My favorite phrase is progress isn’t linear. It is the greatest truism of The Geriatric Gymnast. Well, of any gymnast, to be honest.
I have had more fails than successes and myriad losses of skills that were once done and dusted.
For me, the whole point of gymnastics training is the journey. The learning about my body and brain, how it processes the work, how the progress ebbs and flows depending upon…my mood, my body, my cycle, the weather, etc.
This page is dedicated to showing the journey (for better or worse). Failure itself doesn’t dishearten me. Failure to keep trying does. Here, I offer some videos for different skills that I think point out different phases of progress. The ups and downs are all part of the process.
Let’s start with back hip circles.
This gem highlights almost a year’s worth of trial and error.
Eventually it becomes consistent, but that doesn’t mean it will stick forever.
Then, there’s handstands. I’ve spent years working on them and I still have some uneasiness about them, despite my strength and stability.
This video just shows one session, but it speaks to the ideas that it’s all about the grind each time. Keep trying, keep learning.
This is called: “Embrace Failure.” It’s the epitome of progress isn’t linear.
Need I say more?
Vault has been an on-again-off-again event for me.
What helped get me back after recovering from the Achilles rupture was the idea that I wanted to compete in the all-around in 2026.
This is my return to vault training after my Achilles recovery. I’m nervous and Mr. Lizard is all wiggly. Luckily, he’s not screaming loudly enough for me to stop.
Leave a Reply