Lefty/righty: Does this test really predict?

[mariposa]

Lefty vs. Righty Gymnast: Does this test really predict?

So my 7 year old has been a righty gymnast since she started. I remember trying to help her with cartwheels (I am a lefty for skills) and she just couldn't do it and then she tried the other side and it worked. For a long time, she was very strong on her right side. Her split was better on her right.

A few weeks or so ago she came home saying she thinks she is really a lefty gymnast. Her good split is now her left split, she can do a lot of her skills just as good with her left. She splits "wrong" in her BHS step out, so she isn't allowed to try them right now. She is driving me crazy saying she thinks she should be a lefty now and I think she should just not worry about it and do things as a righty.

So looking around the internet I found this answer that said there is an easy test to determine whether you are right or left dominant. It says to take your hands and cross your fingers, the thumb on top is your dominant side. I am a lefty gymnast (though I use the word gymnast VERY lightly, LOL) and my left thumb is on top. She is a righty gymnast and her left thumb is on top. It mentions that

So, is this really accurate? I made a poll. Would love to know how accurate or inaccurate it is. Take the test and then answer Yes if your hand test matches the way you do your skills and No if it doesn't. Thanks!!

 

[zemirah]

I have my left thumb on front and I start cartwheels etc with left food forward. I always assumed that because I am otherwise right-handed I start with left foot forward to get more spring off my right foot... but I've never really thought about it until now!

 

[mariposa]

Well, I can't edit my poll. I wanted to make some more options since I realized some might be a gymnast and have gymnasts, too. If you have more than one answer, post the one and then the rest here. Thanks!!

 

[MdGymMom01]

That is a very interesting question Mariposa!!! Actually Dani's first tumbling/cheer gym was Russian and that is how they determined if she was a righty or lefty tumbler with the thumb thing. Her left thumb is on top and she tumbles, splits and twists better to the left.

I, am a right handed tumbler (that is how I was taught) but my thumb that is on top is on the left. BUT, I split and turn better on my left but round off and cartwheel on the right. No wonder I never made it far in gymnastics--I did half of everything backwards!!! I am thinking that I should have been taught to cartwheel on my left according to the thumb rule and everything else I do on my left.

 

[mariposa]

That is kind of what I worry about MD. If it is true, is it too late to fix things?

Is the test really and truly accurate and if so, why wouldn't all coaches do that in beginning classes? Then there would be no confusion and it would be easier to teach the kids. Just line them up and have them show their hands, voila!

That is why I am wondering if it is just a theory and not proven. Looking forward to coaches views on this, too.

 

[MdGymMom01]

Another way to test is to have the gymnast close their eyes, spin them around in a circle and stop them. THEN, give them a nudge forward so they fall off balance. The foot that they step on is their dominant side. There was one gymnast at Dani's old gym who was so inconsistent with this she ended up being ambidextrous in that she could do both and it wasn't like one was more dominant than the other.

 

[mariposa]

Now that test result I liked. LOL. I did it 3 times and every time she put out her right foot to stop herself. Wonder if there are other "tests".

 

[coachmolly]

My left thumb was on top and I am right handed and do skills with my right leg in front. There was a period when I did some skills left, but I think they were mostly dance skills. My coach did a trick similar to the one MD mentioned to figure it out, I just stood two feet together and she gave me a small shove from behind. I stepped forward on my left leg. So I guess there are always some exceptions to the rules.

 

[gymkat]

With the second test, also take into consideration that if you step with your right foot in front, your body turns left (similar to cartwheels and roundoffs).

I'm predominantly a righty with a few lefty tendencies (I do most twisting jumps and bails as a lefty). I cross my left thumb over, but I would step onto my right leg. I can turn equally well on both legs, although I prefer to do double turns on my right leg and leg up turns on my left leg. However, I'm a CCW skater for turns and jumps.

 

[mariposa]

Sounds like there probably is no concrete "test" or way to determine what side you do things with except for trial and error maybe? I guess that would be too easy.

 

[Mom2Gymgirls]

The test was right for me, but not for dd. She is a lefty gymnast & left handed as well but her right thumb was on top. Interesting.

 

[gymfan4ever95]

I probably shouldn't take the poll! I consider myself a right gymnast, but somethings i do left. My coaches say that I am a mixy! haha! I do RO's, twisting, turns, jumps, and leaps with my right. I do BWO's, BHS step-outs, front tumbing, and FWO's with my left! And when I took that test, my left thumb was on top. But whenever someone asks if I am a righty or lefty, I usually say righty, because I RO that way.

 

[gymnut1]

That is just getting weirder and weirder. My dd and I are both right leg forwards at gym for everything but I am right handed and she is left handed for writing. I sometimes wonder which one of us is slightly off key somewhere.

 

[lil_gymnast_alanna]

I'm a lefty, but i twist to my right
The test was accurate

 

[CoachGoofy]

I had no thumb preference.

And I am/was one of those ever popular mixed dominant gymnasts, trending strongly towards lefty (everything but roundoffs & front tumbling, handstands and front walkovers went either way).

None of the little 'tricks' for predicting have been particularly accurate with my gymnasts.

 

[Geoffrey Taucer]

Let's throw in a little more confusion.

A left footed roundoff twists right.

A left footed roundoff to left-twist (ie switching directions) makes for an easier tsuk 1/1 and continuing in the same direction. Also makes for easier side-sommes and front 1/1 stepouts.

 

[gymdog]

I put my left thumb on top, but I'm definitely a righty. I don't do anything with my left foot in front, but I twist left front and back. However I turn right because I put my right in front, and I adjusted to that. If you told me to do a jump half, I'm sure I'd go left though. I just adjusted to the right foot single leg turn early. That's not a big deal. I know a righty who twisted left that changed her single leg turn over to left right after compulsories and adapted fine to that too. I never bothered, but with the rising popularity of turn with leg horizontal, I'd consider it for right dominant left twisters, because most of them could probably hold the right leg up more easily.

If I had a gymnast who'd been doing everything on the right side and has the skills, I'd need a really compelling reason for them to convince me they're a lefty. Just because some left leg skills are easy doesn't mean a lot. I've been doing left leg cartwheels since I was five or something and I'm more or less indifferent between the two. I'll go for my right leg out of common sense, but if I did both and you asked me which was easier, I'd be indifferent between the two. My right and leg split, after years of flex training, are about the same as well. The right might be a little better some days. Pretty much 100% of my flexibility was highly trained, I'm not naturally flexible on either side. They're both down in a reasonable oversplit, and I can't tell a ton of a difference, although right might feel a little more comfortable.

 

[Bobby]

This is a fascinating topic.
I used to cartwheel, etc, to the left. I twisted to the right when tumbling both forward and backward. My front twists were quite strong in the days where no one really even tried front twisting skills. My back twists were really weak (this and floor generally was my weakness). Now I'm wondering if that's why - perhaps I should have been twisting left when tumbling backward??

Anyway, here's a question to the coaches (or anyone else who may know the answer):
If you cartwheel left, should that mean you FWO with left foot, and BWO with right foot first? That's what makes sense to me, but I have known gymnasts do it differently.
(PS: My right split was always much better than my left, so BHS step out on beam I had a nice neat oversplit and my FWO weren't nearly as pretty).

 

[gymkat]

If a gymnast did a L cartwheel, I would teach the gymnast to lift her L leg in the BWO.

 

[nevertooold]

Accurate for me (lefty ) and both my daughters (righties).