Tuesday, November 2, 2010

November Questions and Comments

Questions, comments, gym news, personal achievements, etc. etc. please post here for November! (Thanks for the reminder, Miss Callie. It completely slipped my mind. How is it already November?!?) :)

51 comments:

  1. do u have any more advice for my roundoff back handspring...i do like a cartwheel and then bring my feet right together and so its hard for me to push back into my back handspring so at that point i roll into a ball and its cuz i bring my feet right over with me so my coach said i have to pretend theyre glued to the floor for a little bitt its really confusing..but got any advice? anad my side handstand twist off? im always afriad ill scrape my arm like i did one time any advice..? everyday i tell myself that i have to trust myself ill judge it right but any other advice?

    ReplyDelete
  2. I'm not quite sure what you mean with the roundoff back handspring, but I would just ask your coach if it's okay for you to keep working on the roundoff for a while. Practice your power hurdles and your snap downs. It shouldn't feel like a cartwheel. If you feel really confident about the roundoff, the handspring should come pretty easily out of it.

    I don't know what to tell you about the fear issue. The only way to conquer it is to get back up there and do it again and again. I know you can get it :) If it would help, ask your coach if you can try it a few times on low beam every practice before moving it to high beam, or just do side handstand holds for a while. Good luck!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. thank youu!!(: we have are intrasquad in a week so ill letcha know my scores afterwards!!(:

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi(: I asked on the October questions and comments, but since its November I guess I'll just post it again here.
    Ok, so first off, I'm having some trouble with my handstands. :/ I used to take a step into it, but now my coach is making us practice it so we just go into it from standing position. I know thats the right way to do it, but I'm having some trouble. When I lean down to go into it, I kick my left leg up, and it makes it all the way up and is straight for the most part. But then, my right leg stays bent the whole time, so when I'm in my handstand I have one leg straight and one leg bent. Any advice?(:
    And also, my coach had us doing round off dismounts off of beam the other week. Watching, I didn't think it would be too scary, but then when I went to do one, I got really scared and ended up bending both my legs as I kicked them over. Even though I knew she was there to spot me, but I still got scared. :/ Is there anything I could practice at home to get over that fear, or improve the round off on the beam? Because I can do one ok on floor, its just on beam it doesn't work too well. (:
    Thanks sooo much! (:
    -gymnastics4ever

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi :) Thanks for reposting in the November section. Sorry I didn't get it up in time! For the handstands, I'm not really sure why your coach doesn't want you to take a step lunge into the handstand. I'm sure she has her reasons, though. I guess I would suggest that you practice 3/4 handstands or however high you can go without bending your back leg until you get the feel for it, then slowly work it up to a full handstand with both legs straight. The issue could also be that you're keeping your base leg on the ground too long - you don't have to wait until your left leg is completely vertical and you're in a full split before kicking with your other leg. If you do that, you'll end up just trying to muscle it up, which could be the cause of the bent leg. Hopefully that makes sense. Let me know if you need any clarification.

    For the roundoff dismount, maybe you could try it on a medium or low beam first to give you a boost of confidence. I'm sure you're capable of doing the skill very well, but sometimes the height can mess us up. Plus, it's brand new to you, so it may just take some time to get used to it. You'll get it. :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. im still having issues with my back handspring and my intrasquad is on thursday!!! so my coach has me doing back limbers are the any other drills? and anything i can do for my arms? thanks!!!

    ReplyDelete
  7. i got my bent arm kip today!!! all by myself :) We only worked on them a few times for like 5 or ten minutes, for the last three weeks! my coach wasnt there though..she was at a meet ): i also did my backwalkover on the actual low beamm..i was scared at first but eventually i just went for it :P i had to stop doing them because my hand got a bloody rip ): OF COURSE!! ;* how long will it take to heal do you think? by this tuesday? :) should i put a bag over it with some vitiam e? or will that get it infected?

