STANDING TUCK

Standing Tuck Progression

Prerequisites Needed

If you’re a gymnast or cheerleader and you currently do not have a round-off back tuck, then standing tucks should be put on the back burner. Ideally, a round off back handspring tuck would be an even better base to start from. This is how I train all my competitive athletes.

The only time I make an exception to this rule is when break dancers, martial artists and parkour guys book a private lesson with me to exclusively learn a standing tuck. If you happen to be in this camp, then you might want to work with a certified coach to learn the round off tuck (it won’t take long and in the long run, you’ll have two skills to show off). Therefore, for the remainder of this guide I’m going to assume you already know how to do a round-off back tuck at the bare minimum.

Phase 1: The Eagle

The absolute first thing I teach is something I like to call The Eagle position. This is crucial since 99.9% of the time athletes learn their BHS well before they get to tucks.

This means they most probably have a habit of keeping their chest upright.

An upright chest position is great if you want to go backwards, but a SBT requires height while minimizing any horizontal distance travelled.

In order to achieve this, you need to drop your chest. Also, just as in a BHS, a SBT requires a very aggressive arm swing and shoulder lift, giving you some added height (more on that soon).

Here are some key points to remember about The Eagle:

Head position stays neutral (i.e look straight ahead, not down or up)
Drop your chest (but not so far that your torso is parallel to the floor)
Arms go as far back as they can
Do not sit all the way down (this is not a squat, so no need to go too low – thighs at a 45 degree angle is all you’ll need)
Get into position slowly, but come out of it explosively

Phase 1: Drill 1

Eagle to Straight Jump (15 reps)

Phase 1: Drill 2

Eagle to Tucked Candlestick (30 reps)

Be sure to follow the timing and rhythm exactly as shown. Do not rush it.
A Vault is not required, you can used stacked mats or blocks. Just make sure it’s above-waist height.

Pase1: Drill 3

Eagle to Dead-Bug Jump Back (30 reps)

Notice how I drive my hips into the air and appear to “float” for a second? This is what you’re looking for.
Do not drive your knees & hips up quickly here, as it will cause you to rotate and land on your neck. You need to take the fall on your back. We’ll work exclusively on the rotation in Phase 2.
Leave your arms up and do not drop them

Important Note Going Forward: Never initiate a standing tuck drill (or the tuck itself) from The Eagle or a hands-down position. Always start while standing on your toes with your arms by your ears. The reason for this is simple: you’re pre-practicing the position you want your body to hit in the air. The order of execution for a standing tuck are as follows: Stand tall > The Eagle > Straight Jump > Tuck. Memorize this.

Phase 2: Tuck Timing & Rotation

The two biggest differences between a RO tuck and a standing tuck (besides the take off) are:

The speed of rotation.
The timing of the “open” during landings.

While the actual rotation technique stays the same, you have much less time to make it over, requiring you to be explosive. This is why one of my favorite transitioning drills is a straight jump rebound to back tuck on a Tumble Trak, as seen below.

Phase 2: Drill 1

Straight Jump Rebound to Tuck (50 reps)

The idea behind this drill is that it feels like a safe middle ground between the RO tuck and the SBT.

It’s designed so that you aren’t stepping too far outside your comfort zone (yet). So make sure your rebound jumps aren’t ridiculously high; keep it realistic, and rely on your tall arm set and rotation to help get you over.

Phase 2: Drill 2

Standing Tuck with Spot On Tumble Trak (10 reps)

It’s extremely important to film yourself at this stage because if you’re making any of the common mistakes such as:

Not throwing your arms up and opening your shoulders
Throwing your head back
Dropping your arms during the tuck
Not having enough hip drive

…then you want to fix them now rather than later. Once you form a bad habit, it’ll take twice as long to learn it right.

Phase 2: Drill 3

Standing Tuck On Tumble Track No Spot (50 reps)

Phase 3: Are You Strong Enough?

As a coach I make it my job to always be honest with my athletes – and sometimes, this requires telling them things they need to hear (even if they don’t want to). So let me just go on record to say that if you have a terrible vertical jump, the SBT will forever be out of your reach.

Unlike a RO BT where you can rely on technique, angles, momentum and a sprung floor to give you the height you need, the SBT requires you to generate power from next to nothing, and therefore, strength has a big role to play in the equation.

I’ve written an entire article on how you can boost your jumping power and I suggest you read up on it. Included in the article is also a conditioning program that you can use which relies on both explosive movements, proper squats and resistance training with weights.

If you don’t have access to weights, here’s a basic leg conditioning routine you can perform with just bodyweight:

[Sets] x [Reps]

Bodyweight Squat: 2 x 20
Jump Squats: 3 x 15
Eagle To Straight Jump (Drill #1): 2 x 20
Straight Jump Rebounds: 2 x 100
Calf Raises (one leg at a time): 2 x 30

Do this program 3x a week, either after your SBT training session or on days you’re not tumbling. Remember, conditioning doesn’t make you stronger right away – in fact it makes you weaker since your muscle fibers are put under stress, and experience micro-tears.

Phase 3: Drill 1

Standing Tuck From Raised Surface, No Spot (30 reps)

There are multiple ways to set this up – I chose to utilize both a block and a softer mat on top of a resi pit for this particular athlete. You might have to make do with less equipment but the point is, you need to go off a higher surface that gives you zero bounce.
As your SBT starts to get better, slowly increase the landing surface so that it starts to feel more like floor. Once you can land your SBT on a surface that is almost at the floor level, you’re ready for Drill #8.

Phase 3: Drill 2

Standing Tuck Onto Level Crash, No Spot (50 reps)

There’s a good reason why I’ve suggested doing so many reps – technique is everything, and before you try it on floor, you need to be extremely consistent in your pull.

Phase 3: Drill 3

Standing Tuck on Floor Light spot (15 reps)

Make sure you have a spotter you know you can trust, this goes without saying.

Do not, under any circumstances, under-power or get lazy while attempting this final drill. If you’re too tried, take a break and do it when you have energy. If anything, you want to be extra-aggressive. Tumbling that’s fast and tight is will keep you safe. Tumbling that’s slow and loose will break you.

Other Tuck Drills

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