Yay, Mondays! Time for my favourite things!!
For the record, i wore a glitter crush velvet green, blue, purple swirl top in various shades, and capri leggings from Dance Co, with rolled hip bands and legs.
We started today with lines as usual, and everything went just as it always does, i've been holding handstands for longer and longer lately, and then we did something new!
It's a progression to a straddle press.
Basically, we place our hands on the ground, legs are in a straddle, and we're supposed to lift up off the floor into a handstand, and then straddle back down.
Naturally, we hop off the ground and only get back into a straddle stand coming down.
It's plenty of fun! I got stuck in a handstand for the longest time though, so i did a straddle to get down, but that only pushed my weight past my hands, and i could only wait to twist out of it when my weight went past my shoulders far enough.
We also did handstand walking, and i'm not very good at those but i can still do it, heehee~ It's been getting better.
And also, handstand walking, but with each step, we need to touch our hand to our shoulder before taking the next step. I can do maybe three at most, but my legs are all over the place; certainly not pretty!
We went to the Tumble Trak first today and worked on things like jumping, as per usual, and did these:
Straight jump x10 + Handstand flatback
???? jump x10 + Dive roll
Tuck jump x10 + Front tuck
Straddle jump x10 + Front tuck/Front layout
Pike jump x10 + Front layout/ Front tuck/ Front pike
Right leg split jump x10 + Front layout / Front tuck
Left leg split jump x10 + Front layout
Free turn (flysprings) + Front layout/ Front tuck
Naturally, i can do a front tuck.
Naturally, i cannot do a front layout.
A layout is a front tuck with a straight body. I cannot comprehend how to flip in the air without the forward momentum of tucking.
Don't get me wrong; i still get over, but whether i land on my butt, my feet, or my face, is really up to Lady Luck. And of course, i have bent legs and all that jazz.
And then as we were headed off to go to bars next, i was walking, putting on my glasses, and one of the girls scream, "STOP!!!" at me, and naturally, i think something has gone terribly wrong, and i freeze.
Later, she points out a huuuuuge spider that i had just nearly stepped on, but thanks to me freezing, it had scuttled away before my bare, chalky foot met it's hairy, arachnid back. Eew!
We headed off to bars next, split into two groups of three, one worked with our Coach while the other worked on their own skills.
My group went with the Coach first, we all did variations of a pullover, a hip circle, and jumping to high bar and another pullover.
My hands already felt a bit burned so i opted out of a back hip circle and did front hip circles instead; i can do it but i always bend my legs, which i am not supposed to. but at the same time, i am the only person who can do it in the whole class ;)
then we worked on glide swings, so we'd glide forward and pike backwards, for 5 times. supposedly, once you achieve that, you are ready to kip! Since we are too big for the Coach to throw around, we needed to rely on ourselves.
I can't really do that and really, neither can the other girls. It's much more difficult than you'd imagine - it takes a lot of core strength!
We wing'd it on kips a few times, and then we switched.
The other two girls with me attempted to do front hip circles as well but they couldn't, although i think it's not hard or anything, it does take practice, i've been working on them since at my first gym, before i switched out yet.
I wanted to work mill circles, those are when you are sitting in a 'split' on the bar, and you go forwards and still get back up.
uhmmm... i'm kinda close. you'd think it's terribly scary and stuff, but it really isn't. or maybe it is, i don't really know. i don't really comprehend "fear" in times like those, since really, what's the worse that can happen?
I can get around, my leg stays hooked, but i cannot get enough momentum to bring myself back up nicely, so i crawl up, kicking and screaming ^^
Then after bars we headed off to the trampoline to play a game, i think it was like, Hotdog and Hamburger bum-drop competition :P
Basically, the trampoline is a rectangle, and it is divided into four squares. two people go at once, doing bum drops on the trampoline. in the hamburger, we are not allowed to touch the middle line (so we are on the two thin ends of the trampline) and when hotdog is called, we switch so we are bum dropping on one of the squares on the wide side of the trampoline.
Touch a line, falter, or anything at all, and you are out. two go at once. :)
It was lots of fun!!
