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Dish/Arch shapes

The most important shapes in gymnastics and it’s essential that we practice them correctly.

Dish:

• Back must be curved with shoulders and shoulder blades off the floor with chin towards chest.
• Arm and leg position is optional, depending on difficulty level.

Start off with a tucked dish, arms in front with legs bent at right angles.

As you progress, you can straighten out the legs, and then eventually lift your arms to your ears.

Arch:

• Lying on just your stomach, lifting legs up, curving your chest up off the floor, and head lifted.
• Arm position optional depending on difficulty but try to encourage straight legs (squeezing together) from beginning as they can be harder to correct.

Starting off by lifting to arch with arms either behind your back or by your sides.

To increase difficulty, move your arms to your ears and they holding there.

Challenge

Try holding it for as long as you can!

Set yourself a target and then try and beat it!

Challenge people in your house? Who can hold it for the longest?

Remember, correct shape is more important than how long you hold it!

In this video we are looking at splits, how we can work to getting them flat but more importantly how we can keep them straight.

For a lot of gymnasts, working a lunge is good enough to begin with.

Start with kneeing up with one leg in front so both your hip is at a right angle. Then push your hips forwards towards the floor.

Hold this position.

Then when ready, move the front door forwards a bit forwards and then again push the hips down to the floor.

It’s important to make sure that the splits are staying straight and it is easy to check this. Place your hands on your hips to feel for your hip bones. If both are inline and facing down your leg then that is correct, however often gymnasts will turn their hips sideways to help themselves go lower when they haven’t got the flexibility ready yet. If your hips are not inline, bring the splits back up higher and work it again where the hips are inline.

Keep working on it until you can move your front foot far out and eventually go down into full splits

Remember to keep checking on your hip alignment!

Good luck

Handstands are one of the skills that gymnasts want to do well, and although many gymnasts can get to a handstand, they struggle to hold it. This is often because the shaping of their handstand either puts them off balance or they manage to balance but in a shape that makes it harder to do.

In this video we are looking at the shape of our back in the handstand and an exercise we can do to help improve the strength of our handstand whilst in this correct shape.

To begin with, find something that you will be able to rest your legs on, a sofa or a chair would be ideal.

Bring your hands in close to the chair, and place your knees or feet on the chair.

Now trying to get your bottom over your hands, curve your back into a dish shape.

Hands should be shoulder width apart, straight arms, with your head tucked in between your shoulders.

It is easier if you do it on your knees on the chair, so you stay in a tuck shape with you stomach against the chair. When you can do that well, you can then progress so that your feet are on the chair, legs are straight and bottom sticking into the air. This makes it harder to keep the correct shape but is a good progression once you can do it tucked.

After you can hold this dished handstand shape supported by the chair, try and lift one leg towards the ceiling. Make sure you keep your back in the correct dish shape. Hold it for a few seconds, bring your leg down and try with the other leg.

How long can you hold it whilst still having the correct shape?

An arabesque is one of the first balancing shapes that you learn as a gymnast. Although it’s one of the first that you learn, it is not the easiest, and takes a lot of work to get it perfect.

To begin with, you need to know which leg you are better at balancing on. Ideally it will also be the same leg as your best splits, but if it isn’t, it is ok, as you can always improve your flexibility.

Throughout this skill, whilst we are learning, the arm positioning is optional, keeping your arms down will make it easier to balance and hold, but arms up and out look better when you can achieve the balance.

Starting with two feet together, step forwards onto your balancing leg, and point the back foot. Make sure both legs are squeezing tight.

Now, whilst squeezing you bottom tight, lift you back foot up straight behind you. Do not lower your chest.

When your back foot is as high as it can go, then you can start to lower your chest to continue to lift the back foot. Arch your chest so you keep looking forwards.

Do not let your chest go lower than horizontal, and try and get your back foot as high as it can go. Try and balance in that position.

To finish, bring the back leg down and step forwards onto it as stretch.

How high can you lift your back leg whilst keeping you leg straight?

How long can you hold it for?

