For easy reference, here's Amy's rings drill ... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gn5LIiHmPlY
joebro391 wrote:KirkB wrote: You're starting to feel the rhythm of these (like Amy). Remember that the IMPORTANT part of this drill isn't the upswing or the extension. It's the DOWNSWING! That's where you need to quicken it up. Do that, and you can just coast thru the upswing.
On your backswing, you're letting your trail leg knee bend too much. That will never happen in a real vault, so don't do it here. Instead, keep it straight, and hyperextend your entire trail leg as much as you can. Remember - I'm an EXPERT in doing this drill (rings and highbar), so trust me on how to do it.
... after i posted this originally, i went back on youtube and watched Amy do this drill and noticed something, i consider HUGE!! ... i think i just saw something else. It's on the upswing, but i would like you to take it into consideration. NOW, look at my feet, once i start to invert, BEFORE I begin to extend. NOW, look at Amy, in the same spot. do you notice how she's more in a 'V'-ish position, and i'm in more on an 'L'-ish position?? now, i know we hate the 'V' position, but considering her hip-placement, isn't that a good thing??
First, remember that the IMPORTANT part of this drill is on the DOWNswing. However, I'm not going to leave your question hanging - I'll answer it ...
Yes, Amy is in more of a V compared to you. Yes, in this drill, a V is better than an L. Neither one of you does the drill exactly right. I'd rather see you look more like Amy.
There's a lot said in the last paragraph, and I'm not going to take the time to explain it all, but very briefly ...
Amy is tucking her trail leg in - too much, too early. She's CHEATING! For a full, optimal Whip, you need to keep your trail leg straight thru the entire Whip. THEN you can bend at the hip (but hopefully don't tuck).
My guess as to why Amy is cheating is that she's trying to extend all the way up to "loss of gravity". This may be a "Bubka", but it's not what I recommend to learn how to DOWNswing quickly and powerfully. Instead, keep your trail leg long thru the Whip, THEN hinge at the hips. THEN roll into a ball (of sorts), or do whatever feels natural to complete the rep (it's unimportant).
Your L isn't desirable in this drill, even tho it's desirable on the pole. The difference is simply in the mechanics of the 2. On the pole, you have the CONSTANT pressure of the pole, to which you're swinging around. There's no "loss of gravitational pull" so to speak, because of this constant pressure. But on rings, you're dealing only with true gravity, so the forces are different. Don't worry about this in any more detail - just accept them as being different. After all, the UPswing in this drill isn't that important. It's just a way to pop out of the powerful DOWNswing.
I don't think you're going to get into any bad habits by having a so-called "bad upswing". Just don't consider that part of the drill very important, and it won't get imprinted. You should be just "coasting" into this upswing - no more. (Amy doesn't coast, and neither do you.)
joebro391 wrote: My coach always tells me that i shoot too "straight-up" and my that my feet don't 'pass parallel' which causes me to shoot out sometimes (in addition to my hip problem). please compare that between me and Amy and let me know what you think.
I think I just answered that question too. Don't consider the upswing part of this drill as a "technique" drill.
joebro391 wrote: I feel the reason why i don't "come back" (bring my feet all the way to my hands) is just out of fear because i feel i might fly too far backwards, and because i don't know how it'll feel. let me know what your take on this is. I just noticed it now, and think it's a major thing.
On the rings, why would you worry if you fly too far backwards? That's not a bad trick, if you're capable! You either hang on, or you fall onto soft pads. Either way, no problem! Don't worry - it will actually never happen, unless by intent.
On the pole, you'll NEVER fly too far backwards. If nothing else, self-preservation will save you. Instead of just saying "don't worry about this", I will just say that the more you practice in the gym - in an upside down position - the better body-awareness you'll have on the pole, and your natural instincts - learned in the gym - will guide you correctly.
joebro391 wrote: ... (rope takeoff drill) ...KirkB wrote: It still looks like you're hunching your shoulders. This is a bad habit that could transfer to your pole drills. Push/squeeze.
okay, at which point am i hunched over?? that's what i'm confused about. do you mean, once i'm inverted???
Not hunched OVER, just "hunched". Meaning that you're "shrugging" your shoulders. That's the word that I should have used.
joebro391 wrote:If you feel that you don't have the strength to do the rope swing with a fully extended top arm, then work up to it slowly, with perhaps less steps, or perhaps other drills that give you absolute confidence that you can push/squeeze with a fully extended top arm without letting go.
and are you referring to the slight flexing in my arm, when i first grab on to the rope?? i think that that's a simple thing and i just have to think about really 'reaching'. but if you're refering to something different, let me know
The "slight flexing" is EXACTLY what I'm referring to by "hunching" or "shrugging". Except I see it as more than just "slight". It's too much.
joebro391 wrote:KirkB wrote: I'm really, really disappointed that you didn't do any Hinge/Whip drills. Those are the most important drills of all! Remember that the vault is built part by part...Trust me on this...
Kirk, i trust you more than you know haha. Um, i went back and read your post about your hinge/whip drill, and then when i was in the gym, i tried it, and something just didn't fit. I think it was the 'curling into a ball' part. idk, do you think you could give me a deeper explanation of the drill?? I really want to try them, especially considering how much you back them, but i want to make sure that i'm doing them correctly
No, I'm not going to explain it again. Mostly because I'd just repeat myself. And I want you to try - and DISCOVER - how to do them. Please, just TRY, and I'll tell you where you're going wrong. The only problem with this coaching method is that it takes a week between good interations, instead of just minutes. But I think it's the best we can do.
The only hint I'll give you right now is to try to keep from swinging AT ALL. The RINGS don't swing - your CoG is always in line with the rings. But since the highbar is solid to the floor, your body ends up being what swings. Fight against this. Keep your CoG under the highbar at all times - to kill your swing on each rep.
Remember that this is a very difficult drill to master. I'm not expecting you to do it as well as I did it, but I want you to try your best. I'll tell you what ... to keep it simpler, ask your coach - or buddy - to press on the small of your back between every rep, to dampen the swing that you'll inevitably experience. That will make it much easier for you. When you film this, be sure your buddy doesn't block the camera angle.
As always, good luck in improving on these technique drills! In a couple months, you'll look back at these vids and these notes, and you'll realize how much improvement you've made. Your technique in these drills WILL improve, and WILL carry over to your PV technique. I guarantee this!
Kirk
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and not leaping well at take-off). They weren't horrible but it was at this time that i went to the sand-pit (discussed above) I finished early due to too-soft of a pole so i head back to the runway to due some more Pole-Runs. I really only anticipated doing some 3's. And i remembered something someone told me "attack the box; hit it hard and fast". Basically, i took long, slow strides (mostly for short runs) and i compromised other factors (lower CoG, Less Speed, Lack of Leaping Ability).