Drills for Skills: Cartwheels & Round offs

Drills for Skills: Cartwheels & Round offs
A round off is one of the most important skills used in gymnastics. It is the first skill before any big
tumbling pass, a dismount on beam, or yurchenko on the vault (round off onto the vault board). It is very
difficult to have a GOOD round off at an early age. Even the highest gymnast in the sport will
consistently work on their round off basics throughout their career. Cartwheels are taught first as a
basic to help with the round off. Below are some good drills to help teach first cartwheel and then round
off.
Cartwheels
1. Right Foot vs. Left Foot
Before starting you must determine which leg you are working on. Young students will not know their right foot from their
left foot. Here are some ideas to help them understand which leg you are using AND will help make their training more fun
and interactive. Make sure the entire class is using the SAME way to determine which leg:

Using a WASHABLE marker draw a happy face on one foot and a frowny face on the other
foot.
 Using a WASHABLE marker draw a stick person on each foot using a different color (which
guy gets to take a turn next?)
 Use two different stamps, one on each foot.
 Wrap one headband around one ankle.
 Have them wear only one sock.
2. One-leg bear stand hops
 Start in a one leg bear stand.
 Jump up to a split handstand.
 Try and hold the handstand as long as you can.
 Land back down in a one leg bear stand.
 The legs should remain straight throughout. It is very common for the legs to bend when
jumping to the handstand.
 Beginners should use a spot to teach proper and correct position. (Spot by holding the hips.
You can rotate your hands forward to create a hollow shape in the handstand).
 Advance should be able to start in the bear stand, jump to a split handstand, hold a few
seconds, and land back in a bear stand with straight legs and good form throughout.
3. Lunge, kick handstand, step down to lunge
 Start in a lunge.
 Kick to a split handstand (keeps legs apart in a split).
 Step back down to lunge (remember to land with the same foot in front).
 Put something on the front leg, like a wrist band, to help remind them this is the foot that
comes down first and is the front foot of the lunge.
 Great video at Intro to Gym, Floor, “Kick Handstand Step Down”
4. Lunge, kick handstand, switch legs, step down to lunge.
 Same as Lunge, kick handstand but you switch leg split while in the handstand. You should
land in the lunge with the other leg in front.
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5. Scale, lower hands down to floor, lift back up to scale
 Start in a scale.
 Lean forward until hands touch the floor.
 Push off the floor with your hands.
 Lift body back up to lunge.
 Work both legs/sides.
 This teaches the last half of a cartwheel.
6. Lunge, kick ¼ turn handstand
 Start in a lunge next to a wall or mat (If doing a right handed turn, then left shoulder is next
to wall and right foot is in front in lunge).
 Just like kicking to a split handstand, place one hand down first (right hand for right leg
lunge, and left hand for left leg lunge), ¼ turn your body and place second hand down.
 You should end in straddle handstand with your stomach against the wall.
 Use a line, hands, or targets to show where hands should go.
 You should practice both sides; however, one side might be better than the other.
7. Straddle handstand, lower down to lunge
 Start in a straddle handstand (stomach against wall).
 Lower down a lunge.
 Lunge should finish with one shoulder next to the wall.
 Practice both sides.
8. Lunge, kick ¼ turn, straddle handstand (stomach facing wall), lower to lunge
 Now put it all together.
 Start in a lunge against the wall.
 Kick handstand, ¼ turn to straddle handstand (stomach should be facing the wall).
 Lower down to lunge.
 Practice both ways.
 Add a beam to make it harder to land on.
9. Lunge, kick ¼ turn straddle handstand (back facing wall), lower to lunge
 Same as #4 but reverse the lunge and handstand.
 Start in a lunge, kick to a ¼ handstand and land with your BACK against the wall.
 Lower down to a lunge.
10. Parallet cartwheel jumps
 Place ONE parallet against the wall/mat.
 Grab each side of the parallet.
 Jump from lunge to lunge holding onto the parallet.
 You should pass through a straddle handstand with your stomach facing the wall.
 Great drill to teach opposite, “crazy”, side cartwheels.
11. Cartwheel tunnel (Create the tunnel by putting the two cheese mats parallel to each other on their
side)
 Start in a lunge, facing the tunnel.
 Kick, cartwheel, step down in the tunnel.
 This will help prevent a “round the side action” during cartwheel.
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Round offs
The round off is a cartwheel that lands with feet together. The feet together action is called a “snap
down”. The stronger the snap down the stronger the round off. Round off is performed only on the good
side…do not teach round off on opposite or “crazy” side. Whatever side goes down first is “your side”.
Example: if I place my left hand down first, I am a lefty. This does not mean I am left handed, but a lefty
round off gymnasts. It is important you know your gymnastics hand.
1. Rebound vs. jumping
 Jumping is bending the legs and pushing off.
 Rebounding is “punching” on the floor with toes.
 Review video of Rebound vs. Jumping in white star positions.
2. Handstand fall to hollow support hold
 Start in a handstand. Coach could spot or against the wall.
 Straight body fall (fall towards stomach) and land in a hollow support hold.
 Make sure the landing is soft enough, the floor might be too hard.
 Place something, bean bag or beanie babies, between arms and ears and try and keep them
there when falling.
3. Snap down to rebound
 Place a folded cheese or panel mat on the platform at the end of the trampoline.
 Bounce to a handstand on the end of the vault board (coach’s spot handstand).
 Snap down to a hollow and rebound up.
 You can also rebound to a flat back on a folded cheese mat, or cheese mat downhill
to backward roll.
 This helps teach the “turnover” need to do round off to back handspring.
 You can also snap down on the floor using a vault board or panel mat. This a good station
for a circuit.
4. Cartwheel legs together landing
 Simply do a cartwheel but land with your feet together.
 Remember to land facing the opposite way you started.
 Place a cone or beanie baby at the feet where they start. When they land they should be
facing that object.
5. Round off on Octagon
 Do a round off and place hands in front of octagon mat (use hand spots to indicate where to
place hands).
 Their stomach will be resting on the mat.
 Roll down the other side to hollow stand.
 Arms should stay up.
6. Panel mat runway, round off over mail box
 Place three or four folded panel mats next to each other long ways, place the mail box mat
sideways at the end on the floor.
 Hurdle, or step hurdle on the panel mats, round off over the mail box mat.
 The hands should be on the panel mats and you should land on the floor.
 The mail box mat helps teach the rounded, or hollow, shape needed in a round off.
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

