Tips for a Successful Open Gym

Hello everyone and happy Sunday!

How was your first week? I hope everyone loved it.

I just realized that we have a lot of new families who have recently joined Akrosphere. So for those who don’t know me, my name is Mar and I am the Director of First Impressions. You’ve probably communicated with me if you’ve emailed the gym. I started my career as a gymnast when I was 8 years old and found my love fo aerial arts and circus as an adult. I also write this lovely blog every week. Nice to meet you!

One thing that Akrosphere has to offer is open gym. I’ve had a few calls asking for more information about open gym, and it made me realize that not every knows how it works. It is available for the kids who are in apparatus specific classes, so mostly for our 11 and up students. If your child is not yet that age, please keep reading because they will get there one day. Open gym is a time for your child to come work on their own. I know that could seem a little intimidating, especially if you’re new to Akrosphere. Working on their own means that there won’t be a coach instructing open gym, but there will always be a supervisor making sure that everyone is safe. 

If you haven’t participated in open gym before, I know this question pops up: “Without a teacher, what am I even supposed to do?” Lucky for you, I have compiled a few tips for a successful open gym experience.

First, always begin your training with a warm up. Start with about 5 minutes of cardio, then 5 minutes of strength, and finish with 5 minutes of stretching. It’s not that scary if you break up the time. If you’re still confused, everything you do in class for warm up is good. 

Now you’re warm and ready to go, but again, what are you even supposed to do? Do what you know! Make sure you bring your class notebook to help you remember what you’ve been working on. You can start by practicing that new skill you learned that week, but you should also work on skills you already know. I’m sure you’ve all heard that practice makes perfect. This is the time to clean up form and technique. Think about the things your teacher tells you in class a lot, like “point your foot” or “make your legs straight” and take the time to perfect that skill. 

Another great thing to work on is sequencing! That’s just a fancy word for putting skills together without coming off the apparatus. Start with two skills. Do that a few times. Then try three. The fun thing is you don’t always have to do the same skills, you can switch it up and see what things work in a sequence. Remember that you should always have enough strength to come down safely! Open gym is all about working hard, but most especially working smart.

One big thing about open gym is that there is NO TEACHING happening. That doesn’t just refer to the coaches, but it also means, that no student should be teaching another student anything. If you’re at open gym and you look over and see Susie doing a cool trick, you shouldn’t ask her to teach you. Susie is not a teacher, and while she looks very cool doing something, she may not know how to explain in detail every single step that makes that skill successful and safe. Another thing to think about is that Susie may have been taking circus classes for 3 years, so her body is strong and ready for that skill. As coaches, we are only teaching things that we know your body is ready for. Open gym is the time to work on those things, not to try new things. That also applies to that cool trick you saw on instagram. Please please please, if you really want to try something you saw in a video, bring it to a teacher first so that we can determine if you are ready for the skill and so that we can deconstruct it so that you are safe. I feel like I’ve said the word “safe” a thousand times now, but just like the Hokey Pokey, that’s what it’s all about!

Have great classes and great open gyms!

Catch you next week!

Mar