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Fundamental Tumbling Presentation

The document discusses fundamental tumbling positions, skills, and drills. It covers key body positions like stretch, round, arch, and tuck. It also discusses important basic tumbling skills like handstand, cartwheel, and roundoff. The presentation provides instruction on properly executing these fundamental positions and skills.

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100% found this document useful (1 vote)
164 views50 pages

Fundamental Tumbling Presentation

The document discusses fundamental tumbling positions, skills, and drills. It covers key body positions like stretch, round, arch, and tuck. It also discusses important basic tumbling skills like handstand, cartwheel, and roundoff. The presentation provides instruction on properly executing these fundamental positions and skills.

Uploaded by

ellavoss060
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Steve Wright Presents

Fundamental Body Positions, Skills, and Drills as


the Building Blocks to Effective Tumbling
Who Can Benefit from this
Presentation?
Quite simply, EVERYONE can!!

This presentation is for any coach who includes tumbling


into practices, games, competitions, and other
performances.
In order to safely and effectively execute tumbling skills, a
major emphasis needs to be placed on fundamental
tumbling, including body positions, technique, and
execution.
This emphasis should be taught and reinforced to athletes
of all ages and ability levels for maximum learning.
Why Do We Use Fundamental
Tumbling?
• Safety – Using lead up skills, also known as progressions, allows the
coach to isolate and highlight the safe and proper way of executing
body positions and technique to minimize the risk of injury to the
athlete.

• Memory of Movement – In order to consistently and effectively


master any skill, the proper way to repeatedly execute that skill is
critical. Learning and reinforcing proper memory of movement
with fundamental skills will allow for an easier transition to more
difficult skills.

• Maximizing Potential – Because fundamental tumbling skills are the


foundation and building blocks for acquiring more advanced skills, it
is imperative that they are a part of the development of every
athlete.
What Will We Cover?
• Body Positions
• Stretch
• Round
• Arch
• Tuck
• Hand Position
• Skills
• Handstand
• Cartwheel
• Roundoff
• Drills
• Toe Punches
• Run and Punch
• Forward and Backward Power Hurdle
• Basic Philosophies
• Body Angles
• Jumping vs. Pushing
• Bonus Material
• Phases of the Backhandspring
Body Positions

As far as Fundamental Tumbling is concerned,


there are (4) Four Major Body Positions

• Stretch (straight)
• Round (hollow)
• Arch
• Tuck
Stretch (or Straight) Body Position
The stretched body position is the most
basic of the body positions. You should
look for the following:

•Straight arms and legs

•Arms should be so close to the head that


they are touching the ears

•Legs should be completely together

•The core of the body should have no


hollowing in the mid section (also known
as rounding of the back) or bend in the
back (also known as an arched position)
Round (or Hollow) Body Position
Round (hollow) Con’t.
Round generally refers to the shape of the back,
where hollow refers to the shape of the mid
section. They essentially refer to the same body
position. This can be done with the arms both
down and up. You should look for the following:

• Shrugging of the shoulders to ensure the body


position is completed rounded

•The shoulders and arms should be turned slightly


in to maximize the round body position

•The head should be neutral or slightly down. If it is


tilted backwards, it is difficult to maintain a round
body position

•There should be constant constricting (squeezing)


of the abdominal muscles to maintain the round
position
Arch Body Position
Arch Con’t.
Arch refers to a bend in the back. As you can see,
the arch can be performed on the ground (known
as a bridge) or from a handstand (seen later in the
presentation.) You should look for the following:

• The arms should be close to the head

•The hands should be pointed towards the feet

•The head should be neutral or slightly down, and


the athlete should be able to see her hands by
looking up slightly. The head should not be tilted
down or pulled back too excessively

•The legs should be straight (no bending of the


knees) as well as squeezed together

• The feet should always be flat (bridge) and


pointed (handstand)
Tuck Body Position
Tuck body position refers to the closed,
compact shape of the body where the knees
are close to the torso, head, or arms
(depending on the skill being performed.)

