Gymnastics exercises: Bridge

Perhaps, your little girl tried to stand in the bridge many times without your help. Little kids very often incurve parodying bridges. How to make bridge correctly?
The bridge is correct, beautiful and high when fingers are close to the heels (it is good when they touch the heels), feet are at shoulder length

Exercises that will help to develop flexibility and strengthen back:
1. Child is standing on the knees, arch back and put your hands on the floor. Repeat 10–15 times

2. Face-down, child takes her feet with the hands, bend the knees and sway. She should draw the hands and feet up and sway like on the swing. If the child fails swinging, help her.

3. Face down, feet together. Hold her feet. She should try to lift her back with the hands behind the head (bent elbows) or straight forward (when she curves she should press hands to the ears). You may repeat this exercise until the child is tired (10–20 times). Thus you won’t only develop flexibility, but strengthen her back. This exercise can be done at the gym wall bar: the child is face down, the ladder is behind her, put her feet under the lowest bar and she arches backwards, you may give a ball in her hands, this will make the exercise more complicated.

4. Face down, feet together, arching backwards. You may stay behind the girl and pull her shoulders to her feet, than take her hands and pull them in the same way holding her feet so that they could not be separated. Make it very gently.

5. Face down, child arches backwards and bends the knees, her feet should touch the head of the little gymnast

6. Child puts her hands on the bar and arches backwards standing beside the gym wall bar at the distance of 50–60 cm

7. Child puts aside her legs from the gym wall hanging on it. Repeat it 10–15 times. The bigger the distance between the legs and the wall, the better back muscles are working and the better effect you achieve.

8. Exercise «boat»: face down, child lifts her legs and arms simultaneously. Repeat it 10–15 times. This is a good exercise for back strengthening.

9. Child is standing in front of you, feet at shoulder length, hold her back and let the girl curve backwards, you may bounce putting her back up and down. Make 5 bounces and then return her back in the vertical position. Repeat this exercise 3–4 times; it will help to warm up her back.

10. «Cat» is the most useful exercise for little gymnasts. Child is standing on all fours and makes the following arches: «angry cat» — when the head is drawing to the pelvis- and «kind cat» — when the head is drawing to the belly (contract position). Even tiny little children, who can only crawl, do this exercise with huge enthusiasm.

When the back of your child is strong enough and ready for more complicated exercises, it’s time to teach her to stand in the bridge from vertical position. It’s better to put something soft on the floor so that your girl won’t hit her head, because her arms are weak yet and they will sprawl out. That’s why it’s important to do this exercise with the help of mother or father. Then gymnast should stand in the correct position: feet at shoulder length, arms near the ears, eyes look at the finger tips. Hold the back of your child (stay beside the child, so that she could lie on your arms). Child slowly arches backwards. When the arch of a little gymnast is so good that her eyes can see the floor, let her put the hands on the floor. You also hold the child’s leotard (t-shirt) standing in front of her. Every time try to participate less in the exercise. When you are sure that your child won’t hit her head standing in the bridge, let her do this without your help.

And one more useful exercise that will help your child to stand in the bridge from the vertical position: child should turn her back to the wall (it would be better if it’s gym wall) at the short distance, arch backwards and start crawling with her hands down the wall till she puts her hands on the floor (if it is gym wall, she could capture the bars from the highest to the lowest one).