Essential Gymnastics Skills for Beginners-Part IV

This is the last part of this series where I will outline about "Springing and Landing" Skills which are essential for Dynamic Movement Pattern.

Spring and Landing

Spring and landing describes activities where the movement involves springing from one position and landing in the other. For example, participants move from feet to feet, hands to feet or hands to hands. Simple spring and landing skills can be made more challenging by adding simple rotations.

» Springing — an ‘explosive’ action where the participant moves quickly off the ground. The action should always be controlled. Participants must always demonstrate that whatever they spring from, the landing is

controlled and safe.

» Air Jacks — an action where the participant springs from two feet and explosively makes a wide star shape while airborne and then returns to the safety landing position of the ‘motor bike’.

Air Jacks

» Jump — the act of propelling the body off the ground. Jumps can be performed singularly or in a series, with or without partners, and with or without equipment (e.g. a two-foot jump, ½ turn, straight, tuck, star).

Jumps

Landing— the action of returning to the ground after performing any airborne or partially airborne activity (e.g. jumps, turns). It is important when participants do any skill, that the exit shape/position is controlled. This ensures safety on landing from any particular skill but also assists with linking one skill to the next.

» Motor Bike Landing— the term referred to throughout the book to encourage safe landing practices when jumping and landing on your feet.

Motor-Bike Landing

» Prone Safety Landing — the action of falling in a forward safety landing position. The arms brace the fall in a controlled way. The head turns to the side in a timely manner.

Prone Safety Landing

I have covered all the basic and essential key movement areas which underpin all gymnastics activities and skills: Statics, Locomotion, Spring and Landing .These skills are necessary for beginners .All complex skills which are related to different Gymnastics activity are based on these basic skills. Hope, this information might have helped you .Stay tuned for further posts

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