We also worked on these, i forget what they're called, roller's i think? basically, you do a bum drop, and once you come up, you turn in a full twist and land back on your butt. it's harder than it seems. my body cannot comprehend it, but i came close ^^
Also, while we were doing this, a ripped boy in blue shorts was working on the bar near us, very near us, and he was UH-MAZING!! and it was amusing to watch. :D
Since he'd be doing giants, and he'd let go, do a tuck, and catch onto the bar again to continue, but sometimes he'd miss, so he'd FUMMP onto the crash mat in the foam pit ^^
Also, this was the boy who was doing some crazy triple fronts on the vault. and that vault setting is like, shoulder height with me, or more. GWAKKK! I'm really impressed!!
and i heard someone in the gym is doing double-doubles. Kyaa! <3
^_^
Well, that seems about it. Nothing too strenuous today. I'm not entirely tired or anything, and 2 hours a session really seems too short!! What i'd give for RGA to have 6-hour teen gyms, but something tells me that it'd only float with me when i'm in a good, satiated mood. I'm such a picky gymnast, haha~
Anyway, it was tons of fun, can't wait for the next!!
Also, gym aside, yesterday i was in a mentorship/mastermind program, for the first time! It was lots of fun!! It was the first time so we didn't really do anything aside from introducing ourselves and share concepts and talk, but it was FABBBUUULLOOOOUUUUUSSSSSS! <3 <3 <3
Sometimes, i briefly wonder, what would i do once i am too old to be in gymnastics? can i still do gymnastics when i am like, 21? well, yes, technically! Would my body be able to handle it? who knows. i do know i have no intentions of stopping anytime soon, and once i am older than 18 i can join adult classes, but luckily, i have a back-up plan!!
Once i'm "too old" for gymnastics, i'll do parkour. It's fun, it's pretty, and it has a very gymnastic-y feeling IMO as well :D the only thing is, I HATE WEARING SHOES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
~Re<3
Monday 30 September 2013
Monday 23 September 2013
Good things come to those who work hard ;)
So, Monday again! what does that mean? a new entry on my Favourite Things because Monday has my favourite things!!
It must get pretty mundane if i only walk through the day and list all the activities so before i even start, i'd like to announce... I GOT MY AERIAL. I've been trying to get that since the beginning of summer. And i also got a very nice, slow, controlled front and back limber.
Okay, warm-ups first of all, six lines as per usual (back and forth is one) and then worked on various things like bear-walking, catleaps, wolf jumps, split jumps, kicks, front support hopping, kick handstand on both legs...
I've come to be unable to differentiate between my good or bad leg in a handstand, they all seem the same to me...
donkey kick to handstand, inchworms, and so on so forth. we did something new today though! it goes like this -
basically, you start on your tummy in an arched position, and roll, so that neither your hands nor feet touch the ground, and go into a hollow position. continue across the floor as so.
Also we worked on little things like straddle roll, slide to tummy, rock in an arch 3x, or the same thing backwards with a hollow 3x.
Eventually we went to vault, cranked the vault down a bit, but it was still well above half my height, so it's a bit intimidating for me, and i'm sure the littler gymnasts have an even harder time! So, we did...
- Squat on --> 10 box jumps + 10 push ups + 10 sit ups
- Straight jump --> 5 box jumps + 5 push ups + 5 sit ups
- Front handspring / either of the above --> 5 box jumps + 5 push ups + 5 sit ups
- Front handspring / either of the above --> 10 box jumps
- Front handspring / either of the above --> 20 box jumps
On one of my front handsprings i veered to the side and landed with my feet slung under my hips so i shot forward and pretty much faceplanted into the ground. Slightly amusing but more embaressing, since the two boys working the strap bars nearby were staring at me like i was some sort of alien.
(or alienne, since i am a girl?)
After vault we dragged the incline mats onto the floor and some crash mats and sting mats and separated, the younger girls, the ones meant to be in the Intermediate girls on one side, working cartwheels, backwards rolls, and the like,
and the Teen girls on another line, working ...
- backward roll
- backward extension / to front support roll
- cartwheel --> good leg
- cartwheel --> bad leg
- handstand pops
- power hurdle cartwheel
- standing round off rebound
- power hurdle round off rebound
- back walkover
- front walkover
- front handspring
and before we separated and on various little amusements, such as valdez (from sitting to a back walkover, i cannot do this) front and back limbers, which i can very surprisingly do quite well, nice and controlled, slow and easy, landing light on my feet and i am not struggling to get over or up, yay!
And one of the girls taught us a variation of the back limber, in which you start from a squat and then stand quickly while going back into a bridge.
I tried.
I could sort of do it, except... my hands land waaaay too close to my feet! and not only that, due to the momentum of the movement, i pretty much go head over heels, kick myself in the face, and then flop to the side. very attractive indeed.
