Gymnastics/Tumbling

Although it might seem like a simple movement, the forward shoulder roll—commonly known as the forward safety roll—can mean the difference between a broken bone and just a few bruises, gymnastics guru Jeff Tucker says at this CrossFit Advanced Gymnastics Trainer Course.

“I know this seems really, really, almost condescending of a movement,” he explains. “But in daily life, when you see people fall, what do they do? Their first… Continue Reading

There are three rotations in a cartwheel, instructor Sean Lind says at this CrossFit Gymnastics Advanced Trainer Course. There’s also a handstand component and a hamstring component.

“We need to master all of them,” he says.

The class begins learning the movement by simply placing their hands on a stack of mats and swinging their legs around the end of the mats.

“When I land I want to stabilize my position,” Lind… Continue Reading

There are many ways to teach the kipping-pull-up progression, and they’re all designed to help athletes understand the gymnastics movement. For Level 1 Seminar Staff member Cherie Chan, the teaching progression starts with the “dead bug.”

“We’re gonna go in what’s called kind of a dead bug,” Chan says to an athlete struggling with the movement. “So your feet are going to go to the sky and point your toes.”

The athlete… Continue Reading

The home of CrossFit Kids offers a new gymnastics program to increase youth strength, agility and more. E.M. Burton reports.

CrossFit Kids at Brand X is beginning a new gymnastics program to augment and support its regularly scheduled classes for kids and teens.

A recent open-house event held in the first week of October, “Grand Opening Play Day,” introduced both CrossFitting members and the larger population to the new program, which was set to start… Continue Reading

At this CrossFit Gymnastics Advanced Trainer Course, instructor Sean Lind shows how to establish support on the rings before pressing to a shoulder stand. The position is the foundation for performing a handstand push-up on the rings.

“In gymnastics, this is a very basic movement. But for our CrossFitters, this is going to be an advanced movement,” he explains.

Lind demonstrates by beginning in an L-sit. He moves his… Continue Reading

Gymnast and CrossFit coach Laurie Galassi of CrossFit Santa Cruz breaks down a movement that causes a lot of jitters and requires a safety-first approach: the back tuck.

Galassi notes that while being able to power-clean your body weight might indicate some of the physical attributes needed for a back tuck, a clean provides little of the “air sense” needed to perform the gymnastics skill. Progressions are the key to safe learning.

“The… Continue Reading

It seems Dan Bailey and Rich Froning might be reluctant to do a workout, perhaps for the first time ever.

“Rich is trying to quit the workout,” Games Director Dave Castro says with a laugh while standing outside during the CrossFit Tour event in Big Sky, Mont.

So he yells up to Froning’s hotel room.

“Rich, come down,” says Castro, still laughing. “Don’t be afraid.”

Froning’s response: “You can’t make us.”

The challenge—pulled from a hat—is 8 back… Continue Reading

One of CrossFit’s most-loathed movements, the burpee also represents a skill that can be transferred to other exercises, says gymnastics and movement guru Carl Paoli of San Francisco CrossFit.

“I go from flexion to extension to neutral to extension to flexion to neutral,” he explains. “It’s hard. And it goes back and forth, and it has so many moving pieces. That’s why the burpee is so hard.”

Athletes must move correctly with the knees out… Continue Reading