You can use hand spots to show where the hands should go on the round off.
In addition, you can add a rebound to flat back on rese’ or folded cheese to help teach
turnover of round off, back handspring.
7. Round off over object
 If round off is coming along, try to round off over an object:
 Noodle
 Mailbox
 Foam cubes (how high can you build it without knocking them over?)
 Panel mat on its side
 Small octagon mat (taller/advance students)
The Hurdle
The hurdle is very difficult to teach. The hurdle is the skip before a cartwheel or round off. When you
hurdle you want to have the arms go up by your ears. If you are a righty round off, then you want skip off
your RIGHT foot and bring your LEFT knee up. If you are a lefty round off, then you want to skip off your
LEFT foot and bring your RIGHT knee up. You should land one foot at a time, back foot front foot, moving
through a lunge position before continuing to the cartwheel or round off. Over thinking the hurdle is the
most common mistake when trying to teach this skill.
1. Skipping
 Some children really have a hard time skipping. This is a very basic skill all kids should be
able to do. Even if they struggle with skipping, this does not mean they will not be able to
hurdle.
 Teach the steps of a skip. Stand on the right foot, hop on the right foot, step forward and
hop on the left foot, repeat and speed it up.
 Try the gallop technique
 Gallop on the right, then switch to the left, then try and alternate (watch video of
skipping under Intro to Gym, Vault).
 Skipping variations
 After mastering the skip, try and skip with your arms up or backwards.
2. What is a Hurdle?
 Teach the meaning of a hurdle
 The hurdle is the skip, or jump, you do after you run and before the cartwheel or
round off.
 A common mistake you will see are kids running right into a cartwheel or round off.
 If you are a righty round off, you want your left knee up. If you are a lefty round off you
want your right knee up.
 Teach arms should go up to your ears on the hurdle.
 Land one leg at a time (back leg then front leg) stepping into a lunge position.
3. Run, hurdle, lunge stop
 Run a few steps, hurdle (or skip), and land in a lunge.
 Review video under Green star, floor.
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