And then the other girl went ot work on her round-off back handsprings, while me and another went to work on our standing back handspring on an incline mat, but my hands felt achy and sore from back rolls, so i didn't do them.
After resting awhile, i saw the other girl ask to do front tucks and aerials, so i decided to join in, but only with aerials, since i've been attempting them since the beginning of summer.
And lo and behold!
After a few tries, some in which i put one hand down just as i am going to put my leg down, or some that i actually land but in such a twisted way i fling myself to one side, i finally got one!
And i'm talking air!
As in, a frozen moment in time where i am staring at the ground, it's NOT inches away from my face, my hands are by my ears, legs in a straddle, and then BAM! i land it, my hands remain by my face, and i'm like "YES!!!!" with a massive rush of excitement!
And then pain shoots through my leg and i realize i've landed it with straight legs. but other than that, i've got it!! all else can be fixed later on but first and foremost, i got it!!
I wanted to continue playing but for the sake of the younger kids, we decided to play Island Tag, so we dragged out the mats, the boxes, the inclines, and spread them over the floor.
Island Tag -
in which it is just like tag but you cannot go onto the floor; only on the mats or inclines or boxes. once tagged, you, and the original tagger, are both it. so... like a virus.
Anyway, i learned a valuable lesson today -
if a jump looks like it might be too far to make it, especially if it is onto a box, DON'T TRY IT, because the box will very likely skid out from under you, send you sprawling onto the floor (and this happened three times, i may add, twice to me and once to the other teenaged girl, before we learned our lesson) and the Coach will yell, "you jump ON the box! not AT it!" and everyone will fall apart and dissolve in giggles.
That aside, we didn't work on beam nor bars nor the tumble track today but it was a fabulous day ^_^
And everything else aside, those ribbed boys are so talented, haha. ;D
Well, that's all for now, i suppose!
Until next time then! :D
Oh! and today, i wore a black velvet leo. the top is crushed velvet with sparkles, separated by a diagonal silver line, and then simple plush velvet. Wore light gray capri leggings today instead of shorts, because i have a rash on my legs and i don't want to make it worse. ~
See ya'll next time! <3
~Re
It must get pretty mundane if i only walk through the day and list all the activities so before i even start, i'd like to announce... I GOT MY AERIAL. I've been trying to get that since the beginning of summer. And i also got a very nice, slow, controlled front and back limber.
Okay, warm-ups first of all, six lines as per usual (back and forth is one) and then worked on various things like bear-walking, catleaps, wolf jumps, split jumps, kicks, front support hopping, kick handstand on both legs...
I've come to be unable to differentiate between my good or bad leg in a handstand, they all seem the same to me...
donkey kick to handstand, inchworms, and so on so forth. we did something new today though! it goes like this -
basically, you start on your tummy in an arched position, and roll, so that neither your hands nor feet touch the ground, and go into a hollow position. continue across the floor as so.
Also we worked on little things like straddle roll, slide to tummy, rock in an arch 3x, or the same thing backwards with a hollow 3x.
Eventually we went to vault, cranked the vault down a bit, but it was still well above half my height, so it's a bit intimidating for me, and i'm sure the littler gymnasts have an even harder time! So, we did...
- Squat on --> 10 box jumps + 10 push ups + 10 sit ups
- Straight jump --> 5 box jumps + 5 push ups + 5 sit ups
- Front handspring / either of the above --> 5 box jumps + 5 push ups + 5 sit ups
- Front handspring / either of the above --> 10 box jumps
- Front handspring / either of the above --> 20 box jumps
On one of my front handsprings i veered to the side and landed with my feet slung under my hips so i shot forward and pretty much faceplanted into the ground. Slightly amusing but more embaressing, since the two boys working the strap bars nearby were staring at me like i was some sort of alien.
(or alienne, since i am a girl?)
After vault we dragged the incline mats onto the floor and some crash mats and sting mats and separated, the younger girls, the ones meant to be in the Intermediate girls on one side, working cartwheels, backwards rolls, and the like,
and the Teen girls on another line, working ...
- backward roll
- backward extension / to front support roll
- cartwheel --> good leg
- cartwheel --> bad leg
- handstand pops
- power hurdle cartwheel
- standing round off rebound
- power hurdle round off rebound
- back walkover
- front walkover
- front handspring
and before we separated and on various little amusements, such as valdez (from sitting to a back walkover, i cannot do this) front and back limbers, which i can very surprisingly do quite well, nice and controlled, slow and easy, landing light on my feet and i am not struggling to get over or up, yay!
