Gym Coach, Vol.

1 (2007) 9-14 Methodological

Article

Developing the straight body cast to handstand

Valentin Uzunov
Hataitai Gymnastics, Wellington, New Zealand

ABSTRACT

The straight body cast to handstand is one of the most fundamental skills on bar, its mastery is vital in order to progress to
advanced bar skills. However as a skill on its own it is nothing more than conditioning exercises on bars. Its true
application is in the connections to the kip. The purpose of this article is to introduce a method for teaching and
developing the straight body cast to handstand, in connection to the kip. This method is a long term progressional process
that can begin at any age. Progression is based on developing a cast to handstand from support that can later be connected
to the kip without adjusting or changing any part of the technique. It’s essential in gymnastics to minimize the variables in
any technique for it to be optimal. The more body shape changes, coordination challenges, cues a gymnast has to focus on
the harder it is to learn. This method simplifies the connection between cast to handstand from support and the kip cast to
handstand (with a straight body). The method presented does not offer any fast track solutions to teaching a cast to
handstand; it simply illustrates a basic ideological process to developing the kip cast to handstand with a straight body.

Key Words: Uneven bars, High Bar, kip cast, bars conditioning
INTRODUCTION

The straight body cast to handstand can be a frustrating METHODOLOGY

skill to teach as it can take years to develop. It’s is
definitely not a skill that suits all gymnasts, but it is the The straight body cast to handstand is essentially an
preferred technique. The straight body cast to handstand is eventual progression of the basic cast. The basic cast is
usually done out of a kip and is most suited for short, light merely the first step in the progression that. The ultimate
girls, who have great planche strength. This said, there are goal is to be able to cast to handstand from a kip (however,
very few gymnasts professional or otherwise, who can do a we will not be discussing the kip in this article). A cast to
cast to handstand with a perfectly straight body handstand from support is nothing more than a
throughout the whole skill. Even though a perfectly conditioning exercise for the experienced gymnast and an
straight body is the ideal, it’s hardly ever seen done by initiator skill for practicing skills on bar. There is no
female gymnasts. As a result, many gymnasts, including recommended age group or time period for the
international gymnasts, choose to perform the straddle development of this skill that the author is aware of. It
cast to handstands, or adopt an arch to handstand should begin to be taught from day one in the gym.
technique which is easier and less demanding, but lacks
the virtuosity with a straight body cast. Regardless of the
difficulties this skill posses to taller and heavier gymnasts, Technique
the WAG and MAG compulsory routines in most countries The technique prescribed in this article is illustrated in
and the FIG prefer a straight body cast over the straddle Figure 1. This cast technique is called a hecth cast to
cast to handstand. handstand, due to the hecth action. The key aspects of the
technique are:
The aim of this article is to detail on method and technique • The gymnast passes through a front support
to coaching and performing the straight body cast, suitable position (a) that shows a straight line from toes to ears.
for both taller and weaker kids, that works for boys and • The hips pressing into the bar (a-b).
girls. This method has been used by gymnasts for a very
long time, and seems to be the method of choice by most
coaches. There are variations of the technique but the
principle is the same.

©2008 The Gym Press. All rights reserved Gym Coach Vol.1, May, 2007 - 9-
1st Name Initial Second name of Author/s/ Gym Coach, Vol# (Year published) pages Methodological Article
•
As Figure 1 - Cinematic representation of Shetessa Pama performing a
glide kip cast to handstand. a) Real photo sequence from a training
session. b) stick figure representation of the body lines, marked by a 4
segment kinematic model (hand to shoulder, shoulder to hip, hip to knee,
and knee to ankle)
(Figure 1) that can be used to develop the support tension
and strength in order to start working on casting.

Figure 2 - a) Planche hold. The legs can be elevated to increase the

difficulty of the exercise as well as to simulate the correct body shape at
different cast heights. b) P-bar walks, can help to develop double
support strength. c) Planche rocks, in order to develop the dynamic
ability to hold a planche, shape. As well as to understand how to lean
forward.