    ReplyDelete
  8. ohh!! i got my kip on strap bar 10 timese yesterday(:

    ReplyDelete
  9. @Callie and gymnasticsluver - AWESOME job on your kips, girls!! And Callie, congrats on your back walkover on low beam!

    Not sure how long the rip will take to heal. Hopefully it heals soon! I will send all my healing vibes your way :)

    ReplyDelete
  10. thanks so much!!(: im so happy!!! i just want to get my back handspringg!!! i cried last time at practice cuz i was so frustrated with myslef!

    ReplyDelete
  11. thanks! :) how do i get it to be straight armed? what am i doing wrong to make it bent armed????

    ReplyDelete
  12. thanks so much!(: I'll try practicing those things.
    -gymnastics4ever

    ReplyDelete
  13. @Callie - Make sure that you're shifting your wrists as you come up, and pull as hard as you can with arms straight. If it helps, think of it like you're pushing the bar down really hard with your palms as you come up to front support. Use your abs to help you out.

    ReplyDelete
  14. We had are intrasquad today and i MESSED up on beam so bad!!!!!!!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Aww, that's okay. That happens, especially when you're nervous. What happened on beam? And how did your other events go? Keep in mind you've got a whole season left to make your routines the best they can be :)

    ReplyDelete
  16. blah! i want to move to california so bad ): theres a gym called gymfinity and they are REALLY good, and they have some videos on youtube of their girls and they are just out of this world! and i emailed the coach, and talked to her and she said she would LOVE to have me as a gymnast ( im pathetic :*) i REALLY want to pursue elite..as far out of my reach it is..i liike dreamm about it all the time...theres this little girl laurie hernadez..she went from level four to level 9 hopes in like a year!!! this gym...has a girll whos about my age who started less then SIX months ago and shes training level seven skills! i wont lie and say her form is perfect..but its getting there! ): i wanna move there so bad..

    ReplyDelete
  17. Thanks, and I went up to high for my strength for my handstand and fell off and then I tried to do it again and didnt get all but an inch off the ground, and it screwed up my entire routine. and I did good on all the other events!! I almost did my round off backhandspring with a one handed spot! so its pretty good(: i just cant wait for my first meet!(:

    ReplyDelete
  18. didya read my responsee???(: ^^^^^

    ReplyDelete
  19. I did! I meant to tell you congratulations on having on overall successful experience! Don't worry about the handstand, you can use your mistake to help you figure out how to make it better next time :) Great job on your roundoff back handspring, too! When is your first official meet, again? I think you commented on that earlier, but I forgot the exact date.

    @Callie - I watched some of their videos, too! Those little girls are GOOD! Do you like the gym you're at now?

    ReplyDelete
  20. My first meet EVER is Dec. 11-12 (the 12 is my bday(: ) and thanks so much!!! ive been working on my long hang kip on straps!!

    ReplyDelete
  21. its not that i dont like it, the coaches are great..but the equipment and philosophy AND scores are quite different from what I'd prefer..
    i want pits. -.- really bad! and they need to stop taking handy downs and buy their own equipment. and stop having 1000 sports, and focus on their main seller, gymnastics. and possibly, rip down all the dumb walls you have for all the other sports, and make it so you have a big nice gym that has pits...sorry..
    and their scores are low..ish...like i want high 35- low 36s AT THE LEAST. maybe its just the girls, but ive seen their bars...not tight legs..and theyre feet always brush on the ground. pisses me off -.-
    the owner wants me to go more days, free of charge..too ;* which made me kinda happy. but i still want to move ):

    ReplyDelete
  22. Oh, that's right. I forgot you don't have any pits at your gym. It becomes hard to decide what to do when you love your coaches and teammates but also feel like you could progress quicker and get higher scores somewhere else. On the one hand, you want to make sure that you're reaching your potential, but on the other hand, the most important thing is having fun. Ugh, why does it have to be so difficult?!