And one of the girls taught us a variation of the back limber, in which you start from a squat and then stand quickly while going back into a bridge.
I tried.
I could sort of do it, except... my hands land waaaay too close to my feet! and not only that, due to the momentum of the movement, i pretty much go head over heels, kick myself in the face, and then flop to the side. very attractive indeed.
And then the other girl went ot work on her round-off back handsprings, while me and another went to work on our standing back handspring on an incline mat, but my hands felt achy and sore from back rolls, so i didn't do them.
After resting awhile, i saw the other girl ask to do front tucks and aerials, so i decided to join in, but only with aerials, since i've been attempting them since the beginning of summer.
And lo and behold!
After a few tries, some in which i put one hand down just as i am going to put my leg down, or some that i actually land but in such a twisted way i fling myself to one side, i finally got one!
And i'm talking air!
As in, a frozen moment in time where i am staring at the ground, it's NOT inches away from my face, my hands are by my ears, legs in a straddle, and then BAM! i land it, my hands remain by my face, and i'm like "YES!!!!" with a massive rush of excitement!
And then pain shoots through my leg and i realize i've landed it with straight legs. but other than that, i've got it!! all else can be fixed later on but first and foremost, i got it!!
I wanted to continue playing but for the sake of the younger kids, we decided to play Island Tag, so we dragged out the mats, the boxes, the inclines, and spread them over the floor.
Island Tag -
in which it is just like tag but you cannot go onto the floor; only on the mats or inclines or boxes. once tagged, you, and the original tagger, are both it. so... like a virus.
Anyway, i learned a valuable lesson today -
if a jump looks like it might be too far to make it, especially if it is onto a box, DON'T TRY IT, because the box will very likely skid out from under you, send you sprawling onto the floor (and this happened three times, i may add, twice to me and once to the other teenaged girl, before we learned our lesson) and the Coach will yell, "you jump ON the box! not AT it!" and everyone will fall apart and dissolve in giggles.
That aside, we didn't work on beam nor bars nor the tumble track today but it was a fabulous day ^_^
And everything else aside, those ribbed boys are so talented, haha. ;D
Well, that's all for now, i suppose!
Until next time then! :D
Oh! and today, i wore a black velvet leo. the top is crushed velvet with sparkles, separated by a diagonal silver line, and then simple plush velvet. Wore light gray capri leggings today instead of shorts, because i have a rash on my legs and i don't want to make it worse. ~
See ya'll next time! <3
~Re
Thursday 19 September 2013
Why NOT thigh socks??
Naturally with a blog entitled "My favourite things" i would strive to write about... MY FAVOURITE THINGS. But today, at school, a new rule cropped up, and it's probably my least favourite rule, EVER.
I can deal with things like "You need to wear uncomfortable dress shoes" or "No hoodies" or "Only school regulated clothing allowed" since everything can be "cute" as long as you take the time to modify their looks... (although i modified to to make it more comfortable for me)
But today a few of the female students were appearntly told that we were no longer allowed to wear any over knee socks or thigh socks to school anymore, because "Here in North America, it connotes sexiness. And that is not appropriate for school."
And i would understand and agree with the rules - but i believe that as long as a student does not intend for her outfit to give off "sexy" vibes, then it won't. I for one, wear thigh socks or over knee socks because i have very sensitive skin, and the socks prevent skin-to-chair contact when i sit down, especially on the backs of my knees, and that's really the only reason i wear them.
Anyway, just a short complaint on that. Even if the school said no, i intend to wear them until i can find a good pair of winter tights, and if anyone complains, well, they can complain to my mother, who agrees that i should not wear regular short socks for school, since i oftentimes come home with a red, angry rash on the backs of my legs from sitting in plastic chairs.
I mean, COME ON. Don't punish the girls for your own dirty thinking. We never intended it to be that way, nor did we think of it that way. The only people who would see it that way, are the people who want to see it that way.
~Rena
I can deal with things like "You need to wear uncomfortable dress shoes" or "No hoodies" or "Only school regulated clothing allowed" since everything can be "cute" as long as you take the time to modify their looks... (although i modified to to make it more comfortable for me)
But today a few of the female students were appearntly told that we were no longer allowed to wear any over knee socks or thigh socks to school anymore, because "Here in North America, it connotes sexiness. And that is not appropriate for school."
