Expert: Chris - 3/19/2010

Question
Hi. I have been cheerleading for 4 years and I started working on tucks when I was on a junior team.I was tumbling very good and then one day I had a fall. I stopped tumbling for a couple weeks and then got back into it. Next thing I know I saw one person fall and another break her arm. Anyway, I need to get my tuck not only for my coaches but myself. Any tips on how to just not worry about it and go for it? Thanks so much!

Answer
I don't know much about how to tumble, but the mental/scared aspect is something I'm exremely familiar with! Seeing someone fall can be just as scary as falling yourself. I had this exact same problem with a backhandspring, and once I did get over it I ended up with a wrist injury (not cheerleading/tumbling related) so now I can't tumble still, so I definitely understand the frustration.

First of all, when you fell did you get an injury? I'm sure you got hurt, but was there a serious injury? If there was, obviously make sure that's taken care of before you start working more on tumbling.

I'm not going to tell you "go for it" because it doesn't help. At least it never has and still doesn't help me. Make sure you know what went wrong when you fell. Be sure that you can fix the mistake and when you work on tumbling always have a qualified instructor etc. I'm sure you know that if you've worked on tucks.

After you know what went wrong try to visualize yourself doing the tumbling skill perfectly. I never believed this would actually work, but I tried it with twisting down (which I've been afraid of ever since I landed on my stomach and got hurt) and it really did help. My twist down got much much better without any practice aside from visualization. I saw what my twist looked like, thought about what it needed to look like, and the next time I practiced (and many times since then) my twist was much better. It's a great way to practice and you definitely cannot get hurt doing it!

The not worrying about it part is probably the hardest part. If you're like me it haunts you day and night. I just remind myself that my body knows how to do it just like it knows how to do any other stunt, cheer, dance, skill etc. It's muscle memory, an deven though I fell I never "lost" the skill. You can still do it physically, it's just the mental part. Your brain naturally wants to protect your body from getting hurt so it tells your body you shouldn't or cannot do it. It will take any excuse it can find (falling yourself, seeing someone else fall, anything) to convince you and your body that you cannot do the tuck. You have to tell yourself that you can and overcome that human instinct to stop tumbling.

Once you go for it that first time when you try tumbling again, don't ever bail on the skill again. That's what I started doing, and every time I didn't throw a handspring or pull a twist down, it only got harder to do it after that. After you know you've progressed to the point where you can work on your tuck, throw it without worrying about whether or not it's ugly. That's the last thing you need to worry about when you're coming back from something like this.

After you throw it once and land it...well at least come down safely even if it's on your knees, keep throwing it. Even if you're not landing it don't ever bail. It will make it soooo much harder. I told one of the young girls I coach that exact same thing (about twisting) and she's only 9 years old and she told me that I was right. I went through years of not throwing my roundoff backhandspring, not twisting, singling when I should have been doubling, and bailing on almost every skill I had. I was afraid, and I still am, but I have to remind myself that it's only a fear, and although it's a logical fear, it's not a necessary fear.

Tell yourself you can do it, visualize it, and then do it. Relax before you throw it. You already know how to do it! I stopped tumbling for 3 years (because of my wrist injury) and a few months ago I got on a tumble-trak and was told I had to throw a backhandspring. Like I said I hadn't tumbled at all (not even a handstand) in 3 years. After about 20 min of sitting for the BHS and then bailing on it I finally decided to throw it. And after 3+ years I still knew how to do it. Granted a tuck is much different, but I guarantee you that you are a much better tumbler than I will ever be. It is so difficult for me to tumble...I literally can't do a handstand...and if you had a tuck in the first place it will be no problem for you to get it back.

Keep me posted on how things are going. And if any of this helped please let me know. If you feel like it didn't, or only helped part of your problem ask another question and I'll try to expand on this. I've messed with my fear of many skills since I was 10, so I could give you more examples and advice than you would know what to do with.

Good luck!