AAI is now recommending the use of AAI vault boards with fewer springs for Level 4 gymnasts that weigh less than 80 lbs. As few as 3 springs on either the Stratum Vault Board or the TAC/10 LZT Vault Board are now acceptable. However, ensure that the two front corner springs (high side), as well as the center spring in the middle row, stay in their original position as you can see in the following diagram.
Those just starting off their cheerleading career often find themselves in a very challenging predicament. After teaching cheerleaders tumbling for over 7 years, I saw it way too often. These young aspiring athletes are typically thrust in to a beginning tumbling class, given a pat on the back, and told to go get that back handspring!
From time to time, there are instances when an AAI product can be made even better, or revised so that a gymnast can use it to their best potential and increase their skill level. That being said, a few changes have been made in the last year on some of the AAI products.
Coaches may spot the gymnasts upper back and shoulder area so they can practice the dynamic coordination betweeen the arms swing and the lean back motion with a quick opening into a tight arch position. Beginning with a hollow chest facilitates a stronger chest opening to the tight arch.
Gymnasts starting to learn back handsprings can benefit from feeling the lean back action in a simpler way. Also getting familiar with hollow chest to open chest and shoulders and the legs push to open hips on a single tight arch body unit. This drill helps the athletes to train the lean back action several times in a row with a coach's assistance. In this second variation the gymnast continues the lean back action with the legs push while opening her body to a tight arch position. / Before adding the jump back to the resi the gymnast may practice simpler lean backs and arches without jumps or arms swing then they can add the legs jump to a back flying phase to the resi and finally add the arms swings to train all the motions.
Gymnasts may use a panel mat to train for distance during the first flying phase. With their toes at the beginning of a panel they perfom back handsprings trying to reach far into a different panel. Since the gymnasts know the exact place they are begining each turn they can check how much they are flying back from feet to hands.
To begin the backhandspring the gymnast leans back off balance while slightly bending the legs and moving the trunk forward with a straight or hollow chest. From this position the gymnast can make a powerful jump backwards. Back handsprings have two important flying phases. From feet to hands then from the hands back to the feet. /Still 1/ Hollow Chest. /Still 2/ Trunk forward with body leaning back off balance. /Still 3/ Long arch first flying phase. /Still 4/ Short and deep hollow second flying phase.
This talented young gymnast is making a nice effort to emphasize a chest hollow position at the beginning of the skill. The objective of this action is to create a feeling about the shape of the body on the second flying phase. Nowadays she still has some troubles to hold a hollow position on the turn over from hands to feet and pikes down instead. Rounding the chest and back into a hollow position allows the gymnast to increase the power of the upper body motion when jumping up and backward to the backhandspring tight arch first flying phase. It also mimics the way handsprings and sommersaults connect in between them.
Back handsprings can be spotted with one hand on the lower back and the other hand on the closer hamstring. If the spotter stands on the left of the gymnast the right hand goes on the back and the left hand on the nearer hamstring. During the second flying phase the hands switch the left to the abdominal area and the right to the lower back to assist with any problems during the landing.
On the next few clips a different gymnast offers examples of some of those basic back handspring mistakes already mentioned. /Undercut with poor blocking repulsion and pike turn over. /A much longer and nice back handspring example with good hands to feet turn over. /Second flying phase example with an incorrect pike turnover. /Much better hollow body turnover /Deep squat with very poor blocking and arms repulsion. /Still 3/ Deep squats slow down and weaken the jumping power. /Though it looks somewhat better still the power damaging mistakes must be adressed and corrected. /Deep squat and undercut. A Much better slight bent knees power jump and a longer handspring. / Another undercut example. / Deep squat and no arms block or quick repulsion. /Still1/ Squat. Still2/ the body is to far pass the vertical to block off the floor with effective arms repulsion and hollow turn over. Still/ Due to technical mistakes the legs are coming down but the body has not moved up for effective follow up connections tumbling. /Check this much better second flying phase turn over. Still 1/ Preparation. Still2/ Tight arch first flying phase. Still 3/ Deep hollow second flying phase.