• The best way to practice this position is


laying on the ground (see picture)

• The knees should come close to the body,


resulting in the lower back being lifted off
the floor

• The upper body position (including the


head) should remain neutral while the tuck is
being performed

• The abdominal muscles should be used to


create the lift of the knees to accomplish the
tuck position
Proper Positioning of the Hands
Proper positioning of the hands is often neglected, yet
extremely important to allow the arms and shoulders
to resist against the performing surface for maximum
power. You should look for the following:

• The pinky fingers should be turned away from the


body (or slightly backward), as well as the thumbs (or
slightly forward ) when preparing for any tumbling skill
(handstand, cartwheel, roundoff, backhandspring, etc.)

• Mastering this position is imperative to ensure that


the hands will form the proper shape when they touch
the performing surface.

• When the hands touch the performing surface, they


should form a triangle shape which allows them to
resist and push against the performing surface after
passing though the inverted (up-side-down) phase of
the skill.
Skills

The (3) Fundamental Skills that are building


blocks and lead up progressions to more
advanced tumbling are:

• Handstand
• Cartwheel
• Roundoff
The Handstand
The Handstand is one of the single most important
basic skills to learn. Executing a good handstand
involves good technique, body position, and body
awareness, which are all essential when expecting to
progress to more difficult skills.

As you will see later in the slide show, focusing on a


consistent way to execute the handstand will be the
most effective way to teach cartwheels, roundoffs, and
backhandsprings, among other tumbling skills.

There are (5) distinct and specific phases to executing a


good handstand. None should be rushed or ignored.

• Stretch
• Lift
• Lunge
• Handstand
• Finish
Phase 1: Stretch
There is no difference between the stretch phase of
the handstand and the stretched body position
discussed earlier. However, all five phases of the
handstand are equally important.

What to look for in the Stretch Phase of the


Handstand:

• A straight body position – no rounding or arching in


the back

• Arms completely straight and touching the head

• The proper hand position – pinky fingers and thumbs


turned away from the head

• Straight knees and legs together


Phase 2: Lift
The lift phase is important because it serves two
purposes. First, it tests the athlete’s body awareness
and balance. Here’s how:

• From the hips up, there should be no change in the


body position. It should be a good stretch, with proper
arms and hand position. From the hips down, the
dominant leg should be raised to about knee high, with
both legs remaining straight. Obviously, when standing
on one leg, balance becomes part of the equation.

The second purpose is to mentally prepare for the next


phase of the handstand, which is often neglected and
poorly executed. The phase immediately following the
lift phase is the Lunge. Once the proper way to do a
lunge is taught, it should be a part of the mental
picture the athlete creates while in the lift phase.
Phase 3: Lunge
The correct execution of the lunge is critical to ensure
that not only the handstand is properly done, but also
cartwheels, which leads to correct roundoffs, which
leads to correct roundoff backhandspring, and so on.

Here’s what to look for:

• The same body position with the arms and hands

• Now the core goes from a stretch to a slight round

• The dominant leg goes FORWARD before it goes


DOWN

Very Common Mistakes:

• The core is Arched and NOT Round

• The dominant leg goes either directly down or even


backward . It needs to go FORWARD!! Watch the foot!
Phase 4: Handstand
Make no mistake about it, holding a good handstand can
be challenging. However, although it’s exciting and
rewarding to hold a good handstand, it’s more about
technique prior to and after the handstand, as well as the
body position during the handstand that are more
important than holding it for along time. Take notice:

• When going from the lunge to the handstand, the athlete


should reach forward, away from the front leg. If she
reaches too close to the front foot, she is likely to have a
large arch that would either prevent her from getting
upside down at all, or the other extreme, fall over entirely.

• The arms should never leave the head going into the
handstand. If they reach down instead of forward the
mistake listed above is likely to occur.

