Mushroom Drills

[JBS]

Post any drills that you may have for the mushroom as a comment/reply to this article. They will be moved into the article so we have one mega mushroom resource.

These drills are in no particular order.

• Divide the mushroom into quarters and teach your gymnasts the four main positions of a circle: front support, rear support, and both side supports. Make sure they can hold these positions with their shoulders over their hands with a tight body. More advanced students should learn these positions in a slightly arched position. An arched position will force the gymnast to extend.

• If your gym doesn't have a floor mushroom and a bucket...BUILD THEM! These are very simple to build. I've seen gyms that just tie a Home Depot bucket to a ring...simple. We like our high tech bucket. We took a Home Depot bucket and mounted inside a $400 twisting belt and then lined the inside of the bucket with half inch foam. The foam prevents the feet from slipping out of the bucket. Then we hung it from the rafters using a cable and a $75 Petzl rock climbing swivel (very low resistance). Use caribeaners or some sort of links at the bottom of the cable so you can raise and lower the bucket slightly. Someone that is just begining needs the buckst a few inches off the ground. More advanced gymnasts can crank it up simulating an awsome circle. Remember to use a floor mushroom, unless you want all your gymnasts to have broken arms.

• Have your gymnasts walk through the positions. Rear support, side support, front support, side support, etc. Make sure they are showing the positions correctly.

• Work only 1/4 circles at first, make sure you are stopping at exactly a 1/4 circle and in the correct support position. Do this for 1/4, 1/2, 3/4, whole circles, and 1 1/4 circles. Once a gymnast can do 1 1/4 circles they should be able to do 100 (give them a little time). 1 1/4 means they can successfully do a circle and connect it to the next. This drill is always a great warm-up excersice.

[T-Lewis]

- as an alternative, or a complement, to a bucket (described above) a roller / scooter board may be used to help work circles on the mushroom. I've seen these sold in school gym equipment supply catalogs, as well as in some children's toy stores...if that's not an option, then you can build one quite easily (small square piece of wood with four swiveling wheels placed in each corner). These are most effective on a low (read: floor level) mushroom so the gymnast can "feel" the importance being stretched and near-horizontal throughout the entire circle.

- not so much a drill but a tip: when starting circle work on the mushroom with young gymnasts, place an "X" made of tape or some similar landmark directly in front of their starting position to keep them from turning their upper-body during the circle.

- if you have a raised mushroom (on a stand) build up mats around the base to the bottom of the actual mushroom, to make gymnasts stretch throughout the circle

- again, not a drill: if you don't have a mushroom and don't have the funds to buy one but would like to build one [I don't promote building equipment over buying, and don't take any responsibility for any injures that might occur from using a homemade mushroom]: 1) buy a garbage can with a rounded removable top; 2) find an old wooden cable spool that has the same diameter as the garbage can top (this can be the hard part); 3) drill a hole in the top of the garbage lid; 4) place the lid on top of the spool; 5) buy a can of expanding foam insulation from your local hardware store; 6) spray the foam insulation into the hole on the lid; 7) let the foam dry; 8) remove lid; 9) sand down foam so that it is round and smooth; 10) find a very thin layer of foam or other "soft" material and cut it out to the shape and size of the foam insulation top...this will be the padding; 11) fit and staple (place staples on the underside of the spool) leather-alternative cover on top of soft layer...you now have a mushroom. A lot of steps, but it's really not that hard. Two of my gymnasts have one at home and after practicing on it regularly their circles improved dramatically.