In your quest to keep your gymnasts out of mischief and boredom around the house or in the garden, add this great little training aid to your gymnastic equipment;
The Homework Block from My Home Gymnastics
The MHG Homework Block is a great training
aid for all level of gymnasts. The features we really like are the hand prints on the block and how lightweight it is. The Homework Block has endless possibilities for your gymnasts enabling them to practice the skills that they are learning in their gymnastics classes safely at home.
Just like a puppy with a new ball these three gymnasts (Alexa, Chloe and Isabella) were bouncing around eager to get going before we had even got the new equipment out of the box. They had enormous amounts of fun in their back garden and with some coaching from our author Gemma they came up with lots of inspiring ideas for you to try yourselves;
1. Forward-Roll Off The Homework Block
Start with your knees placed at the end of the block and roll off. When you stand up out of the roll reach your arms forward. Don’t use your hands on the floor!
2. Cartwheel Over The Homework Block
Start and finish facing sideways in a star shape. Placing your hands onto the hand marks swing your legs up and over the block in an arc. Remember to keep your legs straight and your toes pointed. Practice makes perfect!
3. Squat Onto the Homework Block Half Turn Jump Off
Squatting down use the hand shapes on the Homework Block to place your hands onto it. Squat feet onto the block and not knees. Immediately jump off springing upwards remembering to land with good posture.
4. Headstand Against The Homework Block
Partner to hold the Homework Block upright or alternatively position it against a wall. Headstand against it making a triangle shape with your head at the top of the triangle and your hands at the bottom so that you can see your fingers. Slowly lift your hips so that your back touches the block and then tuck your knees into your chest and your feet to your bottom.
5. Pike Lever On The Homework Block
Sit on the block with your legs in a pike position, raise your feet and bottom up from the block keeping your legs straight and toes pointed.
6. Handstand On The Homework Block
Take a big lunge into a handstand creating a straight shape on the top of the Homework Block. Stretch from your hands to the tips of your toes. Squeeze both your bottom and tummy creating a tight core.
7. Tricep Dips on the Homework Block
This is one of many conditioning exercises you can perform with this great versatile Homework Block. Sit with your back to the block and your hands placed onto it so that your elbows are bent up behind you. Lift your hips up as high as you can as you slowly bend and straighten your arms. Repeat for as many repetitions as you can manage or alternatively break down into sets of 5 or 10 repetitions. Challenge your child to see how many repetitions or sets they can do in a minute and then see if they can beat their highest scores.
8. Jumps and Hops On and Over the Homework Block
These Homework Block exercises are great for stability. Your little ones will have strong legs and good balance if they practice these exercises. Like with tricep dips set them a challenge of beating their top scores. When performing any hop or jump keep the body upright with chin and chest held high. Don’t allow the body to hunch over, posture is paramount throughout!
When we asked the children what they liked about the Homework Block their response was that they liked the colour and the hand prints. They said that they “loved rolling off the block” and that it was “really fun.” From a coach and parent perspective we like that it has many uses and is ideal for gymnastics outside of the gymnasium. It’s size enables it to be stored easily without taking up too much room. In addition as it is lightweight the gymnasts are able to move and position it themselves.
Thanks once again to My Home Gymnastics for letting us trial this exciting new piece of gymnastics equipment, as you can see from the videos our gymnasts had hours of fun!
Please visit My Home Gymnastics for more information about their wide range of gymnastics products.
http://www.myhomegymnastics.com/
