Category: falling & landing

STICK like Uchimura

Dvora Meyers put together a deep dive into the history of competition Gymnastics landings. She digs into the evolution of landing mats, as well.

The most dangerous part of most routines.

If gymnasts are allowed a controlled lunge on Floor, use that technique. It’s much safer — absorbing force over more time and distance.

Personally, my strategy as a coach is to train competition landings with the goal of a 0.1 deduction small hop. If the gymnasts happens to STICK for no deduction once-in-a-while, I consider it a 0.1 bonus over the plan.

Read the article on Defector:

The Case Against Sticking The Landing

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

on SAFER Landings

Click through for the longer post.

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

Kohei – 2014 Floor

I’d argue Kohei Uchimura singled handedly reinvented how male gymnasts land.

Easily the best in the world in his prime, many emulated Kohei’s exaggerated technique.

I love it as he turned the science of safely reducing huge impact forces to zero into an art form.

At the same time WAG was foolishly deducting low chest position. Dangerous!

Of his many stuck routines over many years, Blythe chose this as one of her decade-defining routines.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

train landings train landings train landings

Landings are incredibly important in NCAA competition. Yet College girls are not very good at them. 😕

Almost any male gymnast is more skilled at bringing impact forces to zero than almost any female gymnast. Male gymnasts work seriously on landings.

Click PLAY or watch Scott Morgan on instagram.

Click PLAY or watch U.S. guys working landings on instagram.

Yes. Part of the problem in WAG is judging expectations. We need to educate judges to the biomechanically, physiologically BEST and SAFEST techniques of landing.

How Hikers can FALL More Safely

Based on how we teach children to fall, I put together a video for those hiking while carrying a heavy backpack.

Absorb IMPACT FORCES over time and surface area. 

BEST strategy is to pull in your arms (dropping poles). Take the first impact landing on your backpack.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.