Beginner: Twists

Layouts and other saltos, by themselves, get boring. So we dress them up by adding twists. Among the women, I've only ever seen a 3.5 twist at the very most, though in MAG it's not uncommon to see quadruple twists. There are two types of twists: Full and half, which are self-explanatory. They can be combined any way the gymnast wishes. This can make describing them tricky.

Let's say you're watching a floor routine. The gymnast does a lovely double arabian (remember arabians from the other post about saltos?), dances, and prepares for a second tumble run. She runs, does a round-off, and twists. You're sure it was a backwards twist, but you're not sure how many. It could be a 1.5 or a triple twist for all you know. How can you tell? Luckily, it's easy once you get the hang of it!

Counting Full Twists:

Actually counting out full twists individually in real time is very difficult and takes a lot of practice. So instead of attempting to actually "count," I instead look at the gymnast's body in the air and the time it takes to complete the full set before hitting the ground. Don't know what I'm talking about? Here are some examples:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eLeCaT_PLw

(Copy and paste the link into your browser and press "Enter")

This Level 8 gymnast shows a good example of a full twist (it begins at around 0:50 seconds). Notice that it's easy to tell when there's only one twist. Her body can be clearly seen through the air, and she has plenty of time before her landing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-iHKcDaBaQ

I couldn't find a good example of a floor routine with a double twist, so I chose out of MostepanovaFan's excellent tumbling guide. The double twist happens at 2:43. See how it's more difficult to track her movement through the air and there's less time for her to complete the twists? The triple twist at 2:54 is the worst. She is almost reduced to a blur of motion and flailing limbs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4w1Wy04xlg

Here (starting at 0:50) is a triple twist slowed down considerably. The twists take so long to complete she is very nearly on her feet again before they are done. But it's very easy to count them in slow motion.

Counting Half Twists:


Half twists are trickier in my opinion. There are two questions I ask myself when trying to decide if the gymnast has tacked on a half twist to her set (it's always at the end): What direction was she facing during her handspring, towards the middle of the floor (back) or towards the crowd (forward)? and Is she facing the same or the opposite direction when she finishes? If she is lands the opposite direction she started, she has added a half twist to her set. If not, it's all full rotations.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEhPZgDA5mw

Here is Yana Demyanchuk performing at the 2009 WOGA classic. Her first pass is a 2.5 twist. Notice how she starts out backwards (after her round-off), but ends up forwards?

So, once you have established the gymnast's body shape in the air, asked yourself those essential questions, the result what twist combination they just performed.

This post might sound confusing, but seriously, it's just practice, practice, practice. I'll often find myself naming elements to myself while watching a gymnast's routine and if I can't name one, I go look it up. It's the only way I've found to get better!