How to do a Back Handspring

Series Summary

The sport of gymnastics involves a sequence of movements and exercises that require strength and flexibility. Typical gymnastic moves include handsprings, handstands, forward rolls, tucks, somersaults, vaults, and other acrobatic maneuvers. Competitive gymnastics, like those in the Olympics, take a lot of dedication and practice. There are many types of gymnastics including artistic, rhythmic, sports aerobics, sports acrobatics, trampoline, and power tumbling. These are all regulated by the Federation Internationale de Gymnastique. The two most popular types of gymnastics are artistic and rhythmic gymnastics; these are the types seen in the Summer Olympic Games.

One common gymnastics maneuver is a back handspring, which is noted as being a "blind entry" move. A back handspring involves jumping backwards, placing one's hands on the ground, and propelling the feet back over the body to return to a standing position. In this free video series, our gymnastics expert will give you step-by-step instructions on how to do a back handspring. You will learn what exercises to do to prepare you for a back handspring, what techniques to use, and how to perform a back handspring on a variety of surfaces. From handstands to forward rolls, these video instructions have it all!

Video Transcript

"Hi! I'm Mandy Butler on behalf of Expert Village. I'm going to be taking you through some back handspring drills and techniques to help you on your way to mastering the back handspring. I'm going to take you through proper standing back handspring technique on the floor. Right now, I'm going to strip a spring floor. I like to start out especially on spring floor because it's just a little bit easier on your body, your joints, and all of your muscles. Eventually, you should be able to graduate up to the point where you can do it on any flat surface, but you should be really, really confident and have the skill absolutely before moving onto harder surfaces. I'm going to turn to the side and I'm going to sit in a position where my knees are bent slightly and I'm leaning backward. It's very important in my back handspring that I push off my toes last rather than first. If I push them off them first, I'm going to throw my hips forward and I'm going to really under cut my back handspring. You want your back handspring to be as long as you can make it. Ideally, a body length. You're going to put your arms to the side and swing backwards. I don't want to start my athletes up here. What happens is when they swing, they drop their chest and they under cut and sometimes they don't get over. I'm going to put my chest up. I'm not going to lean forward and I'm going to do a standing back handspring on the floor. "