So it works - the fundamentals, I mean.
- geoff862
- Nov 21
- 5 min read
So… my four-point plan from last time worked a treat.
Two one-hour sessions with the same groups of cheerleaders as last week, and today they actually wanted to work.
The scores on the board at the start were solid, and I had an actual plan — not a wishy-washy plan — a fixed, written-down plan.
My first group are always great listeners. They’re working toward front handsprings and roundoffs, and once those are nailed (or close to), we’ll move on to the back handspring.
I genuinely think the front handspring will be more successful with this group. The transition from forward/backward walkovers to a front handspring is easier than going from walkovers to a back handspring. They’ve got great handstand and bridge shapes and they understand the concepts, so there’s no reason they can’t get it.
I also heard a podcast recently that talked about teaching the front handspring before the roundoff. The logic made sense: if you can’t reach and propel your body forward while turning upside down, how are you going to reach, propel, block and add a half-turn? The RO is considered a lower-level skill, but honestly, that must be for safety reasons. I usually teach RO then FHS, but this reasoning sounded solid, so I’m giving it a go. It’ll take a couple of months to see if it actually pans out. From today though, we’re onto something.
I’ll report back.
Why before the Go
My first group is slightly older, so they need to understand the movement a bit more before they start "throwing themselves around". To be fair, they don’t throw themselves around like the younger ones do — totally normal. Older athletes get more cautious and want the “why” before the “go”. So we hit drills covering FHS, BHS and RO movement patterns, but only fully attempted the RO. They can already do it, but it needs a rewind, hence the change in approach. Session 1 done. Successful. BOOM.
The second group… I struggled with them last week. Honestly, at least 70% my fault (see previous post). But this week I came in determined, and I stuck to the four-step plan. Having a plan was a win. Applying that plan individually to every athlete was impossible — too many bodies and too many different needs — so I tried to make the session work for everyone. I called on the other coaches too, and that helped.
We got a few twisting drills done today. They don’t quite have the straight back on floor yet, so twisting right now is more about fun and orientation. They’re not twisting backwards anytime soon, but maybe forwards next month or Jan, depending on schedules and a hundred other things. My priority is that they understand the concept: rotating on two axes instead of one. Once the straight back looks good, the twist will come quickly.
With my older, more experienced athletes, mid-body control tends to be better — they’re simply stronger and more stable. My younger athletes, who are doing more complex skills, are struggling with lower-back and mid-body tension. I’ll ask them to tuck their tail under and press tall into a straight shape, and that lower-back arch still pops up. They show what I think is called a lordotic curve (might look that up) when standing and love to use there lower back to bend, along with the pike to imitate the dish. Strengthening the abdominals will help them pull the ribcage and hips closer together, flattening that curve. Less pike = easier twist.
Another technical issue: shoulder mobility. It’s becoming entrenched. When shoulders are closed, athletes compensate by arching to get their centre of mass over their base of support. If they don’t arch, they have to lean forward into a pseudo-planche shape, which is brutally hard and not efficient. They’re just not strong enough there, so they come out of the handstand early.
All the above link together innone way or another and impact everything — BHS, FHS, RO, you name it. They can still be powerful and progress, it just becomes harder. It’s a common issue across many of the athletes I teach, so it’s something we really need to work on.
Speedy Work!
We got through a lot today. They flew because I had a plan. I didn’t have to think — they came in saying, “We’re ready to work.” If they’re thinking about progress, I need to be on my game. Fair’s fair.
We got through the entire session plan. I skipped a couple bits to keep momentum, which did cause a couple athletes to lose attention briefly because it meant certain skills were fast-tracked. But I’ve been heavy on basics lately, so today I pushed for the more advanced stuff — the things they want to do.
Personally, when it comes to back tumbling, I like to teach a series:
Solid RO from step
Solid standing BHS
Solid standing BHS series
Solid and bouncy roundoff-BHS series
and a strong rebound out of the RO-flick
Standing Back Tuck
Once those are clean, we start RO–BHS–back tuck. Always from standing first, with rotation driven from the hips (not the shoulders), and arms in the right direction so it can develop into twisting and straight backs later.
This group is only just being introduced to all of this. They haven’t followed a strict linear path, which actually shows strong ability — they learn well. They can RO–flick–tuck with a tight knee grab, which isn’t wrong at all, but when you open the somersault, rotation slows. So we’re working on the open tuck: pulling the arms to the side and down to the thighs, bent legs but no knee grab.
Then we added a jump half-turn, then shifted the half a little earlier. Helps them understand how rotating on a second axis reduces rotation on the first.
Right now I’m teaching them to pull hands to either side and then move into the pocket to initiate twist. That will eventually become a direct pull into the pocket once the straight back is consistent and rotation is driven from the hips. No rushing.
Overall, an extremely positive day. Can’t fault their effort. No behaviour management. Just tumbling coaching — and it was great.
It proves that if you nail the fundamentals — introduce the session properly, ask how they are, frame the session clearly so they know what’s coming — it makes a BIG impact.
One last thing
A couple of athletes asked why we do certain things. Young athletes ask “why” constantly. I always explain. If I don’t know why, I don’t teach it, because the “why” is coming. If you can’t answer, they lose trust. They think you’re winging it.
Sometimes the “why” is simply “I’ve seen it work,” but ideally you explain how it works — rotation, height, interaction with the springs. If you can explain it, you understand it. That’s how you BUILD BUY-IN.
I’m coming from a positive place. I even did a bit of my own training. There are always improvements to make, but today there was nothing wrong. No need to labour it.
So I’ll chalk up the three points and stick to my four-step plan again next week.
Till next time. Thanks for reading.
Comments