From Skeleton Crew Sport:
(via Gym Chat)
obese kids die younger than their parents
A coach at the 2007 BC Fall Congress asked me a tough question, one I’ve been unable to answer in the past.
“What do you do when it comes time for the obese child to do “pullover” on a bar. And there is NO WAY the coach can physically heave them over.”
Well … we talked about a couple of ways to minimize hurt feelings.
But the honest answer is, “We should not require the very overweight to do pullover. Coaches need to come up with alternatives to that skill.”
We want overweight kids in our programs. Gymnastics is very, very good for them.
And the percentage of heavy kids, sadly, at least in North America, is still increasing:
About one-quarter of Canadians aged two to 17 are overweight or obese, and they are expected to live shorter lives than their parents, the Commons health committee warned Tuesday.
An all-party committee report titled Healthy Weight for Healthy Kids calls on the federal government to stop the trend toward increasing obesity levels among Canadian children by the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver, and to decrease levels by at least 25 per cent by 2020. …
“It has been said that obesity outranks both smoking and drinking now in its effects on health and health costs,” said committee chair Rob Merrifield, a Conservative MP for the Alberta riding of Yellowhead.
“For the first time in recorded history, today’s younger generation will live shorter lives than their parents. Yet parents, and this is, I believe, the most alarming statistic that we found, do not recognize the problem.”
cartoon – Mothers Have Inaccurate Perceptions Of Children’s Body Weight
gymnastics GAMES
Rick McCharles
Gymnastics Coaches are the world experts in warm-up games and activities. Games should be the very best time spent in our gyms.
They are fantastic for all athletes.
I did a presentation on this topic at the 2007 BC Fall Congress:
Of course, SAFETY (physical and emotional) is the over-riding principle. The inexperienced coach is prone to start a game appropriate to the majority of the kids, but too complicated for the youngest and least experienced.
I led a sampling of games in these categories:
The easiest way to increase FUN, challenge and complexity is by putting kids together as partners, trios or into small groups.
I advised coaches to do more combative games with girls, fewer (or none) with boys.
Christchurch School of Gymnastics
Many clubs overuse tag games which are often dangerous. We should do more co-operative activities and races.
Unfortunately there are no GREAT books or videos available yet on this topic. The best is the out-of-print Gymnastic games and activities: A compendium, by Ken Daley (1981).
We’ve posted Games Guru David Adlard’s PowerPoint presentation previously. Dave is an elite Artistic coach who no longer uses a stretching warm-up. His girls do games only for warm-up.
But what every coach needs is a video database of recommended games. Leave a comment if you are interested in working on a project like that.
birthday present for Nastia
Posted by a fan:
Nastia’s birthday is October 30, so I decided to make a montage to celebrate her absolutely lovely gymnastics! It’s very short, just over a minute, and the music is a little quiet at the beginning. Hope you enjoy!
Music: “Honor Him” from the Gladiator soundtrack
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Slow motion, it’s easy to appreciate her fantastic amplitude. But also see her loose form on some skills.
I don’t know that we’ll ever have another World Class gymnast like her. Nastia is unique.
Worlds Trampoline and Tumbling 2007
Athletes are in Quebec. Training sessions began Monday October 29th. The big show is about to start.
Unfortunately this blogging coach will not be there, after all.
I’ll be following the event via the official website: Trampoline World Championships Quebec 2007.
And likely watching even closer the GYMmedia coverage on their dedicated World’s page.
One other great site to check is AcrobaticSports.com.
Olympic spots are on the line. This time round you can make no mistakes if you want to get to Beijing. The competition is as tough as it’s ever been in T&T.
Canadians will be cheering loudest for strong favourites Karen Cockburn and Rosannagh MacLennan in synchro Tramp. We consider ourselves a “trampoline superpower, you realize.
Good luck to all competitors.
It’s going to be a fantastic event!
Wednesday, Nov. 1st, Debbie Brown, of Cirque du Soleil, has choreographed a grand opening show including a trampo-wall presentation. (I want to see that. Someone please videotape and post it on YouTube.)
new blog – Gymnastics Dish
Just subscribed to a new blogger who has been known to go by the pseudonym martha károlyi.
(Hmmm. Fake Martha? Good idea. Reminds me of Fake Steve Jobs of Apple.)
Here’s a sample post:
Cheng Fei: New Skill Verified
It has been revealed that the new skill Cheng Fei had been working on in early 2007, was indeed a quadruple full. She had taken it from the pit, onto a resi, and then onto a four incher. Cheng’s coach, Lu Shanzhen, had hoped that she could perhaps unveil the skill at the Olympic next year. Since then, Cheng has been laying off of her “Crazy Tricks”, in order to work on her vaulting consistency, and continue training in the All Around.
It is doubtful that Fei will unveil this massive skill at the Olympics in Beijing, because they don’t want any maybes; and with that skill it is a complete gamble, and perhaps not worth the prestige. However, it has not been stated whether Cheng Fei will or will not compete in the All Around at the Olympic Games.
Of course Nastia has attempted that skill in competition already. And Kent Caldwell competes it regularly.
Click PLAY or watch Cheng Fei Floor Exercise 2007 World’s Team Finals on YouTube.
Cheng Fei needs “something” more if she wants to win the Olympics on Floor. But quadruple twist is too deductible. She’s done triple backs into the pit — but that’s far too risky. The winner in Beijing will compete triple twisting double back … that’s my prediction.
Related post:
NEW from TumblTrak – Bungee Mats
It’s obvious that there will be far more air-filled equipment in your gym over the coming years. And used in new and innovative ways.
At R2R Congress in Spokane, TumblTrak showed what they call a … Bungee Mat. The name confused me at first since there is no bungee (bunjie, or bungy) visible anywhere.
The bungee is inside, creating a tighter response than air alone.
That set-up shown above was used by John Carney at summer camp in Idaho. The kids could practice free hip circleand Stalder without needing a spotter.
This gymnast had never used the set-up before. Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
(via Funtastics HPTCamp.com)
related – John Carney’s Wall of Death – flyaway video
videos – Gymnastics for All
Rick McCharles
At 2007 BC Fall Congress I did a presentation on best videos for recreational gymnastics coaches. Sadly there are far too few available. Most videos are targeted at competitive.
Click PLAY to see the PowerPoint presentation or watch it on YouTube:
Here are the most important links:
Charles Minster Productions:
Related posts:
building better gymnastics CIRCUITS
Circuits are essential for gymnastics coaches. For best practice, all circuits:
At both BC Fall Congress and R2R Congress in 2007, I recommended:
Best case scenario, the gymnasts build their own circuit. The coach watches the circuit, free to make small adjustments as needed. Stand close to the station which is the most challenging for the kids.
Here is a video of my PowerPoint presentation at Gymnastics for All, BC Fall Congress:
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube:
At Region 2 Rising (R2R) 2007, Spokane I presented a similar PowerPoint presentation but using Vault as an example. I challenged coaches to do one (easy) vault / minute in a vault training session with young competitive gymnasts. For example, 30 circuits in 30 minutes.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube:
British Columbia gymnastics coaches Congress
Rick McCharles
Just home from BC Fall Congress in Vancouver, their biggest coach education event of the year.
This week I will be writing up a number of posts on my presentations there. You can get to them by clicking on the BC Congress link in the right hand navigation column.
It was very well organized and quite well attended. Great to catch up with the excellent coaches in British Columbia.
Gymnastics Coaching.com 