If it’s a bit difficult, you can hold onto a table/chair for balance.

Rolling is a fundamental part of many skills. From forward and backward rolls, to more advanced skills like somersaults, the idea of rounding the back and rotating is an important skill for gymnasts to master.

Here are a few exercises to practise this skill from the very beginning to harder drills at the end.

The basic exercise is to sit in a tuck shape and roll backwards towards our shoulders and roll back again. Ideally with our arms up, and knees and feet together.

If rolling back up is difficult and you are stuck on your back, try hugging your knees as you roll.

Younger gymnasts especially sometimes struggle to roll back up and end up rolling onto their side. If this is an issue, try holding a rolled up tea towel or something similar under the knees, as this will help the body stay in the correct position and bring the chest up over the knees.

Once you can roll backwards and forwards without holding your knees, then we can introduce the hands being placed onto the floor by our ears as if it’s a backward roll

Eventually you can try and roll back and forwards from a shoulder stand. This is an exercise that will be useful for handstand forward rolls and also working the body tension for a backward roll to handstand.

After all the exercises, you can then try them again but try and roll forwards and stand up at the end!

This short exercise circuit will work your whole body and can be made as easy or hard as you like!

5 exercises

30 seconds on each

10 second rest between each exercise

Whole circuit completed twice

• Crunchies

• Press ups

• Squat jumps

• Shark swims

• Heel raisers

If you want to make the circuit harder, you can increase the length of time of each exercise and increase the number of times you do the circuit!

Can you manage:

1 minute each exercise

15 seconds rest

Whole circuit completed 3 times

If you do, well done!

Let us know how you do, and send us a video/photo of you doing your exercises! We may share some via Facebook and Instagram!

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Cardio Work Out

This short exercise circuit will get your whole body moving, and get you out of breath! If you have been sat around for too long, then get up and give this a go!

5 exercises

30 seconds on each

10 second rest between each exercise

Whole circuit completed twice

•  Running with high knees
• Jumping jacks
• Press up sprints
• Side lunge, floor touch
• Burpees

If you want to make the circuit harder, you can increase the length of time of each exercise and increase the number of times you do the circuit!

How many of each exercise did you manage?

How long did you do it for?

Can you manage:

1 minute each exercise

15 seconds rest

Whole circuit completed 3 times

If you do, well done!

Let us know how you do, and send us a video/photo of you doing your exercises! We may share some via Facebook and Instagram!

Royalty Free Music from Bensound

This exercise circuit is designed specifically for the younger gymnasts. The exercises are a little bit easier to do, and are perfect for the younger gymnasts to try out with less help required.

5 exercises

30 seconds on each

10 second rest between each exercise

Whole circuit completed twice

• Sitting squats

• Plank

• Small arm circles

• Step ups

• Bicycle legs

If you want to make the circuit harder, you can increase the length of time of each exercise and increase the number of times you do the circuit!

How many times did you manage to sit down and stand up?

How fast can you move your legs in bicycle legs?

Let us know how you do, and send us a video/photo of you doing your exercises! We may share some via Facebook and Instagram!

Royalty Free Music from Bensound

This exercise circuit is going to be using household items as weights to add to the activities. Anything can be used, bottles of water, tins, books, but if you do have weights at home, feel free to use those but please be safe. The weights do not need to be really heavy, just enough to give a little bit extra resistance.

5 exercises

30 seconds on each

10 second rest between each exercise

Whole circuit completed twice

• Bicep curls

• Squats

• Straight arm lifts

• Lunges

• Butterfly press

As normal, the difficulty of the circuit can be adjusted by changing how long to do the exercises, number of circuits, and changing the weights. Please do what is right for you as an individual.

How many times did you do the circuit?

What muscles did you feel worked the most? Arms or legs? When you are doing one exercise, make sure you are squeezing the other muscles at the same time.

Let us know how you do, and send us a video/photo of you doing your exercises! We may share some via Facebook and Instagram!

Royalty Free Music from Bensound

This exercise circuit is designed for the whole family to exercise together with partner based activities. If it is parent and child or brothers and sister, this fun little circuit will get your muscles working!

