 17:10 – We talk about fixing common bad habits. In particular, fixing the open legs in the round off bhs connection.
• 17:30 – Nick talks about the importance of “feeling” the correction and how you can help athletes develop this during their back-handsprings.
• 19:20 – Nick reveals one of the biggest “time sappers” for coaches that results in decreased performance and overall less efficiency in your athlete’s training and development. Learn what it is, and how you can reclaim all those wasted hours and minutes!
• 20:10 – I ask Nick what are some of the best practices that he suggest newer and younger coaches adapt now, so that they don’t have as many headaches into the future.
• 23:30 – Nick talks about how you can deal with difficult or uncoachable athletes that aren’t always motivated or performing at the level they should be at.
• 26:45 – I ask Nick what his favorite pieces of equipment or tools that he considers a “must have” in order to coach at a high level and get his athletes to perform at their best. (DartFish link)
• 31:45 – We discuss the annual conference that Nick throws called GymCon and how he helps coaches develop their skills in order to keep their athletes Happy, Healthy & Hungry. We also discuss the importance of further educatio and resources you should be using.