A kip is generally performed during the beginning or middle of a routine. The gymnast should start from a short run or from standing. They should bounce strongly on the springboard and jump between the rails high and forward. Once they grab the rails, they should swing so that their body reaches the horizontal position. This helps the gymnast accelerate to execute a glide swing in the front. The gymnast should fully extend their shoulders and keep their body in a slightly hollow position. Alternatively, they could pike their body enough to avoid touching the ground. At the end of the glide swing in the front, the gymnast should first pike with their hips, then their shoulders. During the suspension, their body should be fully compressed in a piked basket position. Ideally, the kip should be performed in a jam modification. This is to say that the skill should finish in a piked manna position on the rails. This helps the gymnast execute a strong and powerful back swing immediately after. The lesser modification is more similar to a kip on high bar. In the piked swing backward, the gymnast brings their body over the rails and at the same time they should open their hips. The skill should finish in a dynamic rear support. There are two main points that the gymnast should emphasize on. The glide swing should be strong and powerful. During the bottom of the piked back swing, the gymnast should start to push the rails backward.
In order to do the kip, the athlete should be physically prepared. The gymnast could perform leg lifts on swedish wall or regular bar to improve their strength. They should emphasize keeping their arms and legs tight, and their shoulders extended. The athlete should lift their legs and touch the rail with their feet. Next, they should lower their legs down to the bottom with control. This should be repeated several times. The repetitions should gradually increase with each practice.
This drill is a modification of a standard leg lift. In this case, the gymnast should hold their feet for 10 seconds at the highest point of the lift. After holding, they should continue to raise their legs and touch the rail.
This drill can most easily be done on a set of parallel bars. One bar should be raised, with the other lowered. The difference in the height of the rails should be enough so that the gymnast can finish the drill in support with their feet on the lower rail. The drill starts in the hanging position. The gymnast’s feet should be on the lower rail with their shoulders fully extended. Next, the athlete should swing backward and push on the rail until they reach support. The gymnast should lower with straight arms and return to the starting position. This drill should be repeated according to the coach’s requirements. During the entire move, the arms and legs should stay straight.
Hook an elastic band on a swedish wall / stall bar rail. The band should be roughly at the height of the gymnast’s hips / chest. The gymnast should face the wall and hold both ends of the elastic in their hands. Next, they should execute a strong backward motion, pulling the elastic behind their body. The ending position of the move is at the highest point of their arms behind the body. The gymnast should return to the starting position with control. For the entire duration of this exercise, the arms should remain straight. They should also be at the approximate width of the parallel bars. It’s essential that the body remains completely extended and doesn’t move during the drill. Only the arms should move. This drill should be repeated several times.
This drill should be done on a swedish wall / stall bar. The gymnast should jump onto the rail in a support position. Their arms should be tight with their body in a hollow position. Their pointed toes should touch the lower rail. The scope of this drill is to make sure the gymnast is pushing the rail to their hips in order to remain on the bar. This drill is static, the gymnast should hold the position for several seconds.
The gymnast should execute piked basket swings. In the front swing they should open their body in a piked hollow position. In the backswing they should pass through the bottom in a tight pike, then open their hips and push back on the rails. Next follows the front swing with an identical tight pike. At the bottom, the gymnast should open their hips until the end of the front swing. Repeat several of these swings in a row.
V-sit could be done on the floor, or on parallettes / parallel bars. The athlete should start the skill in L-sit support and raise their legs into vertical. The gymnast should compress their body into a tight piked position. Holding the skill is necessary.
From a V-sit on the floor, the gymnast should open their hips and execute a strong whip with their legs. The skill should finish in an extended rear support position.
Assisting the gymnast can help them feel the skill in its entirety. At the same time, the coach can fix errors which may be occuring during its execution.
Integral part of gymnastics coaching process are skill drills. They help gymnasts to learn easier and technically correct. With GYM DRILL PRO you will find variety of ideas for the most the basic gymnastics skills. There are plenty of images with skill drill progressions. It is intended to support explicitly the qualified coaches in their daily coaching business. DO NOT practice without the guidance of proper professionals.