want to start practicing Front flip and Front handspring

[Ian Legrow]

I can do a very sloppy front handspring. Now when i say veyr sloppy, i am not kidding. My question is what prerequisites or things of that nature do i need to start practicing to getting a good front flip and front handspring. I figure i would start with those becasue the back handspring and Back flip might be harder. My problem with my front handspring is i don't keep my legs extended, they usually curl. That is wrong obviously. I do i train so this does not happen?

Thanks!

-Ian

[Philip Chubb]

A good coach watching you will make it very easy. A lot of people curl their legs from not reaching far enough in their front handspring. Much easier to explain all this in person though.

I teach a good roll, dive roll, and crash before I teach a front flip.

[Ian Legrow]

Yeah a teacher would make it ideal. Unfortuntely ther are no places in Texas that will teach adults (for insurance reasons they say) and the only open gym i have found from one of the gymnastic places was 45 minutes to an hour a way and i don't have the money right now to pay for gas for 2 hours of driving once a week. But that mkaes sense, i need to extend my arms further out to get better at them. Thank you philip!

-ian

[Philip Chubb]

I hear you on the ideal situation. Okay, I'll try my best on a little explanation.

You start with your lunging foot back behind you and hurdle forward as you raise your arms. Now the trick is to keep the upper body and shoulders completely open as you reach far into your handspring. Don't allow your shoulders to become planchy. With the open shoulder angle and straight body, begin kicking with the kicking leg as the hurdle leg touches. Then the hurdle leg kicks as well and they meet in the air.

Basically, it's about a straight body, good reach, and kicking well. It's confusing to write on here but if you video it, I will help.

[Ian Legrow]

ok philip i will record myself tomorrow. Thank you very much. although ur explanation did help.

Ian

[Philip Chubb]

It is like a blind man telling a deaf man what hearing is like by using imagery to explain moves on a forum . But the video will help. Anytime, Ian!

[Blairbob]

I moved this to Skill Development.

Anyways.

Generally, I would teach FHS before BHS. However a lot of the prerequisite drills are trained at the same time. I know of some coaches that actually would prefer to coach FHS and FHS Step-Out before Round-Off. But that's another discussion.

Front Limber is the first drill to work on. Now, granted some extremely tight gymnasts will never have a decent Front Limber but it's a nice idea.

After they have a front limber, I would generally add HS POP off floor to Front Limber. HS POP is a whole nother discussion as I don't teach it until they have a decent HS and walking HS.

After they learn a flyspring/bounder, or front handspring off two feet (done generally with a two foot take-off from a jump or run).

Front Headspring is often another drill done before Front Handspring. In it's basic progression, work from a headstand to bridge and DO NOT tuck in the chin. And don't do that on FHS, either.

Generally you would start in a headstand with your feet behind your hands and head on the floor. Think of "Downward Dog" with head on the floor. By bending your knees and flexing your ankles (so the ball of your foot is pushing off the floor), you will kick your legs through a HS to a bridge while extending the arms.

First, I would drill this slow. I generally don't teach it with tucked legs at all. A decent drill is a "kipped" HeSPU with tuck or preferably, piked legs. Work it from the headstand to bridge, then limbering up to a stand.

Preferably, I would not introduce a front flip till after competency with the Bounder Flyspring. Bounders can be pretty tough on floor but are generally easier than Front Handsprings from a Lunge on a trampoline surface. Most recreational trampolines are too small for bounders unless they are done at one of those Huge Trampoline gyms (which typically have not very springy trampolines that are "slow" bounces).

I do not actually teach a Dive Roll with a Hecht action before Front Flip. I want a flip that sets correctly and pops/floats up rather than out. Basic dive rolls on floor such as rolling for length or over objects, sure but teaching a Dive Roll first generally makes gymnasts pike at their waist and lean over with their torso rather than properly set. Generally in a gym, I would teach a punch layout to back (3/4 layout) to a pit or mat surface after learning a front handspring vault (which is very similar to a flyspring). Another drill is a punch to a straight jump and roll out onto mats roughly chest to head height.

One of the critical things about the Dive/Hecht roll or punch front salto is the hurdle and placement of the feet in relation to the body. The torso and hips cannot be forward of the balls of the feet which is all too common with the commonly drilled "Dive Roll."

Once they can do a proper punch front tuck salto, a Dive Hecht roll which is very similar to a Layout 1/2 Forward with a roll out. Obviously, handstand forward roll is a prerequisite with bent arms but also with straight arms and Piked Forward roll with straight legs and HS FWD roll with pike legs is often another drill done prior.