• Once inverted, look for a straight or VERY slightly arched


body position (because balancing is achieved more in the
finger tips than the palms, it’s ok to have the weight be
slightly over the fingers, which can result in a slight arch)
Phase 4: Handstand Con’t
•Straight arms and legs

• Legs together and toes


pointed

•Hands forming a slight triangle


on the floor (see picture)

•The head should be angled so


that the athlete is looking
directly down on her hands.
The chin shouldn’t be buried
down to the chest nor should
the head be excessively tilted
back. Both with affect body
position.
Phase 5: Finish
If this picture looks familiar, it should. The final phase
of the handstand is finishing in a good lunge position.
Although the athlete can rush through this phase, it
should be stressed that not only is the finishing
position important, but finishing it properly. Here’s
what to look for:

• From the handstand phase to the finish, the arms


should never leave the head. Many times, the arms
will finish away from the head, and the athlete
“relocates” them back to the proper position. It needs
to be stressed that at no time should the arms leave
the head.

• The feet should be completely still when finished. No


shifting or balancing should occur.

• All other positions should be correct (arms, core, and


distance of the legs in the lunge)
The Cartwheel
The Cartwheel can be performed several different ways and
still look great. However, because the cartwheel is the
closest and best progression to the roundoff, it is essential
that the technique and execution is perfect. There are very
specific and distinct ways to perform the cartwheel in order
to ensure that the roundoff (seen later in the presentation)
will be executed correctly.

The phases of the cartwheel are almost identical to the


handstand. However, although there are few differences in
the phases (keeping the progressions easy and
understandable) it is extremely important to recognize and
teach the proper execution of the cartwheel. Here are the
phases:

• Stretch
• Lift
• Lunge
• Cartwheel
• Finish
Phases 1 and 2: Stretch & Lift
Both the Stretch and Lift Phases of the Cartwheel
are the exact same as the Handstand.
Phase 3: Lunge
As you can see, the lower body of the Lunge Phase is the
exact same as the handstand.

• Remember, emphasis on getting the front leg to go


forward and NOT directly down or even backwards is
extremely important.

There is a MAJOR difference in the arm position for the


cartwheel.

• The front arm (in this picture it’s the right arm) has to
reach away from the head in a forward direction. Like the
handstand, the arm should reach away from the front leg,
making the cartwheel long.

• The back arm (here it’s the left) needs to stay closer to
the head to start, and it needs to reach over the second
arm (almost like a traditional over-arm swim stroke.)

• The core should be in a slight round position.


Phase 4: Cartwheel
Two major things to look for in the cartwheel are the
positioning of the hands and lower body.

Hands
• The hands need to reach directly out and centered from
the body (as if you drew a straight line from the foot to the
hand.)

• The hands need to be turned in towards the head.

• There needs to be some separation between the hands.


If the hands are too close together, the cartwheel will be
finished with the arms in front of the body as opposed to
up by the head (many times if the athlete goes from
inverted to a stand with the front arm finishing across the
body or if the torso is crooked, this is the reason why. ) I
refer to it as having “handcuffs” on. This means that there
has to be some separation of the arms from the lunge all
the way to the placing of the hands in the cartwheel. If the
back arm goes exactly where the front arms goes, this
would be like doing the cartwheel with handcuffs on.
Phase 4: Cartwheel Con’t
Lower Body
• The lower body should have straight legs and pointed
toes.

• The legs should be slightly wider than shoulder width.

• The entire lower body should travel directly over the


core, shoulders, and hands. Many times, the athlete will
not hit a completely inverted position, thus traveling off
to the side rather than over the hands. If the athlete
cannot hit a completely inverted position, it is likely that
the reaching of arms in not big enough. If the hands are
too close to the front leg, there wouldn’t be enough
time or space to go completely upside down. You would
also see the head pulled back away from the arms. This
would also explain why the cartwheel is finishing very
crooked, far off to the right or left from where it was
started.
Phase 5: Cartwheel Finish
Just like the handstand, the cartwheel finishes in a lunge
position. There are (2) major differences, either or both
may be obvious to you.