It’s vital for the gymnast to work on the planche strength

from day one. Chances are that beginners will not be able
the hips leave the bar the gymnast has a smooth to planche over the bar a great deal, This is fine, as long as
curvature of the body, which starts at the thoracic and the gymnast continues to work on leaning over the bar as
cervical region (upper back), with the heels leading (b- much as possible with every cast. Its recommend that for
c). The stomach muscles are pulled in tight to keeping holds the gymnast do no more then 10-15 sec and do more
the gymnast’s body shape relatively straight. sets (5-7sets). Strength should be developed through
• The gymnast shoulders remain over the bar with repetition, rather than specific protocol prescriptions or
very little movement from a-d. It’s important for the overload.
gymnast to allow their mid/lower body to rise above
the shoulder before starting to open the shoulders, Regardless of the exercises used to develop this strength,
otherwise any shoulder opening will results in pushing it’s absolutely crucial that from the start the coach
them away from the bar rather than facilitating the reinforces the necessary shape. The coach should be always
raise of the centre of mass and thus the cast. This making sure that the gymnast has their chest/ribs in,
action is referred as a hetch action. bellybutton pulled in, butt muscles squeezed, legs tight and
• From (d-f) the mid/lower body continues to rise, stretch with the the toes pointed and a neutral head
which is aided by a smooth gradual shoulder opening position. The final shape should be a straight line. The
(extension). It is important that the shoulder angle hardest part during this stage is for the coach to have the
does not open too quickly/or sharply otherwise it will necessary patience to constantly adjust and remind the
push the gymnast back. It’s important that the toes do gymnast about their shape, without getting angry or
not go over an imaginary vertical line from the bar frustrated. Especially with younger gymnasts this process
otherwise the gymnast will overarch and most likely will be long and tedious, but it will pay of in the end, and
fall over the opposite side. A general rule is that the progress can be made fast if the same messages are
body/hips will follow the line of the toes. From (f-g) we repeated and gymnasts are always shaped and not allowed
see that as the toes are approaching the vertical to learn through trial and error.
position the gymnast completely opens the shoulder
angle and pulls in the chest to dish a fraction. This The first 2-3 sessions the gymnasts should spend
motion kills the momentum of the feet and hips, and it developing strength and learning the necessary shapes.
also allows the gymnast to get into a nice handstand However this can be assessed on individual basis and some
shape that other skills can follow. kids may start working casting from day one. It just
depends on their physical ability.
Progressions
Front support
Planche strength
The first step to learning the cast is to learn a good strong Along with working the strength and tension exercises, the
gymnast can work the front support position with or
front support on bar as the gymnast will pass through this
position during the cast out of the kip (Figure 1 a). The without the help of the coach. The front support position is
essentially a variation of a planche, but much easier to
front support mostly requires tension. Tension is vital in
order for the gymnast to be able to lean over the bar in a hold. The gymnast should be leaning over as far as possible
(till the body is at least at a 45deg angle), with the
balanced position and not to fall over. However the
strength requirement greatly increases as the gymnast shoulders rounded and shrugged (shoulders touching their
ears). As in the planche position described above the
begins to cast. Thus it is important to condition the body to
be able to maintain his/her shoulder planched while also gymnast should have their ribs/chest pulled in, bellybutton
pulled in toward the spine, butt muscles squeezed, legs
maintaining tension before working the cast. The following
are just a few of the possible drills/preparation exercises tight and stretched out with the toes pointed and a neutral
head i position looking down at the floor. There should be

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1st Name Initial Second name of Author/s/ Gym Coach, Vol# (Year published) pages Methodological Article
a straight line from the gymnast’s toes to the top of their
head, which runs though the ankles, hips, shoulders, and
ears. This is essential as the gymnast must inevitably pass
through this position into a cast.

The coach should always again be shaping and reinforcing

shape at this stage. Once the gymnast is comfortable with
holding a nice, leaned over front support, with a nice tight
body shape, the gymnast can begin to work on the cast
with the coaches help.

Casting Action
Once the gymnast is comfortable with holding a nice,
leaned over front support, with a nice tight body shape, the
gymnast can begin to work on the cast. The initial steps to
casting are going to be slow and will require lots of
spotting (especially with younger gymnast), in order for
the gymnast to understand how to control the shape in a
dynamic situation. However once the gymnast has a basic
understanding the cast height can progress rather quickly
and spotting will become minimal.