And i would understand and agree with the rules - but i believe that as long as a student does not intend for her outfit to give off "sexy" vibes, then it won't. I for one, wear thigh socks or over knee socks because i have very sensitive skin, and the socks prevent skin-to-chair contact when i sit down, especially on the backs of my knees, and that's really the only reason i wear them.
Anyway, just a short complaint on that. Even if the school said no, i intend to wear them until i can find a good pair of winter tights, and if anyone complains, well, they can complain to my mother, who agrees that i should not wear regular short socks for school, since i oftentimes come home with a red, angry rash on the backs of my legs from sitting in plastic chairs.
I mean, COME ON. Don't punish the girls for your own dirty thinking. We never intended it to be that way, nor did we think of it that way. The only people who would see it that way, are the people who want to see it that way.
~Rena
Monday 16 September 2013
Live. Laugh. Love. Gymnastics!! :P
Okay, so i'm covered in chalk and sweat and it feels PRETTY GROSS! I would go take a shower but it's occupied so i figured i would waste some time writing a new entry instead, hehe :)
For the record, i wore a black leo with sapphire highlights and rhinestones today, with sky blue and yellow TNA short-shorts. pigtails as always, since my hair isn't long enough to tuck into a ponytail without half of it falling out.
Today, there were new students! I won't mention their names, though. There was a girl that was around my height and age (though she is totally prettier, i'm so jelly hehe), and sisters at age 12 and 8, who are adorable and from Cartwheels! However, the crying girl didn't come back :(
We started with warm-up as usual by running lines, and then we would do high knees, kick bum, inchworms, and more. donkey kicks, kick handstand with both good and bad legs, split leaps, wolf jumps (i don't have enough coordination for that...) catleaps, kicks and the straddle push thing that i hate so much.
And then something new... a front support position (so that's pushup position) with hollow back, and without bending your arms or legs, hop across the floor by pushing with your shoulders and fingers and feet. i can't really do it.
and also handstand pops, which i can sort of do, and handstand rolls, which are not difficult at all (though i cannot do straight-arm handstand rolls)
Finally, we started stretching, so normal flexibility things, bridges, splits, straddles, butterflys. but then, a new stretch, and it goes like this -
you lie back on your back with your legs in a butterfly, and your partner (or the coach in this case, because neither me nor the girl was willing to do this - it feels strange and exposing, especially since we're wearing shorts) will push your knees towards the ground. maybe it's my inflexibility, but it HURT. it felt like being crushed. i wasn't even embaressed about the position i was in anymore because it HURT. and then i start laughing because that's what i do when something hurts. o_o
we went to beam and bars first today, splitting off into two groups. my group went to beam and did forward walking, backwards walking, forward on tippy toes, and backwards on tippy toes, then switched to bars.
we would hang from the bar and lift our chins up to meet the bar, then straddle up to touch our feets to the bar, and slowly go back down, then chins up again (or not) and pike up instead, and slowly come back down. it works abs but i don't feel it o_o
back to beam! bunny hops forward and backwards, followed by kicks, dips, and tuck jumps (and i was NOT doing a tuck jump on the high beam! i learned before that straddling the beam after falling out of a tuck jump, or any jump, HURTS!!)
back to bars, and we worked on chin up pullovers, kick pullovers, cast x5, back hip circles. then we got some free time, so i did a kick pullover, a front hip circle, and almost instantly i could cast and tuck onto the low bar. then i jumped to high bar. then we went to the tumble track and we did as follows -
- straight jump x10 + handstand flatback
- tuck jump x10 + front tuck
- pike jump x10 + front layout
- straddle jump x10 + front layout / front tuck
- flysprings + trick of choice.
naturally, with the new girls, not everyone did the above as follows. sometimes we substituted the tucks and layouts for dive rolls, for the beginner girls.
Then to floor, where i worked on my back handsprings on the incline mat. it was not difficult but i was a bit worn out by that point so around 70% of it looked nice and pretty, the other 30% had bent arms or flailing legs.
The other girls worked on different things -
one worked back handsprings with me
one worked back tucks
one worked cartwheels and rolls
one worked round-offs
two worked front handsprings / back handsprings with a spotting block
then we were done, present, and off we go to eagerly await next week! :)
It was a fantabulous day - full of fun!
