WAG Frequency of Drills

[AquaticSoul]

Drills before skills, right? So how often should drills be practiced so that their benefits can take effect and be applied toward the skill? Also, after the skill is being executed, should drills for that skill cease or be completely eliminated? Thank you!

 

[Aussie_coach]

The answer is really “it depends”. Sometimes the drills only need to be done once, sometimes it’s just to introduce a concept or tweak a technique and once is enough. Other times the drills need to be practiced for years. It depends on the skill, the drills, the gymnast, the purpose of the drill and so on.

 

[backflipruby]

I agree, most drills need to be practiced before the skill so the gymnast can gain some preparation and muscle memory before going into the actual skill. If you've been doing the drill for a while and it is a relatively low difficulty skill and the gymnast can do the drill easily then you could probably move on, whether it's to another step of the skill or the skill itself. But most coaches tend to keep adding the drills in as a side station or on lighter days of training just to keep feeling the skill without the gymnast training it repetitively. Again, if things are going wrong with the skill then it's a good idea to move back to the drill to fine-tune it, or so the gymnast can break it down and understand it better.

 

[AquaticSoul]

Thanks for the responses. I ask because DD’s team is steadily decreasing in strength and form. They are in the middle of the season and are no longer doing any drills, strength or flexibility. Back tucks are being thrown and only worked on every other week or so and even simple casts on bars are arching.