Site editor Rick McCharles will be mostly offline well into June 2026. He’s section hiking part of the Pacific Crest Trail in California.Â
on SAFER Landings
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Emily Bischoff:
… Teaching our athletes to land correctly is one thing coaches can control in terms of injury prevention, whether it be to lessen the load on tendons and ligaments to prevent overuse injuries, or to minimize the risk of fluke injuries …
… the force upon landing be dissipated throughout as much of the body as much as possible …
… feet around shoulder width apart, which widens the base of support over which force is exerted. Knees should be in flexion (bent), tracking over the toes …
Promoting Safety in Gymnastics: Landings
SAVING handstand on Bars
I admire gymnasts who have the physical preparation and mental quickness to SAVE a handstand that ends up in reverse planche position.
Click PLAY or watch it on Twitter.
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Round-off drills
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My preference is to teach beginners a straight leg hurdle, with late lunge. Tammy Biggs talks about the pros and cons of straight leg vs bent leg hurdle here.
Straight leg is cleaner, for sure.
My two favourite round-off drills could be added to Jason’s list.
• “cartoff” (cartwheel to run backwards)
• fly round-off on trampoline (feet together round-off)
Both are easy for beginners. Neither allows the kids to pike down.
Rachael Denhollander – What Is a Girl Worth?
Available in hardcover, Kindle and audio.
Recommended children’s book – How Much Is a Little Girl Worth?
Click PLAY or watch Rachael on YouTube.
spotting Giant turns
Ana Ocolisan
gymnasts are incredible
This is from the private Cognition Coaching – Conscious Growth Facebook page.
The benefits of training acrobatic sports are incredible. These are super humans.
coaches should not require weigh-ins
The last time I saw a scale in a Gym was 2003. I asked that it be removed.
Unless there is some specific reason — scientific research in training, for example — there’s no need for weigh-ins at training. And there are some risks, as we’ve seen in the past.
I prefer gymnasts weigh in at home in private. Or under instructions from medical staff.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube. This is the new policy of British Gymnastics.
Swing in a Sling 😀
Age Falsification in Chinese Gymnastics
Dr. Uncle Tim has taken a deep dive into age falsification in women’s gymnastics on his excellent site âž™ Gymnastics-History.com.
Age falsification was quite common back in the bad, old days. Especially in China and Romania.
In fact, we even had cases of falsification in lower levels of Gymnastics competition where I coached.
Check out the important post:
Who Bears the Responsibility for Age Falsification in Chinese Gymnastics?
Gymnastics Coaching.com 