5 exercises

Take your time doing each exercise, make sure you are doing it correctly, and have fun!

• Front support high 5 - when in press up position, high five each other and then do it on the other hand. Try to make sure your whole body stays squeezed in a straight line whilst doing it. If it’s too difficult, you can do it whilst on your knees.

• Shoulder stand swap over - lie down with your bottoms next to each other and holding each other’s hands. At the same time, lift your bottoms up into the air and swap sides. The straighter your body stays you stay the harder it is.

• Leg pushes - One person lies down on the floor holding onto the other persons ankles whilst they are stood either side of their head. The person standing has to try and push the other persons feet to the floor, the person lying down has to squeeze tight to not their legs move. Make sure you swap over!

• Sit ups - One person doing sit ups, whilst the other holds their legs. Make it a clapping game for more fun!

• Jumping Jack Squats - Whilst holding hands, do a jumping jack, and then when the legs are out, do a squat!

All of these exercises can be made harder or easier depending on your own ability, so please work within your own level.

Who worked harder?

What muscles did you feel worked the most?

Is it fun working out together?

Let us know how you do, and send us a video/photo of you doing your exercises! We may share some via Facebook and Instagram!

Royalty Free Music from Bensound

This exercise circuit is going to be targeting and be working the core muscles. Try and do the exercises to the best of your ability and you will be feeling the muscles burning.

5 exercises

30 seconds on each

10 second rest between each exercise

Whole circuit completed twice

• Dish Hold

• Crunchies

• V-Sit

• Arch Hold

• Shark Swims

The difficulty of the circuit can be adjusted by changing how long to do the exercises and number of times you do the circuit.

Which exercise did you find the hardest?

Did you keep the correct dish and arch shape during the exercise?

Let us know how you do, and send us a video/photo of you doing your exercises! We may share some via Facebook and Instagram!

Royalty Free Music from Bensound

This is another short exercise circuit to work your whole body! Structure the work out for what is right for you, but push yourself and you will feel the benefits.

5 exercises

30 seconds on each

10 second rest between each exercise

Whole circuit completed twice

• Running with high knees

• Lying down, legs up and down

• Front support pocket taps

• Rear support pocket taps

• Arch lifts

If you want to make the circuit harder, you can increase the length of time of each exercise and increase the number of times you do the circuit!

Can you manage:

1 minute each exercise

15 seconds rest

Whole circuit completed 3 times

Let us know how you do, and send us a video/photo of you doing your exercises! We may share some via Facebook and Instagram!

Royalty Free Music from Bensound

This exercise circuit is designed to work on your cardio, get your whole body moving, and get you out of breath!

5 exercises

30 seconds on each

10 second rest between each exercise

Whole circuit completed twice

• Running with high knees

• Squat thrusts

• Jumping jacks

• Front support sprints

• Rebound tuck jumps

If you want to make the circuit harder, you can increase the length of time of each exercise and increase the number of times you do the circuit!

How many of each exercise did you manage?

How long did you do it for?

Can you manage:

1 minute each exercise

15 seconds rest

Whole circuit completed 3 times

If you do, well done!

Let us know how you do, and send us a video/photo of you doing your exercises! We may share some via Facebook and Instagram!

Royalty Free Music from Bensound

Here is another exercise circuit which is designed specifically for younger gymnasts. The exercises are a little bit easier to do, and are perfect for the younger gymnasts to try out with less help required.

5 exercises

30 seconds on each

10 second rest between each exercise

Whole circuit completed twice

• Lying down, bottom up crunchies

• Squat thrusts

• Front support pocket taps

• Sit up, put something between your knees

• Running with high knees

If you want to make the circuit harder, you can increase the length of time of each exercise and increase the number of times you do the circuit!

How many times squat thrusts did you manage?

Did you use a teddy for your sit ups?

Let us know how you do, and send us a video/photo of you doing your exercises! We may share some via Facebook and Instagram!

Royalty Free Music from Bensound