Falling on a ability in gymnastics could be a traumatic occasion. And it is one that may make your gymnast scared of doing that ability once more for a very long time afterwards.

It is extremely irritating watching your gymnast must face worry again and again. However it’s particularly tough when she will get caught on a ability she was capable of do exactly high-quality earlier than her fall.

Whereas there is no such thing as a straight ahead reply to this query, the secret’s much like overcoming a psychological block. And on the cornerstone is endurance, endurance, and extra endurance!

First, it is vital that your gymnast approaches the ability once more with an angle of getting compassion for herself. She fell doing this ability and it’s scary for her mind to consider doing the ability once more. She should be pleased with relearning the ability from the start, working again up from the very fundamentals.

Second, she has to recollect that it’s going to take time for her to get her ability again. All gymnasts’ brains work in a different way and relying on how traumatic the autumn was, it may take some time for her mind to belief her physique once more. 

I additionally wish to point out that whereas worry might occur to your gymnast after having a fall, it may also occur to her if she’s witnessed a teammate fall or heard about the potential of falling. I see this quite a bit in my little ones who’re engaged on that soar from low to excessive bar. Typically the considered grabbing the excessive bar is frightening due to the potential to peel off and harm themselves on the best way down. If this describes your gymnast, she will nonetheless use the methods beneath, even when she’s by no means really fallen on her ability.

Under are some key methods to assist your gymnast recover from her worry and do her ability once more after she’s had a fall.

1. Your gymnast has to tame her monkey thoughts mind and provides it one thing useful to deal with

Think about your gymnast’s thoughts is sort of a curious little monkey who runs round stealing sun shades off vacationer’s faces. Her thoughts is continually on the lookout for the subsequent thrilling factor and can observe the trail of negativity, since that is what’s swirling round essentially the most in her mind. Ideas of “What if I fall once more,” “What if I am unable to do it,” “What if I balk within the center,” or “What if I get harm” are all issues that could be going by means of your gymnast’s monkey thoughts after a fall. 

Among the finest methods to tame the monkey thoughts is to provide it key phrases. Key phrases are phrases your gymnast can say to herself as earlier than, throughout, and on the finish of her ability. They hold her thoughts centered on what it has to do as a substitute of permitting it to float off into adverse land.

Key phrases could be completely different for every gymnast and may embody issues like naming the ability she’s doing, saying technical reminders, repeating motivational phrases, and even singing the alphabet! Counting can be a useful technique to hold her thoughts centered.

To ensure that this to work successfully, your gymnast should resolve on key phrases and use them on a regular basis, together with throughout drills, stroll throughs, progressions, and routines.

2. Your gymnast has to create new neural pathways in her mind

Worry in some methods is a behavior. She had a fall and her mind instantly felt worry. If she could not make herself do the ability once more proper afterwards, likelihood is she bought into the behavior of not doing her ability anymore.

Typically that is why coaches will make gymnasts get proper again up and do their ability instantly after they fall. The thought course of is that if they make the ability not so scary to the gymnast’s mind, she is going to be capable to go for it once more.

Sadly, as a result of your gymnast’s mind goes into fight-flight-or-freeze mode instantly after her fall, it may be difficult to interrupt this sense. Her mind’s safety mechanism is a powerful one and its objective is to maintain your gymnast secure. 

One method to create new neural pathways is to your gymnast to stroll by means of or mark her ability in her thoughts. By imagining herself doing her ability once more, this prompts the identical neural pathways as if she was really doing her ability in actual life.

To do a stroll by means of your gymnast can shut her eyes and picture herself doing her ability but in addition use some physique gestures to make it really feel extra actual. As an instance it is her tumbling move she fell on which was a spherical off again handspring again tuck. So she may really do a hurdle, then flip as if she had carried out a spherical off, then arms up as if she’s going for a again handspring, then chest down as she popping out of the again handspring, then arms as much as block for her tuck, one knee as much as her chest, then chest down as she’s coming round in her tuck, after which arms and chest as much as end.

The extra practical she will make this really feel, the higher. Along with simply marking by means of her expertise, she ought to incorporate these key phrases whereas doing this as properly. By doing this time and again, she is creating new neural pathways of going for her ability as a substitute of reinforcing the outdated neural pathways of not doing her ability. 

 3. Your gymnast has to interrupt her ability down into the fundamentals

When your gymnast has fallen on a ability and is now afraid to do it, she typically has to begin from the start as if she’s studying the ability once more. Whereas this may be irritating and time consuming, it is one of the best ways to reassure her mind that she is secure.

A technique to do that is to create a Confidence Ladder. Her and her coach can give you a plan to begin with the essential progressions after which transfer up slowly after she’s put in sufficient repetitions for her to really feel completely secure on every rung of the ladder. 

The important thing to utilizing a Confidence Ladder is that every rung not be an excessive amount of of a soar up from one development to the subsequent. It is also vital that she stays on a decrease rung of the ladder for so long as she must. In case your gymnast strikes as much as a tougher rung however then balks or is afraid, it means she’s not prepared and has to maneuver again all the way down to a decrease rung.

By doing this slowly, your gymnast’s mind can study to belief her physique once more which can enable it to let her physique go for her turns extra constantly.

4. Your gymnast wants a coach who’s supportive and on board with serving to her re-learn her ability

This final one is vital as a result of with out a supportive coach, your gymnast will battle with this for for much longer than she must. With an impatient coach, your gymnast will change into annoyed extra simply. Her confidence will plummet. She might really feel “caught.” And finally she may really feel undeserving since coaches are inclined to pay much less consideration to gymnasts who cease doing expertise they may already do (that is a generalization – there are some fantastic coaches on the market, however many coaches put their time and a focus into gymnasts who’re performing properly)!

Typically getting a coach on board requires a gathering with the coach the place you talk about a plan for getting by means of your gymnast’s worry. For those who set this up and discover your coach is just not focused on making a plan to your gymnast or brushes you off by saying that your gymnast simply has to do her ability, then these are key indicators your gymnast’s coach is just not going to be useful on this course of.

You might need to arrange a non-public lesson along with your gymnast’s favourite coach, who may not be her common coach. Normally there may be one coach within the fitness center who’s extra affected person or keen to work with gymnasts who’re struggling. If in case you have a coach like this, work with this coach as a lot as doable!

Whereas it is drastic, generally you may even want to modify gyms to get your gymnast the assistance she wants. Typically the tradition in your gymnast’s present fitness center could be very old-school or punitive-based. This will perpetuate your gymnast’s worry about doing her ability. 

In the end the objective is to get your gymnast again to doing her ability once more after she’s had a fall. Whereas there is no such thing as a fast method to get your gymnast over her worry, there are some methods that if carried out constantly will work over time. Your gymnast should settle for that it takes endurance and compassion for herself to get again her ability.

By giving her thoughts one thing particular to deal with whereas doing her ability, that may assist her tame her monkey thoughts and stop it from drifting in the direction of adverse ideas. She should additionally create new neural pathways in her mind that reinforce her doing her ability. This comes by means of stroll throughs which might be as plausible as doable carried out over and again and again. Your gymnast should even be keen to interrupt down her ability into the fundamentals and relearn it as if it’s a new ability. Lastly, discovering the assist she must get by means of this course of is vital in serving to your gymnast recover from her worry.

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For those who or your gymnast wants assist, along with the assets beneath I additionally provide one-on-one teaching classes through Zoom.

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