A common error in casting is that the gymnast lifts the

hips of the bar in order to conform to the desired shape

Figure 4 - a) Staring front support position. b) The hips are relaxed and
the legs allowed to swing under the bar in order to initiate a strong leg drive.
c) The gymnast kicks the legs back hard going through a front support and
the mini leg drive shape until their hips lift of the bar due to the leg drive. As
the cast approaches peak height the gymnast straightens out the curved
Figure 3 - a) Mini-leg drives on the bar in support. Ideally the shape. d) Dishing in the cast forces the gymnast to lead with the hips, and
heel should rise above the bar, however this will vary depending on
prevents the heals from leading
the gymnasts strength, front support position, etc. b) Mini-leg
drives done on the floor. straight arms. Common cues used by coaches to encourage
(usually a hollow/dished shape). This is incorrect as it a tight pike are: ‘kiss your knees’ see your feet in front of
means the gymnast is cutting short the heel drive phase. you’ etc. From the deep pike fold over the bar the gymnast
This error can be related to tapping early on a long hang is encouraged to drive the legs back and up as fast as
swing. The gymnasts learn to leg drive and simultaneously possible, while pressing their hips into the bar as they
push their hips into the bar for as long as possible. To leaning over. They should continue to drive their legs until
teach the gymnast how to do this, the following drills can their hips come of the bar at which point there will a slight
be used (Figure 3 ‘mini leg drives’). These can be done on smooth curve in the body from the shoulders to the toes
the bar and on the floor. These exercises teach the gymnast (position b-c Figure 1). They need to ride this shape as high
to press their hips into the floor or bar, and essentially as it will while progressively straightening out the body by
strengthening the heel drive as well as shaping position b rounding the upper back as the cast is approaching its peak
in figure 1. They should be feeling their butt and hamstring height.
muscles really working. If they do not, than they have their
stomach out, and are using their lower back muscles more Some coaches prefer to teach a dish shape to the cast
than the legs (hip extensors) to do the leg lifts. The initially, but this is believed to be a mistake. As this tends
gymnast must not be allowed to just arch in their back. The to encourage hip lifting of the bar as described earlier
mini-leg drives should be done every session in some way, which kill the leg drive (Figure 4).
and it can be progressively made harder, with external
resistance such as therabands.

Along with these exercise the gymnast can begin to be

spotted for casts 45deg below horizontal (Figure 4).

Starting in a nice tight front support, the swings their legs

under the bar and into a tight pike fold over the bar with
©2008 The Gym Press. All rights reserved - 11 -
1st Name Initial Second name of Author/s/ Gym Coach, Vol# (Year published) pages Methodological Article
Once the gymnast can cast to 45o below horizontal with
good shape, the coach can comfortably begin to spot the
gymnast to horizontal and above (depending on how much
work the gymnast is doing). The technique is identical as
what was described for the cast 45o below the horizontal.
The only thing that changes is that the gymnast requires
more
Figure 5 - a) Planche lever ups, starting in a planche position, the
gymnast leaver/press up to handstand keeping a straight body with the
coaches assistance. b) Heel drives over a horse, need to maintain
a straight shape, discourage arching. c) In front support the gymnast
tries to pike press up on top of the bar to a pike stand. d) From the edge
of a firm raised surface the gymnast starts in mini-leg drive shape, at
which point they slide their hands of the raised surface to a lower one,
as they do so they need to press hips down and drive the legs up (like an
arch rock). As they approach handstand they open the shoulder angle to
arrive in a handstand. e) With a swiss ball placed inside an upside down
box top the gymnast starts in a planche position with the tights/hips on
the ball. Planching over a single rail, the gymnast begins to bounce up
of the ball mimicking the cast to handstand action. Ideally bouncing up
to handstand and back down.

strength and power to get a stronger and faster leg drive,

whilst remaining in a balanced support. Thus the
consistency in conditioning is paramount. A gymnast who
is not strong or confident enough will push back during the
cast in order to make the skill easier and less scary. The
centre of mass should be over the hands at all times in
order to remain in control/balance and to be able to come
back to the bar.

When the gymnast can confidently cast to horizontal on

their own, they are ready to start to working on the full cast
to handstand. It is possible to just go straight to doing
spotted cast to handstand, but it is advised to work on
doing cast to 45o above horizontal first and then to
progress to the handstand for a stronger development of
the cast. That does not mean the gymnast shouldn’t do
spotted cast to handstands until they can cast to 45 above
horizontal, it just means that greater focus should be on
spotting and working cast 45o above horizontal. The cast
to 45o above horizontal should be pretty much identical all
the way up to position (d) figure 1, at which point the
gymnast begins to dish and flatten out the shape so that by
position (e) she/he is flat. The only difference between the
techniques in casting to handstand and 45o above
horizontal is once again the need for a little stronger leg
drive which is usually just the result of better muscular
coordination, and a forceful opening of the shoulder near
the handstand.