• The athlete is finished in a lunge looking directly


opposite of the direction she started.

• The other leg is in front to finish. This is true because


the back leg in a cartwheel kicks over first, and
therefore, finishes on the ground first. The front leg,
which kicks over second, lands last and therefore behind
the front leg.

Landing the Cartwheel

• When landing the cartwheel, the hips should be


centered to where on the floor the cartwheel started.

• The feet should be still, and positioned directly in front


and behind other, with no crossing over the center line.
The Roundoff
The roundoff is the most widely used entry skill into
series (also known as running ) backwards tumbling.
Mastering a perfect roundoff is absolutely critical to
consistent, safe, and technically solid series tumbling.

If the proper time and emphasis has been placed on the


lead up progressions (handstands and cartwheels) then
learning the proper roundoff technique and execution
should be much easier and more effective.

Before doing a power hurdle or running into a roundoff,


the skill should be performed from a standing position
(just like the handstand and cartwheel) to isolate and
break down the proper technique and execution.

As with the cartwheel, the Stretch, Lift, and Lunge


phases (including the arm angle in the Lunge) will be the
same with the roudoff.
The Roundoff Con’t
The difference between the roundoff and the cartwheel
occurs as the second hand is placed on the ground.
Here’s what to look for:

• As the second hand touches the floor, the second leg


(back leg) will drive towards the front leg .

• The legs should meet just prior to the full inversion so


that when the core and legs start to turn over the hands,
they are completely together.

As where the cartwheel finishes in the lunge, the


roundoff finishes with a snapdown. This refers to the
legs driving downwards into the floor, while the upper
body (hips to hands) travels upward in an attempt to go
from inverted to upright. The next slide shows how the
upper and lower body work together to properly finish
the roundoff in the correct position to travel backwards
(as to prepare for a roundoff backhandspring.)
The Roundoff Con’t (2)
Snapdown Phase

Remember the positioning of the hands in order to resist


and push against the floor? This is why proper hand
positioning is important.

• In the first picture, notice the hands positioned


perfectly on the performance surface.

• In the second picture, notice the forceful push from


the hands through the fingertips. This allows the upper
body to recover from the inversion back to the upright
position.

Even if the legs are snapped down in a perfect motion, if


the upper body is slouched forward because there
wasn’t enough forced generated by the pushing of the
hands, the athlete would not finish at an angle that
would allow her to travel either up (for a flipping skill) or
backwards (for a backhandspring.)
The Roundoff Con’t (3)
The last part of the snapdown is the angle of the legs as
they land on the floor.

• In order to travel backwards (from the roundoff to the


backhandspring) the feet need to finish in front of the
body (see the left picture.)

In the right picture, notice how


the feet landing in front of the
body puts the athlete in the best
possible position to seamlessly go
from the roundoff to the roundoff
backhandspring. If the arms
continue to reach backwards, it
would take the body from the
round position to the stretch
position and finally into an arched
position - this would be correct
for the roundoff backhandspring.
Drills
Drills are used for improving coordination,
technique, and execution of skills, as well as
for conditioning and body awareness.
Three(3) drills that will be covered here are:

• Toe Punches (stationary and traveling)


• Run and Punch
• Power Hurdles (Forward and Backward)
Toe Punches
Toe punches are a great drill for three major reasons.

• They are great conditioning for calves and stamina.

• Body Awareness (while performing the movement, the legs


need to be tight as well as together, the upper body needs to be
in a slightly round body position, and arms need to be straight.)

• Focus (the athlete needs to utilize pushing through the toes


rather than jumping up and down for each repetition.)

This drill starts with a very slight bend in the knees, and each
bend in the knee after each repetition should be for absorbing
the landing, and not for increasing height for the next repetition.

The height should be increased because of the quick and forceful


pointing of the toes into the ground. This allows for faster
movement and a much higher vertical.

This drill can be done stationary or travel down a mat panel.


