Gymnastics- next step after back walkover?

Hi there! I'm a nationally certified gymnastics coach, and I've been coaching for three years.. and I was a gymnast for 8 years before that. It sounds like your daughter has some talent going on, and that's great! Is she doing a "proper" back walkover? This would mean that she starts with her arms up, and one leg in front of the other. She'd fall into her back bridge, and immediately kick over and stand up. It looks like this (but with straight legs the entire time): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icCSvCEdnaQ My strongest recommendation though, would be to not teach her things at home, and exercise extreme caution when she's practicing simple things at home as well. As coaches, we're trained to know how to spot kids as well as how to teach so that they don't hurt themselves, and more importantly, so WE don't hurt ourselves when we're coaching. I can't stress this enough. I've actually had a couple of parents come to me after the classes I've taught were over, asking me how they can practice at home, and how they can spot certain moves. All I can tell them is my strong recommendation to save that job for me, and they can practice their flexibility moves (like splits, their straddle and pike stretches), and conditioning (like sittups, pushups, planks, squats, etc.) to become stronger. So unlike the other answers have said, I would save the teaching to the coaches at the gymnastics club. The coaches know what things should be taught before other moves, and so on. As a parent, I know you want great things for your daughter, and you want to see her doing more, but I'm sure you wouldn't want her getting hurt, and I wouldn't like to hear you getting hurt either. It doesn't take much to pull a muscle or twist the wrong way and hurt yourself. Coaches, to be fully certified, have to go to several courses to learn how to do our job properly! So that's my strongest recommendation. For what to do next, I would talk to her coach. I've had parents like you coming and talking to me before. Just ask her coach if she can be pushed a little bit harder, and try teaching her a more variety of things. You could always put her into a competitive or interclub group as well, so that's always an option. But I would try speaking to her coach though, and asking her to be pushed a little harder, and telling the coach what your daughter wants. Your coach probably knows your daughter's skill level a bit more than you do. The coach knows how fast your daughter learns, and at what rate. Because of these things, your coach will teach your daughter appropriate moves in progressions because there things that you should teach before others, like I mentioned before. For example, a child should know how to do a back walkover, before a back handspring, and a back handspring before a back tuck, like you suggested. If this coach is a good coach, I'm sure he/she has something in mind since she's doing back walkovers at 9. Hope that helps. Good luck!! (:

hi i answered your other question about your daughter. i think she shouldn't be in rec if they teach her boring stuff. when she trys stuff at home be really careful because i know from experience how easy it is to injure yourself if you don't do things properly. i would hate for her to accidentally hurt herself, i've pulled a few muscles, twisted an ankle and gotten many bruises by trying to to my cheerleading tumbling with incorrect technique before my coaches had taught it to me, it was painful, i've never tried something i hadn't learnt at home again. please make sure it is safe, i know i'm ranting but it's important, a torn muscle can put a stop you from doing gym for years, and it's wore when you're young. please don't pressure your daughter, especially with her splits, one push and she might never be able to do the splits again. please don't turn into a gymnastics mum you're daughter may end up hating you, and in a public forum like this, other people (i.e ME) might judge you as super stuck up. i think you should put your daughter in a proper gym program. they judge their comps on skill, no enjoyment needed!!!

i would say doin a perfect back walkover- that means starting with her front leg up then bending back with straight legs and pointed toes other wise a back handspring would be a great next step- make sure she get proper spot if doin them at home if she can't do front walkover or front handspring work on those first.

front walk over, flip flop (back hand spring), cartwheel/roundoff, roundoff back handspring, aerial, maybe? ehh eventually (cartwheel with no hands)

definitely back snap (back walkover only when in handstand position, snap down really fast). and then try backhandspring when ready.

Back handspring!

the next step i would say would be a front limber. (she goes into a handstand and falls into a backbend and the picks up.) you should really support your daughter in this because she sounds willing and good. i would talk to coaches and ask them about your daughter. if she is planning to get really good at gymnastics she needs to be doing as much as she can because gymnastics is such a hard sport to get good at. it takes a long time. i really hope your daughter can get into a team or pre team level, because it would make her feel honored that she is good enough to join. and once in these levels she can have more practice, make friends, and really see how good she is. good luck

Okay well sounds like your daughter is a fast learner so that I think that the next step for her would be to do back handspring. It might seem scary but its not like a back flip or anything like that. But she might need you to spot or go to a gym and have them spot her. This is what she should do: . Stand up on her tippie toes as she keeps her arms close to her ears. . Bend her knees as she pulls her arms down, as she goes flat on her feet. . Jump up as she pulls her arms to her ears as she goes back. . Arch her back, while keeping her legs togather and feet pointed the entier time. . Push through her shoulders as she touch the ground, as her feet get into handstand. . Push forward and land on her feet, as she rebound. . Her feet should be togather for the entier time. Here is a link that will show you what it looks like and the steps for it and what they should look like. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujPfdy86hJ8 If she or you is not comfertable with it then try a front handspring. . First she needs to take three running steps then leap. . As she leaps she needs to tuck one leg and have the other leg outstretched. . When she leaps then she brings her arms to her ears. . She needs to lean foward keeping her arms outsretched. . As her arms touch the ground she needs kick up, so that she is in a handstand, keeping her legs togather. . She needs to push through her shoulders as her arms get to the ground. . After that she needs to arch her back. . When her feet reach the ground she needs to rebound. . For all of this she needs to keep her arms at her ears. Here is a link to a video that should help. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pk-JKKgIGw&feature=fvw here is another one if you don't understand his accent. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Bt1HtyT7NI&feature=channel If she isn't confortable with that then she should try a front walkover. Here is what she needs to do: . Keep her arms at her ears. . Step with one foot as she brings her arms to her ears. . When she gets in a handstand she needs to keep her legs togather and arms togather. . After that she needs to arch her back as she pushs through her shoulders, this is where her legs seperate. .Then she lands on one leg and pulls up with the other leg, while keeping her arms togather. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7959jqM87g&feature=related After that she could try a front limber. A front limber is just like a front walkover the only differenece is that you keep your feet togather the entire time, even when you come up. heres a link to show what she should do: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0G9rnYCm-oE Oh yeah I was 9 too when I first learnd how to do all of these, and a backwalkover, I'm 14 now, but I stopped when I was 13 and made it a long way, so if she keeps with she could be doing a lot more then you would expect! Hope this helps! :)

Will the next step is probably doing areos (Doing a flip with no hands). I did gymnastics sense I was 9 too and now I am 17. When I was 9 I learned how to do back walkover and frount walkovers so the next step was flips with no hands That was step 8 for the flip with no hands, but I think it's going to be about a week or 2 to learn how to do the flip with no hands. She can practess on a trampoline. good luck! :)