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Hi, my name is Dani Zissis for About.com, and this video is all about how to do a backbend
kick-over. A backbend kickover is a useful skill, and
a great way to train to do a back walkover or back handspring. Warm up and stretch your
muscles before beginning. Roll your joints, stretch your inner forearms, and your shoulders.
The first step is pushing up into a bridge, which also happens to be a great stretch to
do before the skill. When doing a backbend kick-over, you want
to start like you're going into the bridge position. So you should lay flat on your back,
bend your knees up, and bend your arms up and put your hands flat against your ears.
You're then going to push up through your legs and your arms, and make sure you are
in a strong bridge position with your shoulders open and slightly behind your ears.
Then, you're going to take the leg that you prefer and point it out and bend the other
leg under. Then, you are going to use your momentum and kick the straight leg over the
top by using your leg muscles, and then you are going to contract your abs to lift your
legs and complete the skill. To stretch your shoulders in the bridge position,
you can do this rocking back and forth by bending your knees, and pushing your shoulders
over the tops of your hands, so that you can feel stretching through your shoulders and
all through the muscles through there. If you have a trainer or a coach available, they
can pull on the back of the shoulder blades, and pull the shoulders over the hands. That
is also an effective way to stretch the shoulders. If you can go into a backbend from a standing
position, that is the next progression. To practice lowering yourself into a bridge from
a standing position, stand a few feet away from a wall, standing away from it, and carefully
walk your hands down the wall until they reach the floor.
Remember while working this skill, to keep your belly button pushed towards the sky,
and to keep your core tight to prevent hurting your back. Stand straight reaching your arms
up. Lean back, bending from the waist and arching. Find the mat by looking through your
eyebrows rather than tilting your head back. Place your hands firmly on the mat, shoulder
width apart, with fingers spread apart and keep your shoulders over your hands. Lift
one leg and push with the other. Keep them in a split position for the entire move, and
use your hips to pull your legs over. Thanks for watching. To learn more, visit
us on the web at About.com.