Run and Punch
This drill is very similar to the Toe Punch, but a run and hurdle precede the punch. This drill is
excellent for increasing speed and height, as well as training body position and coordination.
Here’s how it should be done:
• A two or three step run will start this drill.
• After the last step, the athlete should hurdle from the last running step to two feet together
(which is the take-off position for the punch.)
• The arms should go from a running movement to above the head during the hurdle phase.
• The take-off would be the exact same as the Toe Punch, however the height should be
increased because of the momentum gained from the run.
• The body should be slightly round and very tight to avoid either leaning too far forward or
letting the hips thrust forward, cause the back to arch.

Remember, this is NOT a run and jump. The jump implies slowing down, letting the weight of
the body go down into the ground, and then recovering by straightening the knees to get
height.

The push implies absorbing the weight from the landing of the hurdle by slightly bending the
knees and quickly and forcefully pushing through the toes in order to take-off with
maximum height.
Power Hurdle
The Power Hurdle is not only a great drill, but it’s actually the
starting phase for a power hurdle roundoff (a forward power
hurdle) and a standing backhandspring (a backward power hurdle.)

The power hurdle works coordination, strength in the legs, and


body position.

The first three phases are the same whether the power hurdle is
performed forwards or backwards. Here they are:

• Start – the starting position is a stretch with the arms either


directly in front of the body (pictured) or directly above the head
(previously pictured as the standard stretch position.)

• Swing – the swing should involve the arms only until they start to
pass behind the body. Notice in the second picture, the knees are
slightly bent. Again, this occurs just as the arms pass behind the
body. If the knees bend as the arms are still in front of the body
while being swung, the coordination will be off and performing the
rest of the power hurdle will be very difficult. The body would be
in a slight round position during the swing phase.
Power Hurdle Con’t
Phases of the Power Hurdle

• Weight Transfer – after the arms are swung behind the body and
the slight knee bend occurs, the weight of the body is transferred
from the flat feet to the balls of the feet. This is seen in the first
picture, however, it is slightly exaggerated (almost to pointed toes)
because of the black surface the demo is standing on.)

• Push and Reach – now the athlete is in the correct position to


push through the toes and reach with the arms. Here’s where the
differences come into play on whether the power hurdle is going
forward or backward.

When doing a Forward Power Hurdle, the body should be in a


stretch position reaching forward with the arms high in the air with
and pushing through the toes (as seen in the second picture.)
Power Hurdle Con’t (2)
Phases of the Power Hurdle

When doing a Backward Power Hurdle, the body should be in a


slightly round body position (to avoid losing balance and falling
backwards.) The reach should be the same, however, the arms
should reach back towards the head and not forward.

• Landing – the landing can be done two different ways. One is


a standard two feet landing and the other is a lunge.

Two Feet Landing is done with the arms above the head, the feet
landing together, and a slight bend in the knees to absorb the
weight and reduce stress. The core should be slightly round.

Lunge landing is done with the arms above the head, the legs
landing in a standing lunge position (front knee bent and back
leg straight) and in a round body position. This would be a
more advanced type of landing which would be the next
progression for the power hurdle roundoff.
Basic Philosophies

Two basic philosophies we’ll


be covering here are:

• Body Angles
• Jumping vs. Pushing
Body Angles
Although the angle from which the body either takes off or
lands can be extremely complex at times, it is also very
important too. The two major factors that affect and
determine what the angle of the body should be are the skill
being performed and the surface for which it is being
performed on.

Because this presentation focuses on fundamental tumbling,


let’s keep body angles as simple as possible. In fact, rather
than using degrees, I’ll compare angles to the hands on a clock.
For our sake, “6” is the ground and “12” is directly above. The
angle of the body is now represented by the numbers where
the clock hands are pointing.

• Therefore, someone standing in a stretch position would have


her hands at “12” and her feet would be at “6” (picture one.)

