Ways to consolidate backtuck ability?

Hello. This will be a fairly roundabout post but the point/questions it arrives at is simple and common. Bear with me!

 

I first got standing backtucks on the floor (plyo and sometimes grass) in January this year. Briefly, the route I took to get there started on a trampoline, went via a tumble track, then fast track, then to the floor. There were many small steps at each point along the way, but you probably know the kind of thing I did. It took me a couple of months (mostly training once per week) to get there, making small but sure steps forward each session.

 

 

Last week I re-got them, so to speak, for the second time - three moments of acquisition in total this year. What happened in between? Well, I lost them - and this is something most people I've talked to have never encountered or experienced. But I'm 27 - and physically older than average for sure (people guess I'm in my 30's) and distinctly unsuited to gymnastics, so I'm not surprised I can lose a move. If it's never happened to you or you've never seen it happen to anyone else then you'll have to just believe me!

 

The way it goes is that during a session I start out doing them nicely, but I get carried away and do too many. Presumably I get lazy, and tired, and suddenly my form goes and I land one on my hands and knees. From that point on I'm completely stuck and I can't for the life of my execute one properly. Both times that happened I had to rest the move for a few weeks to let it fall away from my mind a bit, then re-learn it from scratch over several weeks - restraining myself and making sure I only took a few steps forward each session. No amount of "just doing it" will get the move back, and it probably just re-enforces the wrong way to do it.

 

 

As it happens, this same thing has happened to me in other skill/movement pursuits such as juggling and playing music. Over-performance of something is very easy for me to do and always leads to sudden and long-lasting decline in performance.

 

 

So, right now I'm at a "can do them" time and I don't want to lose them again! In the first instance, I'm limiting myself to about five good (hopefully) backtucks per week. If this stuff is anything like other skills I'm used to then to consolidate and firmly secure standing backs in my repertoire, and to tidy them up, I will need to quickly move above and beyond that skill, to things that are similar but harder in some sense. I may not get them, but trying something else should improve my general body-control and coordination in a way that benefits my backtucks, right?

 

So, what do you recommend? I have access to a full gym, including trampolines sometimes. I'm already working on gainers into the foam pit, and they're coming along quite nicely. They are similar only in the tuck, though, and like most people my problem in standing backs is getting a good jump that doesn't leave me hunched in and only partly extended.

 

Should I try backs with some twisting? Standing halfs, that sort of thing?

 

Also there are things like flash kicks and X-outs, do you think they will help to make a normal standing back seem much simpler and easier?

 

 

thanks for any suggestions. I'm determined to maintain the move this time! It takes longer to get it back each time...

You should absolutely not attempt twisting at this point. 

 

What you need is numbers. Do a ton of them. Do sets of a number you're comfortable doing, and in between sets do some drills to reinforce proper technique. If you notice your form starting to falter, discontinue work for the day. The key is to do so many [with good technique] that it becomes second-nature. 

do some drills to reinforce proper technique.

 

Can you recommend anything in particular?

emos said:

Can you recommend anything in particular?

If you search YouTube you will find a ton. Back tucks are one of the simplest tumbling elements so there is a lot of info on them. I suggest you try to find a video that is at least somewhat gym related. Ie not on a beach or backyard tramp

Common drills are tuck jumps to height. Backwards rolls. Spotted back tucks. And a lot of variation of these things.

Daniel Burnham said:

If you search YouTube you will find a ton. Back tucks are one of the simplest tumbling elements so there is a lot of info on them. I suggest you try to find a video that is at least somewhat gym related. Ie not on a beach or backyard tramp

Common drills are tuck jumps to height. Backwards rolls. Spotted back tucks. And a lot of variation of these things.

 

Thanks. Yea, I know what you mean about non-gym stuff, the internet is really saturated with fairly crappy back-tuck information. I do come from an (attempted) tricking/"back yard" background but I recognise that most guys posting those vids, like many of my friends involved in this stuff, just went out and threw it and landed it. Their experiences don't really apply to me!

 

I'll do some clean tuck jumps during my workouts this week before I next go to the gym.

 Ya do your warmup and then try some out. Make it a habit.

 If you need to do a few progressions to get yourself ready for them that's fine.

 Be it standing BHS or Standing Back tucks on a tramp or tumbl-trak.

 Gotta make it a habit again.

 Right now I'm getting close to hitting 175# again though I would prefer being 165#. Only thing is since I don't do much tumbling anymore my backward rolls kinda suck especially being heavier.

 So I'm trying to add them in my warmups time to time. I think I'll try doing them again by my birthday which is coming up pretty soon. Maybe one for every year like last year.

 But I may go to a gym to do them this year. My ankles are not overly fond of doing on a regular floor. Not in volume.

You can do consolidation training. Basically just do 1 backtuck whenever. 

 

Me and my brother play a game called "mine". Whenever you say the word "mine" you do 10 pushups; the concept could be modified to suit doing a backtuck. ie. whenever you say the trigger word, you have to do 1 backtuck. 

 

The main point is to do a backtuck frequently enough throughout the week so that it feels natural to do it. But only do so many at a time such that it doesn't go to "failure" so to speak; as you said you screw yourself over after too many backflip attempts in a row, which is why I suggested 1 backflip at a time (a few times per day). But you could do 2 or even 3 backflips if you felt like it, as long as it's below failure point.

"Whenever you say the word "mine" you do 10 pushups; the concept could be modified to suit doing a backtuck."

 

This is very popular in local freerunning comunity. Someone shouts: "Spontaneous backflip!/Spontaneous sideflip!/Whatever" and everybody backflips. Very amusing in public transportation.    

 

But in my opinion this is mainly for people who are able to throw particular flip everywhere, with little to no warm up. It could be dangerous for beginners. 

Hi Emos, I completely understand as I've had and still have the exact same problem with the backhandspring. When I first learned the move it was with 2 helpers and a mini trampoline during proper gymnastics class this is and everything went just fine. I went down to no helpers just the minitramp with descent form. I then started swinging one arm faster than the other and/or turning the head slightly to one side and therefore getting completely out of alignment and I got frustrated. Everything went pear shaped after that I got some help from spotters and tried doing the move slower I could kind of get it with 2 spotters but never again by myself. This was more than a year ago, I've mastered plenty of different gymnastic elements including the backtuck which I can now do anywhere anytime without warmup but also many elements on Parallel bars, Straight bar, Mini trampoline, Floor and Swinging Rings (Swiss speciality, sort of like circus trapeze) but I can't for the life of me remaster a proper non assisted back hand spring. I can usually sort of manage one proper one by session then the second goes sideways when I do it (which often I don't, I stick to one). But I can do them with two spotters but if one goes away then no chance. I know what you feel like, you know you can but somehow you can't... I know this probably won't help you but as I've been in the same dead end for months now I thought I'd share my experience. Good luck to you!