No trampolines, but plenty of amazingly advanced male gymnasts to watch - whilst i cannot aspire to be like that (since girls' gym and boys' gym is different) i very much enjoy watching them, since it is so close and so real, unlike how when you watch the Olympians, there is always a disconnection because it's through the TV and you don't get it - they're not there, living, breathing, encourging each other the same way you are in the same place you are.
Fabulous overall.
A bit more tired and hungry than last week, but that's alright.
I'll regret leaving RGA in winter term when i return to Phoenix. I'd stay if i could, but i cannot afford both and i really want to return to Phoenix <3
Well, that's that!! <3
^^ Till next time! :D
~
For the record, i wore a black leo with sapphire highlights and rhinestones today, with sky blue and yellow TNA short-shorts. pigtails as always, since my hair isn't long enough to tuck into a ponytail without half of it falling out.
Today, there were new students! I won't mention their names, though. There was a girl that was around my height and age (though she is totally prettier, i'm so jelly hehe), and sisters at age 12 and 8, who are adorable and from Cartwheels! However, the crying girl didn't come back :(
We started with warm-up as usual by running lines, and then we would do high knees, kick bum, inchworms, and more. donkey kicks, kick handstand with both good and bad legs, split leaps, wolf jumps (i don't have enough coordination for that...) catleaps, kicks and the straddle push thing that i hate so much.
And then something new... a front support position (so that's pushup position) with hollow back, and without bending your arms or legs, hop across the floor by pushing with your shoulders and fingers and feet. i can't really do it.
and also handstand pops, which i can sort of do, and handstand rolls, which are not difficult at all (though i cannot do straight-arm handstand rolls)
Finally, we started stretching, so normal flexibility things, bridges, splits, straddles, butterflys. but then, a new stretch, and it goes like this -
you lie back on your back with your legs in a butterfly, and your partner (or the coach in this case, because neither me nor the girl was willing to do this - it feels strange and exposing, especially since we're wearing shorts) will push your knees towards the ground. maybe it's my inflexibility, but it HURT. it felt like being crushed. i wasn't even embaressed about the position i was in anymore because it HURT. and then i start laughing because that's what i do when something hurts. o_o
we went to beam and bars first today, splitting off into two groups. my group went to beam and did forward walking, backwards walking, forward on tippy toes, and backwards on tippy toes, then switched to bars.
we would hang from the bar and lift our chins up to meet the bar, then straddle up to touch our feets to the bar, and slowly go back down, then chins up again (or not) and pike up instead, and slowly come back down. it works abs but i don't feel it o_o
back to beam! bunny hops forward and backwards, followed by kicks, dips, and tuck jumps (and i was NOT doing a tuck jump on the high beam! i learned before that straddling the beam after falling out of a tuck jump, or any jump, HURTS!!)
back to bars, and we worked on chin up pullovers, kick pullovers, cast x5, back hip circles. then we got some free time, so i did a kick pullover, a front hip circle, and almost instantly i could cast and tuck onto the low bar. then i jumped to high bar. then we went to the tumble track and we did as follows -
- straight jump x10 + handstand flatback
- tuck jump x10 + front tuck
- pike jump x10 + front layout
- straddle jump x10 + front layout / front tuck
- flysprings + trick of choice.
naturally, with the new girls, not everyone did the above as follows. sometimes we substituted the tucks and layouts for dive rolls, for the beginner girls.
Then to floor, where i worked on my back handsprings on the incline mat. it was not difficult but i was a bit worn out by that point so around 70% of it looked nice and pretty, the other 30% had bent arms or flailing legs.
The other girls worked on different things -
one worked back handsprings with me
one worked back tucks
one worked cartwheels and rolls
one worked round-offs
two worked front handsprings / back handsprings with a spotting block
then we were done, present, and off we go to eagerly await next week! :)
It was a fantabulous day - full of fun!
No trampolines, but plenty of amazingly advanced male gymnasts to watch - whilst i cannot aspire to be like that (since girls' gym and boys' gym is different) i very much enjoy watching them, since it is so close and so real, unlike how when you watch the Olympians, there is always a disconnection because it's through the TV and you don't get it - they're not there, living, breathing, encourging each other the same way you are in the same place you are.
Fabulous overall.
A bit more tired and hungry than last week, but that's alright.
I'll regret leaving RGA in winter term when i return to Phoenix. I'd stay if i could, but i cannot afford both and i really want to return to Phoenix <3
Well, that's that!! <3
^^ Till next time! :D
~
Monday 9 September 2013
Gym Story!