• In contrast, someone holding a perfectly still handstand would


have her hands at “6” and her feet at “12” (picture two.)
Body Angles Con’t
A rule of thumb when referring to tumbling (either standing or
series) is that you always want to travel the direction straight
ahead of you. This would change when flipping is performed (you
would then obviously want to travel upwards.) However, for every
other pass, either traveling forwards (running, fronthandsprings,
etc.) or backwards (finishing a roundoff, backhandspring. etc.) the
direction is still the same – straight ahead.

• In the first picture (on the clock as hands “11” feet “5”) this
would be a great angle to enter a handstand, cartwheel, or
roundoff because those skills are traveling forwards. However, this
would be a terrible angle to finish a roundoff into a
backhandspring because the angle of the body would carry the
person forwards, which is opposite of what is wanted.

• In the second picture, and as already mentioned in the roundoff


section, this would be an ideal angle to finish if a backhandspring
was the next skill in the sequence. Notice the hands “1” and feet
“7” angle. If this angle is achieved, in order to the do the
backhandspring, all that’s needed is a push through the toes and a
reach with the arms.
Jumping vs. Pushing

The Difference Between the Two


and Which Method Works Best
Jumping vs. Pushing
Simply stated, jumping involves a deeper bending in the knees, more usage of the overall leg
muscles, and a slower process from the initial movement to the highest point of the
vertical. Pushing involves less bend in the knees, a more specific pointing of the toes
(which recruits mostly the calf muscles) and a quicker, more forceful process.

Although bending of the knees is extremely important to reduce the stress caused on impact
(mostly from landing a skill) the degree of the knee bend and for how long determines if
the action is more jumping or pushing.

If someone were to dismount from one stack of mats, land on the ground, and propel to
another stack of mats, she could do this two different ways.

• First, she could land on the ground, allow enough bending of the knees to absorb the
impact, continue to bend some more, and finally stand up onto the second stack of mats.
This would be considered jumping.

• Second, she could land on the ground, bend the knees slightly to avoid a stressful impact
on the ground, and immediately recruit her calf muscles to quickly and forcefully point her
toes into the ground, causing her body to rise quickly onto the second set of mats. This
would be considered pushing.
Jumping vs. Pushing Con’t
Now that the differences between jumping and pushing are understood, there now has to be a preference
over which one to use. In almost every circumstance, pushing is a better way to create movement
towards the direction the athlete is looking to travel. The faster, more forceful movement of pushing
through the toes rather than jumping with the legs allows little change in the momentum or direction of
the tumbling skill.

For example, if a roundoff backhandspring was being performed, it’s already been established the
momentum and weight of the athlete wants to go one direction – straight ahead. When the power
hurdle or run is started, the athlete is moving straight ahead. Reaching the arms forward continues the
straight ahead movement. Now the legs from the roundoff have landed on the ground.

• If they are directly underneath the hips (feet at “6”) then what does the athlete have to do in order to
travel backwards? If she stays fairly tall and pushes through her toes, she will travel up, but not
backwards (and backwards at this point would be straight ahead which is what she wants to
accomplish.) If she allows herself to bend her knees to absorb the landing, and continue to bend them
some more in order to jump, she is now traveling down, which again is not straight ahead as she wants.

• Now if she lands with her feet slightly in front of her (feet at “7) absorbs the impact by bending her
knees slightly, and then immediately starting the pushing phase, she will then travel backwards. Add the
reaching of the arms, and her momentum is carrying her body exactly the direction she wants to travel,
which is straight ahead (and backwards.)
Jumping vs. Pushing Con’t
• Not only would the momentum be affected if the athlete were to jump from the
roundoff to the backhandspring, but so would the speed and her overall effort.
The amount of energy spent sitting and jumping backwards would greatly reduce
the speed created from the run or power hurdle, the angle and long reach into the
roundoff, and the forceful pushing through the hands to help in the snapdown.

As you can see, the angle of the body and the ability to push through the toes go hand
in hand. If the angle of the legs, either starting a skill or going from one skill to
another, is correct, then the ability to push through the toes is easier. This makes
achieving the skill far more effective than excessively bending the knees in order to
jump from one skill to the next.