    I have to let you know, though, 36s are rare these days. It also depends on what region you're in. When I was competing, scoring in my region was really tough. I won the national invitational with a 34.6 or so when we traveled to another region. I won nearly every regular season meet with mid-33s. So the judging definitely has a hand in it. A 33 doesn't sound so great I'm sure, to you OR to me, but when I go back and watch my old videos, it's clear that my routines were very clean and hitting all the marks, definitely worthy of placing. So the point of all my babble talk is that sometimes the actual numbers don't matter so much if you're focusing more on how you can improve and do your best. :) But I definitely understand wanting to be part of a gym that has exceptional scores. I've felt the exact same way.

    Do keep in mind, also, that those girls work darn hard for their scores. They're probably putting in more hours than a typical gym. Sometimes I really think that fewer hours and more FUN is better than tons of hours, less fun, more stress, and high scores. At the end of the day (or, at the end of your gymnastics "career,") you're gonna think back and remember the fun times you had with your teammates, and that's gonna mean a whole lot. :)

    Not that I'm getting sentimental here... Lol.

    Keep me updated!

    ReplyDelete
  23. This post helped me a lot too!! If we ever have free time, I always stay at the event and work work work!!! I work so hard everyday!!! Sometimes I don't want to go, (I think every gymnast sometimes feels that way) but then I remember I love this sport and I LIVE for this sport! Everyday I come to class with a goal I want to accomplish, but sometimes my mental blocks get in the way, but I work hard until I get it at least once!

    I hope someday my hard work will pay off in my performance, scoring, medaling, and most of all, my chances to move up to level 6!! That is my ultimate goal right now!! I love this sport so much! Even though sometimes I get mad, sad, or depressed I remember how much I love it and I always will!!! I just hope I'll make it to optionals before I'm 15! (:

    Do you think this is a good work out routine?
    -350 ab crunches
    -4 25 reps on different weight sets for my legs
    -4 different 10 lbs weights for my arms
    -1 min 30 sec wall sits
    -Hollow body (tuck ups, sissors, rockers, etc. while in hollow body)
    -this ab crunchy machine
    -5-15 push ups
    and I think thats it is there anymore you can think of?

    ReplyDelete
  24. Sounds good, gymnasticsluver! :) I might add some lunges in and reduce the crunches to 100 or so... I used to hate lunges, and then I realized how much they paid off! Lol. Talk to your coach about it and see what he (she?) says! I'm sure they can tell you what type of conditioning plan works best for you. Plus they'll feel special that you felt like you could go to them for advice. :D

    ReplyDelete
  25. haha ok(: I will!! thanks so muchh!!! that other post you posted for callie about the working part helped me cuz I always work!(: haha

    ReplyDelete
  26. practice was good todaayy! we worked on backhandsprings, which are WAY better then two weeks ago.and my round off backhand-spring is way better, my floor routine is good, my beam routine is good besides the split leap, my kips are getting way better and more consistent, and we started working punch fronts today on floor..for the first time. Mine were good for the first time she said :) we only worked on them for like five minutes though ): butt starting next weeeek, i'm going to start going 25hrs a week i thinkk, or maybe 16 :P sorry...my mom doesnt listen to me when i talk about gymnastics so its kinda braggy. :PP

    ReplyDelete
  27. haha callie(: you seem so awesome(: but I ALMOST HAVE MY KIPP(: and congrats callie!! good luck girly!!

    ReplyDelete
  28. You both are AWESOME gymnasts and hard workers! Brag away, ladies. A little self-confidence never hurt anyone. :)

    ReplyDelete
  29. I was so close to my kip last night...and then...BAM a bloody rip!!! my SECOND one in THREE weeks!!!!!! it sucked!!! I was so sad!!!

