Gymnastics Background:
Let me just start by saying I can't even touch my toes or straighten my legs. The last time I did gymnastics was probably when my mom forced me to do it in when I was four. After about a year of gymnastics my parents realized that I couldn't even walk across the balance beam without falling off so my dad took me out of gymnastics and started coaching my soccer team. Since then, I have had many friends and teammates laugh at my failed cartwheel attempts. Today I will be attempting to improve my cartwheel form and learn the correct way to do one with the help of a gymnastics instructor.
My Prediction:
I think my form will get a little better but the fact that I can't really straighten my legs may keep me from ever achieving "perfect form."
The Process:
Sophie Becker, a gymnastics instructor for young kids, attempted to teach me how to do a cartwheel. First, I showed her how I would normally do a cartwheel (watch the video above.) Based off of what I could do (not much), she then gave me some pointers on what I was doing wrong and how I could improve my form. I didn't get too much time with her because the bell rang soon after she gave me these pointers, leaving me no time to try them out. Eventually, the weekend came around and with Sophie's pointers in mind, I tried again, and again, and again to get that perfect cartwheel down. I didn't have much luck and never really got it down
The Turn Out:
In the end, my cartwheel seldom improved. The main problem was that my legs were really bent and I just couldn't figure out how to straighten them and still stay balanced and follow through with the cartwheel motion. I think if I had had more time to practice with Sophie and get more pointers, I maybe could have improved a little bit more. Unfortunately, I don't have a video of the final product but you're not really missing much because it looks the exact same as the original. My prediction was partially correct because I did not achieve perfect form but at the same time, I don't believe my form improved at all.
What I Learned:
While this attempt was fun, I don't think I'll continue to do gymnastics in my free time. Unfortunately, I think I'm going to have to accept the failure on this one and admit that my cartwheel is far from perfect and will be very hard to improve. Maybe in another blog, I'll try to learn something a little easier, like a handstand. See you all next week!
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