Content

• Part 2 of 4: How to Master the Jerk
• Part 3 of 4: Best Way to Group
• Part 4 of 4: How to Land Properly
• Tips
• Warnings

1 Start with prep workouts. It is almost impossible to make a back somersault without preliminary preparation. To begin with, you need to master certain exercises that will help prepare the body for performing somersaults.

• Try jumping in place as fast and high as possible. This will give you a feel for what it takes to do the back flip. You need to jump vertically, not back, and at the same time keep your head straight.
• Start with the usual somersaults.Do some exercise to help you get used to moving backwards. Try somersaulting on the bed, on the floor, or standing on the bridge.
• Try to flip back with helpers. To begin with, have them stand on your left and right side of you. Each of them should place one hand on your lower back and the other under your thigh, and then lift you up so that your feet are off the ground. When the assistants tilt you back, extend your arms over your head so that they touch the ground. Then they should swing your legs over your head. This will help you get used to moving backwards and upside down.
• After learning how to do a back flip with helpers, try using your legs. First, during the coup, push off a little with your feet. Once you feel more confident, try pushing off with your feet, but remove your hands (helpers should still support you during the coup).

2 You need to prepare your body and mind. The inverted position is perceived by the body and the brain as something unnatural, so fear can be a reaction to an attempt to do a somersault. You may flinch or try to stop halfway and be injured as a result. Therefore, in order for you to succeed in doing a back flip, it is very important to prepare both body and mind in advance.

• Try hanging with your legs bent. Hanging from the bar, bend your chin down slightly, bend your knees and pull them towards your head. Then group up and try to lean back as far as possible.
• Jump onto the box. Try jumping on a flat hill. At the same time, try to jump as high as possible, and not further.
• You can also jump backwards onto the mats. To do this, lay a thick mat, and several thin ones on it. This will help you overcome your fear of falling on your back while doing somersaults. You will find that it really doesn't hurt that much.

3 Do somersaults on a suitable surface. When learning to do back flips, choose a surface suitable for jumping. For the jump to work, the surface must be cushioned, or at least soft.

• A trampoline is great as long as you can control the force of the push. Alternatively, you can drop by a professional gym or school gym to use gym mats.
• In no case should you learn to do somersaults on concrete, asphalt and other hard, unsafe surfaces.

4 Find an assistant. Until you have gained enough experience, do not even try to do a back somersault without assistance. An assistant is needed for safety net during the flips, so that you maintain the correct body position and do not accidentally injure yourself.

• It is best if the assistant is a knowledgeable person who can appreciate the technique of performing somersaults. This could be an artistic gymnastics coach, a gym instructor, or someone who has already learned how to do back flips.
• In order to successfully land after a flip, it will be better if several people are supporting you at once.

Part 2 of 4: How to Master the Jerk

1. 1 Get into the correct stance. Stand up straight with your feet shoulder-width apart and your arms raised above your head.
2. 2 Focus your gaze. Keep your head straight and look forward. Select an object and focus on it.
   • Don't look at the floor! Also, don't look around. Otherwise, you will be distracted and lose your balance.
3. 3 Bend your knees. Bend your knees slightly, as if you are going to squat (but not too much).
   • Don't bend your legs too much. If you have already squatted, then your knees are bent too much.
4. 4 Swing your arms. Bring your arms over your head and lower to your hips. Then swing again towards the ceiling. You need to wave your hands until they are approximately at ear level. The hand flapping will provide the momentum needed to lift the body off the ground.
   • At the same time, bend your knees and swing your arms.
   • Keep your arms straight at all times - don't twist them.
5. 5 Jump up. Many people think that when doing back flips, you need to jump back, but in fact you need to jump up as much as possible.
   • If you jump back instead of up, you will lose your center of gravity. Because of this, you will not be able to jump high. And in order to successfully perform a back flip, you need to jump high!
   • If you cannot make a strong enough jump, then practice jumping on special surfaces, for example, on a trampoline, a jumping hole or a springboard.

Part 3 of 4: Best Way to Group

1. 1 Tighten your muscles as much as possible. Lift off the ground and contract your leg and abdominal muscles. These muscles should form a rigid line.
2. 2 Flip with your hips. During a back somersault, it is the hips, not the shoulders, that allow the flip.
3. 3 Look in front of you. Try to look in front of you as long as possible, because if you look back ahead of time, the tilt of the body will change and the speed of rotation will slow down, which will affect the height of the somersault.
   • Naturally, when the body begins to roll over, you will lose sight of the point on which you focused your gaze. Just try not to do this ahead of time and, if possible, try to find her in the final stage of the somersault - this way you will know that you are ready to land.
   • Resist the temptation to close your eyes while doing somersaults. Keep them open so you don't lose the spatial orientation you need for a successful landing. You need to watch what the people around you are doing so that you do not accidentally hurt them.
4. 4 Bend your legs under you. Being at the highest point of the jump, pull your knees to your chest and lower your arms to your feet.
   • You should fully pull your knees up to your chest while your chest is parallel to the ceiling.
   • With your legs bent, you can wrap your arms around either your hamstrings (located on the back of your thighs) or your knees.
   • If you are grouped, but you are tilted to the side, then this is most likely a reflex reaction of the body to fear. In order to be able to do a somersault, you must first overcome this fear. The exercises above will help you with this.

Part 4 of 4: How to Land Properly

1. 1 Ungroup. As you approach the ground, straighten with your lower back and legs extended.
2. 2 Land with bent knees. This will soften the shock on landing. If you land on straightened legs, you are more likely to get injured.
   • When landing, you need to almost stand. If you are squatting, just keep exercising - over time, you will start to get it right!
   • It will be best if you manage to land in about the same place from which you kicked off the ground. Most likely, you will land within a radius of 30-60 centimeters from this place.
   • To do this, try to look at a certain point on the ground in front of you at the moment of landing.
3. 3 Land on your full foot. You need to land not on the tips of your toes, but on your entire foot. If you land on your toes, you need to practice harder to get a stronger jump.
4. 4 Extend your arms. When landing, the arms should be extended forward parallel to the ground.

Tips

• Before attempting a back flip on a hard surface, practice the technique on something soft, such as a trampoline.
• Mastering the back flip, like other gymnastic exercises, helps you become more flexible, learn to better control your body and navigate in space.
• A back flip can be performed while remaining fully erect. But this is already "aerobatics". You shouldn't even try to do this until you have perfected the classic version of the tuck somersault.
• Try doing a back flip from the springboard to get used to the way your body flips upside down and rolls over.
• To avoid injury, be sure to do stretching exercises before doing back flips.
• In addition, there should ALWAYS be an experienced instructor nearby who will insure you. AND ALSO you need an assistant.

Warnings

• Make sure the area where you are going to do the back flip is not slippery or in the way.
• Never do a back flip when no one is around. If you injure your neck or back, you need someone to be able to help you.
• When doing a back somersault from the springboard, step back a sufficient distance from the edge so as not to hit your head on the board. Also check the depth of the pool to avoid hitting your head on the bottom. If the pool is not deep, you cannot do a back somersault.
• You don't have to be a master of sports in gymnastics to do a back flip. However, before you start mastering this advanced technique, you need to learn the simple elements of acrobatics (flip sideways or wheel and roll back). If you try to do a back somersault without proper fitness and training, you risk injuring yourself.