Fun Workouts

[pristinechanges]

I’m sure every gym goes through this,

My compulsory girls are burnt out. Practice just isnt fun any more and they have alot of trouble focusing. Their routines are suffering because of it. Now i Know that compulsory is no where near as much as fun as optional, but if I cant get them to get their skis here they can never progress.

I need some fun workouts that incorporate the compulsory level skills and routine bits while letting them have controlled fun.

Also, I need some good conditioning workouts….to where they barely know that they are conditioning.

We just need some fun in our gym.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks, Candace

[Aussie_coach]

How about making conditioning a competition. Divide them into teams and award points for things like how many push ups and sit ups they can do in a minute and so on. Add up all the points and have a team winner. Try to mix up the way you do conditioning say one day in a circut, one day with a partner, one day as a whole group and so on.

[Gym mum UK]

What about choreographing a dance which incorporates some of their conditioning moves but which is to really funky music (they can choose something which they all identify with and/or cant keep still to)? They can then do it all together (as a group) or can perform it individually.

I think this might bring a fun element back if you have not tried this already.

[coachamyamerican]

I like to have "speed pull over" races. Divide the group into teams and each child does 5 or ten pull overs in a row (feet touch and go right into the next pull over). The winning team gets a prize or gets to select the next conditioning drill. I have also partnered them with an optional sis... this inspires them to work toward the next level.Have their big sis choose the conditioning for the day... sometimes if it comes from someone the girls look up to, it makes them want to do it more!
As far as routines, If they are looking sloppy or like there is not much effort there, I make up "stick it" contests. The individual or group with the most stuck routines gets a prize. I don't know if you have any meets left but I give award prizes for the most improved all around and also if all of the group achieves a goal like "all 9.0's or above on vault" or something like that!
Good luck!
My level 4's are currently being rewarded by taking a limo to state. The goal was for the entire team to qualify at sectionals to go to state! They all did!
I am so proud!
Many of them had all time high scores!

[I-Heart-Beam]

We did this great session once: the Cha Cha slide- in a handstand. Obv you don't do all of it- the front and back walks and something else- I can't remember exactly we did it a while ago. But it was great!!!!

[gymgymgymnast08]

haha we did the solja boy when it was new. We have two different groups of optionals one with 8s and 9s and the other with 7s 8s and 9s so were like equal in skill level and we were talking about like having a competition against the other group in conditioning to see who would win haha

[blondegymnastxo]

In my gym we love playing conditioning games!!! It is the best!!!

[gymnasticsbabie]

WOW. i wish you were my coach. My coaches are like anti fun, they wont even let us listen to the radio anymore!!!

anyways. Competitions are ALWAYS fun. so maybe if you want to do routines you could divide them into two teams. and each team has to do a ceartin number of routines in a row (as a team, so if one girl goes and makes it and then her teammate goes and falls then they have to start over). But i think they have to be mature enough to not blame the girl who falls and take the competition to far. The winner gets an treat/award like no conditioning today or 10 mins of tramp.

another good one is the "point game" so you can do it individually or as a team. And everytime a girl makes a correction or does something without deduction you give them a point. At the end of each event you write down how many points they had. then at the end you add up their points and see who got the most points throughout the day. winner gets a prize

and for conditioning you could always do those relay races and suicides and a competition. they run to one end of the floor and do 10 tuck jumps or push ups or something.

[pristinechanges]

haha, well gymnasticsbarbie, im only 18 so ive still got a little bit of that spirit in me to try and let my girls have fun! we've AWAYS got the radio blaring.

I've done things in the past like "deck of cards", and they pull a card and have to do that many of a certain skill in their routine and if its a king, jack,or queen make it something outlandish and crazy. and we've done "roll the dice" where they ro the dice and do that many....we've had compeitions for how many pullovers in a row can you do and that sort of thing, who can hold a handstand on beam the longest...

recently we've been wearing tennis shoes and working out! haha, they seem to like that.

I tried to do a litte bit of dance with them....like different jazz warm ups instead of the usual "run, stretch, line drills...ect." but they really didnt like it!

But i think that most of them are so young they still arent fully aware of their body the way older [age 11 and up] are.

We let them warm up on beam one day with the "soulja boi" song, and that "cupids shuffle" song. but they get so bored so quickly. Its hard to keep interest! and then if i can keep them interested they wont listen so we have to go back to the yelling and strict no fun ways of working out. They've got a terribe problem with wanting to socialize more than actualy doing gymnastics. Sometimes i feel like their parents want them there more than they wanna be there.

Thanks for the help though folks! if you've got any more ideas, let me know! im aways open for suggestions!

[tumblerK]

Lately our coach has let us do mini trap for warm up if there aren't many girls there. work front stuff then run back to the line and things move pretty quickly. It's a nice change and quite a workout if there's three-four people. (wow that shows how small my gym is)

We had lots of fun with handstand contests on the beam one day.

If you're feeling daring set them an easier conditioning assignment and join in. Feel free to be vocal and whine lots and then they can laugh at you when you can't finish the list and you're sore the next practice.
Thats something my coach did but it wasn't to cheer us up. She just didn't realize how long she had been out of gymnastics