Now here’s the hard part as a coach – can you take jump out of your “tumbling
vocabulary?”
Bonus: Phases of the Backhandspring
Phases One and Two:
Stretch and Swing
(with Weight Transfer)
Just like the Backwards Power Hurdle, the Backhandspring starts with
the same two phases.

The starting position is Stretch.

• The arms can start either in front of the body (pictured) or directly
above the head (standard stretch position.)

The second phase is the swing. Remember to reinforce the following


technique, which is crucial for proper coordination:

• The knees don’t bend until the arms are just about to pass behind
the body.

• For the sake of consolidating the phases, this step can now include
the weight transfer to the toes. If the athlete can properly do this
when executing the power hurdle, this should not be a difficult
concept to understand and demonstrate.
Phase Three:
Push and Reach
Although there are three pictures in this slide, they all
represent the same action, the push and reach. When the
backhandspring is spotted all the way through (as pictured)
you can isolate how this is accomplished from the feet
leaving the ground (picture one) to the stretched out aerial
position (picture two) to the hands touching the ground
(picture three.)

The Push refers to the force created by the feet as they resist
against the floor. The reach refers to the arms being thrown
behind the head as quickly as possible. Doing both
powerfully and quickly is imperative if the athlete wants to
accomplish this on her own without a spot. You should also
notice:

• The body goes from a stretch (immediately off the floor) to


an arch position through the aerial phase and maintains the
arch as the hands touch the floor.
Phase Four: Snapdown
The last phase of the backhandspring is the snapdown. The technique is
very similar to snapping down from a roundoff.

• Notice in the first picture, the hands are still touching the ground.
However, now the body position goes from an arch (seen in the previous
slide) to a straighter one. This is because the legs are being forced in a
downward motion towards the ground. That will change the body to go
from the arch to the stretch.

• The hands are also in a good position to push through the ground. This
will help the upper body recover from the inversion to the upright position.

• In the last picture, the force created from the push through the hands has
caused the upper body to recover from being at a hands “6” feet “12” angle
to a drastically different hands “1” feet “5” angle.

• This should clearly illustrate how important it is to push through both the
hands and feet in order to put the body in a position to either rebound or go
into another skill.
About Steve Wright
Steve is a graduate of Westfield State College. There, he cheered all
four years, his final two serving as captain. He is the former Head
Coach of the University of Hartford, and former Program Director and
Head Coach of the Centre Stage All Stars. He is also the former Head
Coach for the women’s gymnastics team at the Gymnastics Training
Center in Simsbury, CT.

Steve served as an Instructor / Head Instructor for the Universal


Cheerleaders Association from 1998 – 2008. He is the current State
Director for the Universal Cheerleaders Association (UCA) and the
National Cheerleaders Association (NCA) which are both camp
companies for Varsity Brands Incorporated (VBI.) Additionally, Steve
continues to coach tumbling and gymnastics, as well as choreographs
and consults on all levels of cheer and tumbling.
Email:
[email protected] As your State Director, Steve can register you for camps and clinics,
including overnight camps, home camps, day camps, and choreography
Phone: 866.652.1907
camps. He can also answer any questions related to cheerleading,
www.uca.varsity.com including but not limited to stunt legality, choreography, fund-raising
www.nca.varsity.com ideas, and more! He can also provide judges and staff for events.
Consider him your primary resource for anything cheerleading!
Photography Provided By:

Distinctive Digital Images


Today’s Moments … Tomorrow’s Memories

Specializing in Sports Competition Photography,


Team and Individual Picture Days

Eric D. Wallis
413. 364. 1269
[email protected]
DistinctiveDigitalImages.com
A Very Special Thanks:

Lauren Winkleblack Ellen Bridgman

Both girls who appeared as skills demos are competitive gymnasts at the
Gymnastics Training Center in Simsbury, CT. Lauren is a level 4 gymnast.
Ellen is a level 8 gymnast.
Thanks girls!

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