    ReplyDelete
  30. Hi(: Well, I know its the simplest vault there is, but how long would it take me do you think to get a front handspring over the vault? We're just working on drills right now for it, like running, jumping onto the spring board and doing a dive roll onto mats; running on the tumble trak and doing dive rolls over one of those big, circular mat things that are used for back-handspring drills, and things like that. The thing is, the gym only offers one 10+ beginner class a week, so thats all I'm attending right now. So, its not like I get to practice a lot unless I go to open gyms. So, how long do you think it will take me to just get a front handspring over vault?
    And also, just real quick, on average, how long does it take to get a back handspring, just with working on drills in class?
    Thanks a lot!(:
    -gymnastics4ever

    ReplyDelete
  31. i got my backwalkover for the first time on low beam..i actually got my feet on :P i have a question. i was asked to come to team practice which is four days a wk for 4hrs. idk if i should go..i mean I WANT TOO, but i feel like i would be a distraction or well, like when level threes practice with us an annoyance.. or something. i have alot of level five floor skills ( forward tumbling) and my level five vault, and i bet i could do my level five bar routine if given the chance ( minus high bar kip..) and i have a most of my level five skills and some level six skills on beam and im working on level six tumbling skills..but i dont have my backward tumbling skills, since we dont do it alot i lost my RHOBH and i cant do standing and i i dont talk alot to anyone and i feel like idk, awkward during warm-ups...because idk. i was thinking of maybe just doing two days a week of it, bc i dont wanna be like there..and like take time from them and be like..annoying ya' know what i mean? what should i do ):

    ReplyDelete
  32. @gymnasticsluver - Aw! Bummer about your rip. That's no fun. Though rips do provide the perfect opportunity to practice your casts over and over and over again until they are BEAUTIFUL!

    @gymnastics4ever - It's definitely tougher to get new skills when you don't go often enough to imprint the skills into your muscle memory. The drills you're working on sound like they're definitely getting you on the right track for a handspring vault, though, so keep working on them and trust your coach! Ask her (him?) if she (he?) is actually planning on getting you to the real vault someday. Let the coach know you're really interested in learning it! Unfortunately I really can't give you an estimate of how long it should take. It completely depends. Same with the handspring. But keep working at it! I'm sure you'll get it soon! :)

    ReplyDelete
  33. Ok, thanks so much!(:
    -gymnastics4ever

    ReplyDelete
  34. I really hope I'll be able to be a six next season cuz I have like 3/4 of the skills..i just need the back tumbling!!!(:

    ReplyDelete
  35. i had my first level five practice today. i was WICKKKED nervous! we did strength for the first two hours ( !!) and i beat most of the level five and up girls at pike holds :) it was fun!

    ReplyDelete
  36. Just thought I'd letcha knoww.......















































    THAT I GOT MY ROUNDOFF BACK HANDSPRING BY MYSELF!!!! I'm going a little high BUT i did it!!!!!!! and then I went to bars, i was literally 2 inches away from making my kip and BAM i rip, ON THE SAME ONE I GOT FRIDAY!!!!! its RIDICULOUS!!!! should I ask 4 grips!?

    ReplyDelete
  37. ^^ when did you start gymnastics?

    ReplyDelete
  38. just like a year and a half ago(:

    ReplyDelete
  39. WOO!! Good job, girl! That's so cool :)

    Maybe you should try taping your hands before bars. See if that helps!

    ReplyDelete
  40. ok!! i will thanks!!!!! and im so happyyY(:

    ReplyDelete
  41. How do I deal with a REALLY rude teammate?

    ReplyDelete
  42. hi hakuna :) i have a question......how do i get better casts? my cast is at horizontal but i wanna get higher!?

    ReplyDelete
  43. @gymnasticsluver - That's tough. I guess what I would do is just ignore them (politely). Don't give them the time of day. They're probably looking for a reaction from you - don't give it to them. Just focus on yourself and your gymnastics. That's how you win with mean people.

    @callie - Hello :) Remember to keep your shoulders over the bar when you cast, keep a tight hollow body, and drive your heels. It helps to do casts with ankle weights on, and then when you take the weights off you realize you can get higher than you thought.

