New Tricks #4 - Swing Kicks & The Return of Brother Johnson!

I interrupted Brother Johnson halfway through his own workout to bring you (and me) this rare technique he calls 'Swing Kicks'..

As instructed by Brother Johnson, we are looking for core control and a nice, smooth movement - unlike my opening attempt. This comes from strength and stability in the shoulder and hip joint, along with good posture.


Part 1 - The L-Sit

A good place to start, and something i have been working on since. It is one of the fundamental gymnastics moves used many different apparatus such as the ring and parallets. It is a static hold that you can see in the first phase of the 'swing kick' technique.
The legs are extended horizontal or above, the back is straight, arms are locked out and the head is up. A static hold in this position for a given time is a great way to build the shoulder and hip strength and stability needed for a move like this.

Shoulder Positioning:
Optimal positioning of the shoulder joint will allow for maximum strength/stability in this move. This can be done by gripping the parallets firm, fully extending the elbows and focusing on pushing the bars into the ground (as opposed to pushing your body up/away from them). Now squeeze the shoulder blades together. Keep the head up and chest proud (as proud as you can!)

Hip Positioning:
Working together with the shoulder joint, the correct hip position is what enables us to hold this position. Really what we are talking about here is the 'core' - we are just breaking it down to two separate pieces for this explanation.
By drawing the belly 'in' and engaging the core, the hips come forward. They should stay in this position throughout the whole move - you can see that in the second phase (prone, or face down) of the movement mine do not due to poor hip control.

I will get back at Brother Johnson and find out how to master the second phase of the move.. Stay tuned for Part 2.