LAYOUT

Pre Requisites For The Layout

Candlestick Shape

Candlestick Shape

If there is one tumbling shape that I see most athletes absolutely butcher, it’s the candlestick. About 80% of them look like pikes straight out of Rachet Ville. Suffice to say if you cannot hold a perfect candlestick for one minute on the floor, you shouldn’t even bother trying to flip a layout in the air. Watch the video below to see the 4 keys to having the perfect candlestick shape (then film you own candles and see if yours is as good).

2. Back Tuck

There are some coaches that follow the philosophy of coaching the layout before teaching athletes how to back tuck. While this might seem like a head-scratcher to some, there is nothing wrong with that approach. However, for me personally, I think the tuck should be taught first for 3 main reasons:

1) Speed of Rotation: The faster a salto flips, the easier (and generally less scary) it is for an athlete to perform because you simply spend less time upside down. One of the things that can make the layout scary for beginners is that you are required to go high and flip so slow that it seems like you’re upside down forever. Humans aren’t designed to do this, so it makes sense.

2) Backup Plan: If you’ve ever seen anyone in the process of learning layouts, then you’ll most likely see a few attempts where they “tuck out” of the skill. And we definitely want this. You need to have mastered the tuck to such a degree that should something freaky happen in the air, your autonomous nervous system kicks in, and you can simply tuck out of the skill, saving your pretty (or handsome) face from destruction.

3) Progression: If you learn the back tuck using the correct shape and with proper progressions then the layout is actually very easy to learn. Your back tuck should be a builder skill to the layout instead of feeling like the two skills are independent of one another. Anyone who’s been to my layout clinics knows exactly what I’m talking about and the demo I do. If you haven’t seen this yet, just take my word for it. It’s also why I teach my girls how to back tuck without grabbing in a running tumbling pass. Your core strength is all you should need to rely on to flip you over, along with the proper steps.

3. Back Pike

What’s funny about the back pike is that most athletes who are supposedly “throwing” a layout in their routines actually end up looking like they’re doing pikes. So why not learn the actual back pike correctly?

Another reason the pike is so key, is that if you add a hip drive to a pike (or in other words, “open” it up) then what you end up with is a layout anyway. You’ll see exactly how this work in the drills listed below. But suffice to say, learn how to do a great back pike out of your RO or RO BHS entry. The effort will pay off.

Progression Drill #1

The 3 Step (20 reps)

Set, Hipdrive, Slap. Those are the basic 3 steps I use for the layout. This process assumes that you have the prerequisites down. I also use this process with my athletes to identify when corrections are not being applied. For example when their layouts look piked, I can ask which step was “missing,” and the answer should step 2 – hip drive. It’s a nice way for them to take ownership of their own skills.

Progression Drill #2

The Rolling Candle (20 reps)

I love this drill because I can really hammer home the point of setting. You almost want to do a backward double-handed high five to the floor until a sound is heard before doing the hip-drive and candlestick hold. My general rule is if I can’t “hear” the set from my athletes, the rep didn’t count.

Progression Drill # 3

Pike On Tramp (5 reps)

After the first 2 drills have been mastered, it’s very likely that you’ll have gotten a “taste” of what a layout should feel like upside down. So now it’s time to head to the trampoline and start opening up the pike shape. Start off with basic pikes to warm up the skill, as shown here.

Progression Drill #4

Open Pike On Tramp (10 reps)

Now I simply ask my athletes to hit a shape that’s “more open” than the L-Sit (you do know what an L-Sit is right?). Generally any shape that’s under 90 degrees can be considered a “pike” for our purposes so try and film yourself to see what positions you’re hitting. If you’re coaching athletes, film them. Sometimes what they “feel” is different than what it actually looks like.

Progression Drill #5

Max Open Pike On Tramp (20 reps)

Finally, the 3rd step in the pike-open method is to get the body to hit the candlestick shape (or come as close as possible). You’ll see a clear difference in the animation above compared to the shapes my athlete was hitting in drill #2 and #3. One thing I’ll say is that the chin should be tucked in as much as possible. The animation above was an early attempt, so be sure to apply that correction on your own (or with your athletes).

Progression Drill #6

Hip Drive (20 reps)

I usually use this drill in conjunction with drill #5 as the hip drive is exactly what’s needed to open your pike so it makes sense to work them together. One very common mistake that athletes make during this drill is they arch their backs instead of squeezing their glutes (their butt) and driving the hips forward. There is a big difference between a hip drive and a back arch even though they may look similar from the 3rd person. It takes a trained eye to see the difference but when you’re actually performing the drill, you’ll feel that the two are actually miles apart!

Progression Drill #7

Layout Rollback (15 reps)

This is a great orientation drill to get yourself accustomed to holding the candlestick shape while upside down. There are a multitude of ways to set this up. I recommend the octagon barrel if you have one. But if not, any type of rolling mat will work. You can even wedge a PacMan to the edge of a block so it doesn’t roll. Regardless of your set up, be sure to adjust the height as necessary. At a minimum, it should be at hip-level.

Progression Drill #8

Standing Candlestick Toe Drive (20 reps)

While drill #7 will give you the feeling of how a layout should feel, this drill should actually be used in conjunction because it trains the one crucial element that most athletes forget — toe drive. If your toes don’t come up to the 12-o-clock position fast enough, you’ll most likely “tuck out” of the layout, or end up doing a whip. Be sure that when doing this drill, the glutes (your butt) never touch the mat (or if they do, it’s only for a brief moment). I tell my athletes to pretend they’re doing this on a hot plate and if they don’t hit the candlestick fast enough, they’ll “burn off” their rear-ends. And who wants to do that?!