Round off help ! Blocking... how?

[Krystal Nilsen]

I have been trying to get my round off for a while now, but I just can't seem to get it right. I just don't understand how to block off with my shoulders, no matter how many times I try... Am I too weak?

 

Please check out my video. I need all the help I can get! 

 

 

http://sv.tinypic.com/r/15gv67q/8

[Alessandro Mainente]

can you do free handstand?

[Krystal Nilsen]

can you do free handstand?

Yes, and I have no problems doing cartwheels.

 

I have also been trying to do handstand snap-downs, but I can't seem to push through my shoulders to snap down. I feel like I am missing something?

[Blairbob]

Shoulder angle is breaking from open. Lunge is not deep enough.

 

Body turned way too much to side killing forward momentum. First hand too close to lunging foot because of aforementioned shoulder break.

 

Too much pike down rather than snapping hollow




Things to do.

1) Get rid of the trapezoid. Yes, I know why we have gymnasts RO over trapezoids and mailboxes. I'd rather see you work off stacked panel mats or a wedge. You'll probably need 2 panel mats laid down long way to fit a proper RO. Most wedges won't fit adults either unless they are super long. You can put a block that is the same height as the top of the wedge or panel mats to make it longer. This also allows more time to turn over. Eventually after the RO is sharp off panel mats or a wedge, I transition to the floor and would use a mailbox (you're also too close to the trapezoid which is causing some of the issues in the first place).

2) Keep your shoulders open. You can use a OpenShoulderTrainer or just something like foam cubes or oven mitts between your ear and shoulder.

3) First hand down fingers forward rather than sideways. This keeps the chest forward instead of turned out and momentum going forwad longer. 2nd hand turns out 90 degrees. You can worry about T-hands when you need more turnover in the RO when you are connecting more advancing tumbling elements (saltos basically).

4) Deep knee lunge. One drill is to lay on the ground stretched out on your stomach from toes to arms (overhead). This is how long we are trying to make the round off (or step into lunge handstand). When I measure this my hands are placed the distance of one of my feet (10-11") less than my outstretched body length (roughly 6'4-5") so in actually about 5'3" from where my heels start lunging into round-off (without any kind of hurdle).

Keeping your shoulders open is also critical to this besides a deep lunge. 

a) How deep? I like to see an angle from ankle to hands of 45 degrees from vertical or the floor. It can actually be possibly 40 degrees from the floor. Lower abdomen is on the quad. This is also critical for an aerial cartwheel.

To sum, keep your shoulders open even as you pass through the T-lever/TeeterTotter transition of lunge through handstand/sidehandstand.

Another supplemental drill would be handstand snapdowns down a wedge or off a panel mat. I'd go off a panel mat if you don't have a spotter to assist you to arched handstand up a wedge. 

 

a) a progression of the handstand snapdown is to actually kick to handstand and bend the knees and extend them during the kick. This shortens the lever and provides a more powerful snapdown. I've also heard of snapdown to knees but haven't used it myself and would only do so on a soft wedge.
 
1) a good physical prepatory element is headstand/handstand leg lifts upside down. 



As for blocking off the shoulders, part of this comes with good Cartwheel/RO execution in the first place such as a long CW/RO with open shoulders. It's much harder to block with a closed shoulder angle.

Typically gymnasts learn handstand blocks on floor. Bouncing HS with a partner on a trampoline or sprung floor/springboard. Before that, handstand walking on the wall (HS runs) and free. 

HS snapdown/thru/up drill video