As the gymnast improves and starts approaching the

handstand she must learn how to push down on the bar
and open the shoulder angle into an extended handstand
position. This action must be taught and reinforced. The
shoulder angle action can be practiced and strengthened.
Figure 5 illustrates just a few specific exercise/drills that
can be used to strengthen and development the shoulder
opening action and the full cast action. These exercises can
be incorporated into the conditioning program or into the
apparatus specific conditioning in order to develop the
necessary strength needed to do a cast to handstand;
however coaches will have to get creative eventually to
©2008 The Gym Press. All rights reserved - 12 -
1st Name Initial Second name of Author/s/ Gym Coach, Vol# (Year published) pages Methodological Article
progressively increase the difficulty of each exercise. For ‘magical’ method for teaching this skill without first
best results perform regular exercises regularly as spending a considerable amount of time developing the
apparatus specific conditioning or least 3 times a week, base strength and coordination/timing of this skill.
with at 1 days rest in-between. Not all exercises have to do
be done but at least one that involves support/planche There are few variations of the techniques prescribed in
strength, shoulder extension, and at least 1 that involves this article which are all acceptable which present their
the leg drive. unique challenges and advantages but are considered by
the author as inferior due to their less aesthetic appealing
Once the gymnast is casting with a spot to handstand, the look. The technique presented has been used by elite
gymnast can connect the cast to handstand from a kip or gymnasts for many years and is still the current technique
drop kip. The technical execution of the kip is essential for of choice for most high level gymnasts (based on
successful execution of the skill, however if the kip is observation of recent world cup, world championships,
taught properly than with the following method of casting and Olympics). The benefits of using this technique are
the gymnast should easily be able to learn how to cast to that it is the aesthetically appealing, it can be performed
handstand in a short period of time. The gymnast should with good success by gymnasts of all sizes and it is easily
be spotted for at least 10 (well technically executed) cast to performed out of a kip.
handstand’s out of a kip each session during the learning
process, which can easily be added to the regular The kip straight body cast to handstand is clearly made up
conditioning of the gymnast so they practice this even of of two separate skills (a kip and a straight body cast). Like
day when they don’t do bar. any skill combination the first skill in the combination sets
up the entry into the second on. However like in most skill
The only other fact aside from the strength and technical combinations success performance is usually pendent on
understanding and execution left to consider is the fear the performer being able to perform both skills
factor. For most gymnasts there will be an element of fear, individually. Thus for the gymnast to be able to straight
which the coach has to try and alleviate by making the body cast to handstand out of a kip he/she must first be
gymnast feel safe. This can be done by doing the proper able to cast from support to handstand.
progression and not rushing to quickly to get to handstand,
as well as having adequate matting, and teaching the Essentially this is a skill that is predominantly developed
gymnast how to fall correctly out of the cast if they happen through many repetitions with the assistance of the coach.
to go over. The recommended method is to twist out of the One of the reasons for this is because it is quite hard to
handstand rather than arching over. This is because of the overload the athlete during the progressional stages, in
blind landing in going over arched which poses a greater order to allow for faster strength development. The
risk of injury. common use of ankle weights and weight vests to overload
usually do not seem to work very well because they alter
the center of gravity of the gymnasts and thus alter the
DISCUSSION biomechanics of the skill, or the weight progression is
The straight body cast to handstand is one of the more simply too much. Successful and quick teaching of this skill
difficult basic skills that the young gymnast will start is greatly dependent on numbers (of cast to handstand
learning from early on. It can take several years to develop, with assistance and or independently), and specific
as it does take a considerable amount of strength, balance conditioning exercises that the coach can progressively
and muscular coordination to be able to efficiently perform overload to try and make up for the lack of specific skill
this skill. To the authors knowledge there is no one overload.

CONCLUSIONS
The straight body cast to handstand is a fundamental shoulder flexion (opening the shoulders angle), hip
skill that every intermediate and higher level gymnast extension (heel drive), body tension. It will take many
should/must learn. The skill can be frustrating to teach spotted straight body cast to handstand before the
and learn as it takes a lengthy period of time due to gymnasts develops the confidence, strength, and timing
difficulties in progressional overloading of the actual to be able to perform the skill on their own.
skill.
A common practice by high level coaches is to regularly
The method present in this article acknowledges that spot to straight body casts to handstand from support in
this skill can and in most cases will take at least 1-2 years order to constantly monitor the shape and execution of
to teach (on regular training hours for a beginner) and this. This is highly recommended approach to
thus the method starts by developing the smaller cast to developing and maintaining the straight body cast to
lead into a higher cast. The method is dependent on the handstand.
progressional use of supplementary conditioning
Every care is taken to assure the accuracy of the information
exercises to develop the gymnasts strength in the
published within this article. The views and opinions expressed within

©2008 The Gym Press. All rights reserved - 13 -

1st Name Initial Second name of Author/s/ Gym Coach, Vol# (Year published) pages Methodological Article
this article, are those of the author/s, and no responsibility can be accepted by The Gym Press, Gym Coach or the author for the
consequences of actions based on the advice contained herein

Address for correspondence: Valentin Uzunov, Hataitai Gymnastics, Wellington, New Zealand.
[email protected].

©2008 The Gym Press. All rights reserved - 14 -