    ReplyDelete
  44. Hi, can you help me with my front handspring front tuck? I've always HATED front tumbling and my current pass is just atrocious -.-

    I have a really good handspring with a rebound and I have a solid front tuck but when I try to put it together, my FHS magically fails and I don't get any rebound. I just have this horrid mind block and I've tried a bunch of different things, like on the tumble track, into the pit, onto a floor mat, and just plain on the floor but nothing seems to work! I have nooooo idea how to connect the skills. Do you have any ideas or suggestions?

    ReplyDelete
  45. Oh, and on the voting, why is there no choice for prep-op? ;)

    ReplyDelete
  46. @Anonymous - There should be a prep-op choice! It just totally slipped my mind. When I was competing there was NO talk of prep-op programs whatsoever, so unfortunately sometimes I forget that it's out there!! I apologize!! And now we know that I'm getting really old... lol.

    Are you scared of the fronthandspring front tuck? I guess what I would try at this point would be do to the front handspring rebound on a tumble trak, but don't tuck right out of the rebound right away, take a few extra bounces. Once you're good with that, limit the number of extra bounces until you're at only one extra bounce and eventually tuck out of the rebound. Maybe that'll help you get the feel for the two moves being connected or going together. Remember also not to drop your chest out of the handspring. I hope that is of some help. It's tough sometimes for me to give advice because I think a lot of the times these mental blocks are so internal that you just have to work them out. But I'm absolutely confident that you'll get it!

    ReplyDelete
  47. Alrighty, thanks! I'll try that on Tuesday if I get the chance since competition is SUNDAY! :D :D :D

    And I usually don't get mental blocks, if ever. I think my problem mostly is feeling that absolute sureness that I won't make it or connect it so I balk at the last moment. :(

    ReplyDelete
  48. How much of chance do you think I have at skipping level 5 next season?
    These are my skills:

    Floor:
    Round off back handspring
    Front handspring front handspring
    front tuck
    front pike
    front layout
    back walkover
    front walkover
    all splits
    tuck, split, pike and straddle jump
    close to a switch leap
    full turn
    handstand (obviously(: )

    Bars:
    Glide punch pullover
    front hip
    back hip
    clear hip
    cast squat on
    tap swing
    level 5 dismount
    close to a full cast handstand
    baby giant
    I'm going to get my kip this week I know I am!
    I think level 6 dismount
    Working my long hang kip

    Beam:
    Handstand
    Side handstand twist off
    Cartwheel
    leaps
    split, tuck, straddle jumps
    back walkover on low beam
    half turn

    Vault:
    front handspring (SO CLOSE!)

    What do you think? If you think of any skills im missing can you post em pleasE?

    ReplyDelete
  49. It's hard to say without seeing your form and the quality of your skills, but assuming that form is solid, I think you might have a chance to move on to level 6 if you work really hard every day! It will be difficult, but I think it's possible! Especially with your determination.

    Keep in mind that everything has to be bigger in level 6. Bigger casts, bigger split leaps, flawless connections, etc. There are a couple of pretty big skills that you'll need to get, the most obvious being really consistent kips. Also, roundoff back handspring back tuck on floor is a biggie, and back walkover on high beam along with the level 6 dismount. Of course the handspring vault's gotta be awesome (none of that toppling over stuff in level 6 - you'll need a big block, good heel drive, that sort of thing). You will need a flyaway on bars, and the clear hips, if I remember correctly, must be at least 30 degrees above horizontal. So you've got some major skills to work on. But keep doing the best you can! I've got faith in you!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  50. what makes you undercut a back-handspring? and guess what!! im moving to level five in next month!:DD

    ReplyDelete
  51. Cool!! Congrats :) Level 5 is a lot of fun.

    Undercutting a handspring is just sort of a bad habit in itself. It's not necessarily caused by anything, it just means that you have a short first flying phase and arch so much that your hands land basically where your feet started. You can do a lot of drills to help fix it. Usually, if my girls are undercutting it, I catch them in the middle of the handspring and wiggle them around a bit so they can feel the correct long arch position. That seems to help. Also, jumping back onto a Resi mat is a great drill.

    ReplyDelete