Back flip Progression!

As mentioned before one of my new years resolutions has been to increase my body weight control. I've made several strides towards this goal by learning how to handstand, how to kip-up, how to front flip and now my new challenge is to learn to back flip!

Back flips have always been extremely cool to me! Being able to do one has been a goal of mine since I was a kid. I've always been told that I have a high enough vertical to perform a flip however I have always lacked the confidence to commit to the flip and go backwards. I am dedicating my next two gymnastics classes (4 hours) to learning this flip. I have chosen this allotted time because it is a safe and controlled environment in which I can feel comfortable in, in addition I have access to an amazing gymnastics coach during this time !

Class one:

Fear is absolutely my biggest hurdle. I had a lot of trouble trusting myself in the flip. As seen in the video below I was very hesitant on my first attempt even when flipping into foam. I literally was so scared I jumped straight up and that was it!

The first embarrassing attempt was just a trust issue. Once I realized there was really no danger I began becoming more comfortable with flipping. I was able to actually perform a flip however I still did not trust myself fully and this caused me to look to my left or right when i flipped and not directly backwards. This caused me to twist and turn in the air. This occurred multiple times and was an extremely difficult habit to break. At this stage I am so worried about flipping around I am unable to keep my legs tucked, focus on height or even control my rotation. The video is a bit fast but its fairly obvious that I cannot spot my landing.

After this video I attempted the flip multiple times and began to feel ready to progress. During the class I knew I was not ready to begin attempting flips on the floor, however I was very impatient and I was not getting the instruction I was hoping for. My instructor unfortunately was divided between 25 other people, it was hard for him to critique my form and give me progressions at the rate I had desired. This resulted in me recklessly attempting the flip on the ground despite not being able to land the flip into the foam pit cleanly. I luckily did not get injured but I did land on my face which was definitely a humbling experience! I was able to start landing on my knees but my form is incredibly sloppy and inconsistent (seen below). This was as far I was able to make it in the first class, I learnt how to tuck, and how much air I needed, despite knowing this I still was unable to tuck, jump to my max height and have the confidence to flip backwards without looking over my shoulder.

With only 2 hours left to learn how to back flip I decided to fully commit and leave nothing behind. A back flip is something I've wanted for so long and I needed to prove that I could do it! My approach for the second class was completely different. I put all my faith in my abilities and the abilities of my instructor. I went through every progression he gave me and I did not progress until he saw fit. This mentality shift helped me tremendously, it forced me to work on the small minute errors in my form. Once I began to get the form and feel the difference it was an amazing feeling. I began to feel the difference in a good jump, a good tuck and when I was lacking power. Being able to pinpoint these things myself really increased my confidence and before I knew it I was comfortable flipping backwards and I had gotten rid of my sideways rotation.

The following videos are highlights of each of the progression stages

This is one of the last flips I did into the pit. In this video I was able to get a LOT of air and really extend and open my body, then quickly snap my knees to my chest, hold the tuck and spot my landing.

The progression from landing in the foam pit is to land on a mat. This allows you to begin getting used to spotting your landing, and help with the release point of your tuck, allowing you to stick the landing. Before I was allowed to progress to the next stage I had to practice 30 flips, consistently landing them. This video is a clean flip because of the extension, and height I get in the initial flip as well as the rotation speed I am able to get, the quick rotation allows me to have an extremely long time to spot my landing.

The next progression is to flip off of a spring board. The spring board provides some extra pop to the jump as well as increases the initial take off distance from the ground, allowing more time for beginners to rotate and spot their landing.

Off the spring board I was able to get a lot of height and power. I was very confident I would be able to flip on flat ground at this point. Unfortunately I don't have a video of my best flips, the flip in the video is not bad but because I was extremely tired at this point my jump lacks the same explosive power and height my other flips achieved. I am still extremely happy with the progress I've made! despite the inconsistencies with some of my flips I am confident I can perform a back flip now!

This entire experience has been a crazy roller coaster! I went from being so scared to flip that I just fell into the pit to being able to do a standing back flip! My biggest obstacles were by far fear and patience. I had to work especially hard because I was too impatient in my progression, this allowed me to develop bad habits that increased the learning curve for the flip. I am extremely grateful for the instruction I received and all of the people who encouraged and cheered me on!