So, today was my first day of gymnastics class of the season, since summer term ended around 2 weeks ago.
I had intially intended to return to Phoenix but since i only got on the waiting list, i decided to invest my time at RGA for the fall season instead. (of course, just my luck, they took me off the waitlist just awhile ago but then i had to refuse since i was already at RGA and my mum believes that "i can't handle the pressure" especially being in Grade 12, the crucial year, at school...)
Anyway, i was a bit apprehensive about the whole thing since RGA is a pretty small place, and since Intermediate Girls and Teen Girls were at the same time, i just KNEW that they were gonna mush the two classes together, and hey guess what, they did!
I don't really mind that since all the girls were working on similar skills, but i dislike being a head taller than everyone else in the class, but you know, it is what it is and i'm there to work on gymnastics, not to compare height!
(this, and being too old, is also one of the reasons i left Cartwheels Inc. and headed off to RGA, Delta, and Phoenix a while back...)
It was a fun class, really! It was my type of class.
At Phoenix we usually did warm-up together and sometimes did lines, then had 45 minutes of free time in which we could work on what we wanted - which is good and i am motivated! but i prefer the more competitive type class, instead of the purely recreational.
(But yes, the class was rec and not comp)
We went ahead with warm up and we ran back and forth a few times, hopped, straight jumped, inch-wormed... did handstand pops, variations of handstands, and all that jazz...
there was this crazy thing where you sit in a straddle on the ground and lift up your legs, using only your arms to lift and propel yourself backwards. i can do it but my heels hit the ground every time. i think it's a progression to a straddle press. anyway, one of the older woman foreign coaches was watching me and being really strict so even though i cramped up really badly i had to continue, ehe~
Eventually we did a short stretch and then we were back on lines, doing front / back walkovers, as well as rolls like forward, backwards, straddle, back straddle, and eventually extension (i can't do this without hurting my hands)
At this point one of my classmates, a little girl from the Intermediate Girls class, who actually was a beginner, went home in tears :(
and then we did front and back handsprings and this is when the now group of four separated since we were at different levels. A male coach (as opposed to my young female coach) helped me with my back handspring and i pretty much got it right away, since i only took two weeks off, but this time, my back handsprings were able to be solid and controlled, instead of loose and uncontrollable like it was before.
He then proceeded to tell me to do it thirty more times, and i did it as follows:
"one....... two...... three......" (notices his attention turned to the boys he was coaching) "ten.... eleven..... ...... twenty....... twenty five...... thirty......."
Anyway with this i think i can improve quickly since it's so structured and the teachers are great! Foreign coaches really do teach the best. They encourage enthusiastically but remain strict and harsh at the same time. I like it!
After we went to the tumble track and worked on a few drills, as follows :
- long jumps x10 + front tuck
- straddle jumps x10 + front pike / front handspring
- right leg split jump x10 + front layout / front handspring
- left leg split jump x10 + front layout / front tuck
- bum drops x10 + flip / trick of choice
we repeated these a few times and then eventually went to bars, where we worked briefly on glide swing to pike, and then kip training, in which we would do our swing and then go to the floor and do a variation of the v-snap, in which our feet remains in the air but we bring our upper body up to touch our toes (arms by ears), and to the beams, where we place our hands on the beam and jump-lift our hips up as high as we can. i can just about place my feet onto the beam but i lurch forward when i try.
Then we worked on pullovers and chin up pullovers... i can get my chin to the bar but then i flail around because i can't pull my legs above the L-hand position. then some back hip circles for me, and the tiny powerhouse that trains with us, and then our 2 hours was up and we went and played a bit on the trampolines and watched the big boys train - they really are amazing!
i hear that some of RGA's boys actually went to Russia for some crazy international event, and they (alongside some kids from various other gyms) were representing Canada. GO TEAM!
Anyway, it was a fantabulous and fun day, but i think 2 hours is too little!!! I sort of wish i had 6 hour gym like before at Delta, but then back then it was competitive and we spent up to an hour doing warm ups and conditionings. I hate chin-ups the most. i did them like this: "one.... two.... ten.... fifteen.... twenty.... DONE!!" or avoided them altogether. hehe.
anyway, that's really about it!
Fantabulous first day.
As for wardrobe, i wore a green and black rhinestoned leo from Snowflake Leotards, as well as a pair of black shorts that say "DANCE" on the booty.~ pigtails for hair~
Well then, this is one of my favourite things! Until next time, then! Ciao~~~~!!!
