Front handspring drills all the way up

Today I thought I’d share as many videos as I could on compulsory vault. Handspring vaults can get SUPER monotonous, so having a bunch of drills in your grab bag is a must if you aren’t going to go crazy.

This first circuit is absolutly great. One of the biggest things I think that’s lacking when people teach vault is teaching kids how to stay tight when they hit the table at an angle. That being said, the sliding down the mat drill? Totally fantastic, and FUN. This circuit also incorporates leg strength, punching and handstand flat backs. Really all key things you need.

The drill I’m most fond of in this second circuit is the one laying on the panel mat with a forster bar. One of the big things I see is girls not getting their arms up to their ears after they arm circle, which results in a shoulder angle. Sometimes it’s a timing issue, sometimes it’s a strength issue. This drill in particular helps with the strength issue.

These next three drills are all in the same genre. They involve using a springboard instead of a table. The reason I love this is because it provides instant feedback. If you’re tight the springboard bounces you up super high. If you don’t, you just fall over. It’s great, and the kids seem to really get it.

This next video is all about the run. For me running on vault is the number 1 thing. If the run isn’t there you can’t just generate power from the board. Even with the best body shapes you won’t have a vault without a run. Like I’ve said in previous posts we’ve been really focusing on leg conditioning and vault is a great place to work that in.

These are some really great and easy to set up stations to make sure kids aren’t leaning into the table. The more you develop the muscle memory on side stations the less chance there is of them reverting to leaning forward when they go over the table.

And lastly, this is just a really great quick vault warm-up that will get kids using their legs, and punching with their chests back before you start sending them over the table.

Video credits:
Video 1: Tony Retrosi
Video 2: XGTKids
Video 3: Lukas Stritt
Video 4: Gymnast Crossing
Video 5: Meredith Bell
Videos 6 and 7: Zach Crumpton
Video 8: FGA Girls Team