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Twisting Arm Wrap Technique
To: <AskTheCoach@GymnasticsZone.com>
Subject: Twisting
Dear Coach,
Hi. I can full twist in a somersault, but just! Is there
anywhere I should put my arms to get a better twist???
Thank you!!!
Arm Wrap Twisting Technique
There are two major biomechanical factors related to the arm twisting
technique used in initiating and increasing the speed and efficiency of
twisting somersaults. The human body is bound by the laws of physics and
even relatively simple seeming movements can actually be quite complex
and involve multiple factors. Twisting while somersaulting involves a complex
series of movements relating to these two laws of physics.
Lift
The arms, especially for girls are instrumental in setting (lifting
into) the layout. Without sufficient lift, there may not be enough airtime
to complete the twisting action. So the first initial movement of the arms
is to fully lift and extend the arms up by the ears and lift into the layout.
Drop One Arm
The first physics factor in the twisting arm wrap technique is
angular momentum which when referring to arm twisting technique indicates
that one side of the body is shortened to initiate twist in that direction.
This is most commonly done by dropping one arm lower and/or sooner than
the other arm. Angular momentum can also be created by arching to one side
which will also decrease the radius of the body on that side and initiate
twisting in that direction (although since we will be looking for a tight
body twisting position, we will not want to overdo this at all).
Drop Left Arm, Twist to the Left
Thus the arm action, so far, will be to lift to the ears and then
drop one arm, then the other to straight out sideways from the shoulders.
Twisting will be initiated in the direction of the first arm to drop (left
arm drops first or farther and the twist will be initiated left) with that
shoulder going back first – a left shoulder back twist.
Decreasing Radius, Increase Speed of the Twist
At this point the other law of physics is ready to come into play.
Decreasing the radius increases the speed of the twist. Imagine a skater
pulling into their spin – their arms pull from wide to close into the body
and you can literally see the speed of the turn increase. You can also
test with a step turn or jump turn on the trampoline. Start your turn with
your arms straight out to the side from your shoulder and then pull them
in quickly while turning. You will feel the speed of the turn increase
greatly.
Snap and Hug
So far in the arm twisting action, we have reached the point where
our arms are now straight out to the side. We want to pull them into our
body symmetrically and end up with the hands together in the middle of
the chest and the elbows in tight to our body in a kind of "hug yourself"
position. The more you "snap’ into this position, the faster the speed
of the twist will be accelerated. Since the arms are coming from the widest
possible radius (straight out to the side) the twisting acceleration is
also maximized.
Snap the Head Also
This snap should be exactly coordinated with the head moving in
the direction of the twist by basically looking to the left (so far we
have been consistently describing a left twist. The direction for all the
movements is just reversed for a right twist).
Open Arms and Stop Twist
To stop the twist at the desired amount of twist the arms will
again be opened (widened) which will decrease the speed and stop the twist.
We recommend opening to a gymnast "stick" position with the arms up and
out diagonally from the shoulders.
Lift and Snap
In an overall sense, this arm movement will somewhat of a circling
movement of up, out and in. In another sense the arm movements are more
of a lift, release and circle, snap action. We find in coaching that we
need to direct the gymnasts to concentrate on either the lift or the snap
in order to get better height on the layout or more twisting.
Learn It Right on One Twist and You 'll Learn Two and Three
Twists Faster
Now the twisting arm action we have described will create enough
twist to do a triple or even a quad twist. For a simple full twist, you
will be waiting to start the twist and opening out of the twist very quickly.
But you will definitely want to be developing the correct arm twisting
action on a full so you can refine it to do double twists and more.
Good luck and if there is anything else we can help you with, please
let us know.
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