~Rena<3
I had intially intended to return to Phoenix but since i only got on the waiting list, i decided to invest my time at RGA for the fall season instead. (of course, just my luck, they took me off the waitlist just awhile ago but then i had to refuse since i was already at RGA and my mum believes that "i can't handle the pressure" especially being in Grade 12, the crucial year, at school...)
Anyway, i was a bit apprehensive about the whole thing since RGA is a pretty small place, and since Intermediate Girls and Teen Girls were at the same time, i just KNEW that they were gonna mush the two classes together, and hey guess what, they did!
I don't really mind that since all the girls were working on similar skills, but i dislike being a head taller than everyone else in the class, but you know, it is what it is and i'm there to work on gymnastics, not to compare height!
(this, and being too old, is also one of the reasons i left Cartwheels Inc. and headed off to RGA, Delta, and Phoenix a while back...)
It was a fun class, really! It was my type of class.
At Phoenix we usually did warm-up together and sometimes did lines, then had 45 minutes of free time in which we could work on what we wanted - which is good and i am motivated! but i prefer the more competitive type class, instead of the purely recreational.
(But yes, the class was rec and not comp)
We went ahead with warm up and we ran back and forth a few times, hopped, straight jumped, inch-wormed... did handstand pops, variations of handstands, and all that jazz...
there was this crazy thing where you sit in a straddle on the ground and lift up your legs, using only your arms to lift and propel yourself backwards. i can do it but my heels hit the ground every time. i think it's a progression to a straddle press. anyway, one of the older woman foreign coaches was watching me and being really strict so even though i cramped up really badly i had to continue, ehe~
Eventually we did a short stretch and then we were back on lines, doing front / back walkovers, as well as rolls like forward, backwards, straddle, back straddle, and eventually extension (i can't do this without hurting my hands)
At this point one of my classmates, a little girl from the Intermediate Girls class, who actually was a beginner, went home in tears :(
and then we did front and back handsprings and this is when the now group of four separated since we were at different levels. A male coach (as opposed to my young female coach) helped me with my back handspring and i pretty much got it right away, since i only took two weeks off, but this time, my back handsprings were able to be solid and controlled, instead of loose and uncontrollable like it was before.
He then proceeded to tell me to do it thirty more times, and i did it as follows:
"one....... two...... three......" (notices his attention turned to the boys he was coaching) "ten.... eleven..... ...... twenty....... twenty five...... thirty......."
Anyway with this i think i can improve quickly since it's so structured and the teachers are great! Foreign coaches really do teach the best. They encourage enthusiastically but remain strict and harsh at the same time. I like it!
After we went to the tumble track and worked on a few drills, as follows :
- long jumps x10 + front tuck
- straddle jumps x10 + front pike / front handspring
- right leg split jump x10 + front layout / front handspring
- left leg split jump x10 + front layout / front tuck
- bum drops x10 + flip / trick of choice
we repeated these a few times and then eventually went to bars, where we worked briefly on glide swing to pike, and then kip training, in which we would do our swing and then go to the floor and do a variation of the v-snap, in which our feet remains in the air but we bring our upper body up to touch our toes (arms by ears), and to the beams, where we place our hands on the beam and jump-lift our hips up as high as we can. i can just about place my feet onto the beam but i lurch forward when i try.
Then we worked on pullovers and chin up pullovers... i can get my chin to the bar but then i flail around because i can't pull my legs above the L-hand position. then some back hip circles for me, and the tiny powerhouse that trains with us, and then our 2 hours was up and we went and played a bit on the trampolines and watched the big boys train - they really are amazing!
i hear that some of RGA's boys actually went to Russia for some crazy international event, and they (alongside some kids from various other gyms) were representing Canada. GO TEAM!
Anyway, it was a fantabulous and fun day, but i think 2 hours is too little!!! I sort of wish i had 6 hour gym like before at Delta, but then back then it was competitive and we spent up to an hour doing warm ups and conditionings. I hate chin-ups the most. i did them like this: "one.... two.... ten.... fifteen.... twenty.... DONE!!" or avoided them altogether. hehe.
anyway, that's really about it!
Fantabulous first day.
As for wardrobe, i wore a green and black rhinestoned leo from Snowflake Leotards, as well as a pair of black shorts that say "DANCE" on the booty.~ pigtails for hair~
Well then, this is one of my favourite things! Until next time, then! Ciao~~~~!!!
~Rena<3
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