International Terminology of Acrobatic Gymnastics

• Acrobatics
• Balance
  • Handstands
  • Supports
  • Footstands
  • Base Positions
  • Mounts
  • Motions
• Dynamic
  • Starting Positions
  • Landing Positions
• Individual Elements
  • Flexibilities
  • Statics
  • Agilities
  • Tumbling
• Dance & Choreography
• Strength & Conditioning

Acrobatics

• Acro, short for Acrobatic Gymnastics
• Acrobatics describes movement that is especially elegant and virtuous, including high degrees of balance, dynamics, flexibility, strength and coordination as well as a performance art of displaying these acrobatic moves in the context of shows or competitions in Acrobatic Gymnastics. A person that practices and/or performs Acrobatics and/or competes in Acrobatic Gymnastics in particular and/or performs acrobatics professionally, is called an “Acrobat”.
  • Etymology: “Acrobat” comes from greek akrobatos, a compound of akros and batēs. Akros means one who is at the top, at a peak, in great height, from the indogermanic root *ak-, which stands for “being sharp”, “raising up” or “piercing/urging through”. Batēs means “one who walks” or “strides” in some way. Literally, an acrobat is someone who walks high, walks on the tip (including on tip toes), such as a “ropewalker” (in German, rope-walkers are called Seiltänzer, meaning “rope-dancers”). Based on the etymology, in a metaphorical sense an acrobat can be described as someone who strides up, striving for greater height and to pierce through towards a higher point, which fits well both to the balance in acrobatics (where acrobats are always striving for maximum extension, the base partner holding the top partner as high as he can, the top stretching her body upwards to the sky from her hand to her pointed toes) as well as to dynamics (where the acrobats literally fly after being thrown and try to fly higher). It also fits indirectly in the sense of the constant striving for higher level skills.
• Acrobatic Disciplines: Acrobatics in a general sense (not limited to the codified gymnastic form) covers many different disciplines. Defined as “acrobatic” are all the various disciplines that are especially virtuous in nature, display extraordinary physical control combined with either unusual strength and/or flexibility and/or balance and/or coordination. / There are many acrobatic disciplines which contain external apparata or external objects. Rope-Walkers require a rope, Aerialists require some kind of apparatus rigged to the ceiling (e.g. Straps, Silks, Hoop, Trapeze, Chinese Pole etc.), others require Apparata on the floor (e.g. a teetherboard), Handbalancers most often use Canes to balance on, Equilibrists balance external things and the entire area of “Object Manipulation” obviously requires objects (such as in juggling). Skateboarding is an extraordinary example for an acrobatic discipline in which the acrobat works quasi with both an Apparatus and manipulates an Object at the same time. But there are a few acrobatic disciplines that do not need any external object nor apparatus. It is them we focus on in this project, since Acrobatic Gymnastics as a sport is a mixture of these disciplines that do not require anything but the body of an acrobat working individually and the bodies of two or more acrobats when working together.
  • Floor Acro consists of acrobatic motions that are performed individually on the floor with nothing but ones body; the movement can be choreographed or improvised or be a mixture of both. / There are also specific movements in Artistic Gymnastics that are assigned the attribute of being “acrobatic”. / Floor Acro contains some of these “official” gymnastic acrobatic moves, but also incorporates moves from diverse dance styles or martial arts; it just holds everything that is acrobatic in nature and can be done alone on the floor. / Exceptional floor acrobats link their elements fluidly together like dancers, in often long and complex sequences that are very different than the rather “rigid” Artistic Gymnastic floor routines. While in Artistic Gymnastics the acrobatic moves are almost always performed in straight “lines”, Floor Acrobats may as well perform their acrobatics in Curves, in Circles, in Spirals or any other way.
  • Handbalancing consists of balancing on ones hands, on two hands or one, performing different handstand shapes and forms in an artistic manner, improvised or choreographed. While it is often performed on Canes on stage it does not require any equipment and can as well be practiced and performed on the floor.
  • Contortion focuses on the display of extreme degrees of flexibility, often shown by genetically gifted girls or women and often combined with handbalancing. In German Contortionists have been generally described as “Schlangenmenschen” (snake humans) due to their seemingly unlimited ability to bend their bodies.
  • Hand to Hand is a particular category of partner acrobatics without any apparatus and without any objects, where the acrobats (at least two) perform acrobatic feats with each other on the floor. Hand to Hand is the primary discipline in Acrobatic Gymnastics and shown in Circus Acts, but for some reason it seems to be not as widely known and not as frequently performed on stage as other acrobatic disciplines.

• Acrobatic History: The origins of acrobatics can be traced back to ancient Egypt, Greece and many other fallen cultures of the past. In fact, while almost known the least and probably being the least popular, Acrobatic Gymnastics is the oldest of all gymnastic sports. […] Other than this cultural background, there are also practical applications of Acrobatics that may have contributed to its development. Human Pyramids may have been build first for simple practical reasons: When trying to climb up a tree with an unreachable branch, humans just climbed on each other to reach higher and get up to the fruit. A similar anecdote: Once a ball has landed on a low roof outside the hall. The boys were asking us for help and wanted to know if we have a ladder. We told them: We do not need a ladder for this. We went out together, a girl stood on top of me and reached for the ball easily. The boys could have taken the ball themselves would they have known about and practiced this simple skill. This is the functional essence of Acrobatics. In the same way we know that in ancient Greece there were some sort of special forces in the army that have been trained to climb on top of each other in order to overcome walls of their enemies. Human pyramids are also performed to this day in diverse cultures in celebrative contexts. Acrobats performed on shows and festivals in all kinds of cultures and times, in ancient Greece and China as well as in medieval Europe, where already, just as today, acrobats and other performance artists, musicians etc. travelled from city to city to perform - the roots of the Circus. And still today most people (at least in Germany) associates Acrobats mostly with the Circus and less so with a particular sport. Less known and studied may be the roots of Acrobatics in childhood, which I therefore want to put some focus on. There may be valuable studies to be made in regard to children’s development both in context of psychology as well as physiology and motor-control.
• Acrobatics as Exploration: Acrobatics can be thought of as a continuation of childish exploration (into adulthood). It is an advanced form of exploration of pure human movement capabilities (“pure” in the sense of purely focused on the human body without any external apparatus or object). Acrobatics is rooted in childs play, it is childs play getting serious. Children explore their bodies and the capabilities of their bodies, to find out what their bodies can do (it may be surprising, but it is true, that a small percentage of toddlers learn completely on their own to push themselves up into a bridge from a lying position before they even learn to crawl). There is a natural joy involved in the exploration of movement, which is crucial for children to have in order to learn all the once necessary (and today at least useful) and very complex human movement skills. Both “pure” human movement skills as well as “extended” ones via tools; both are critical for survival and at the roots of every human culture. Acrobatics evolves from the childish love for movement, the joy of adults about and with the child, the childs desire to experience more of this joy by more and greater movement and mastery of their bodies, the adults willingness to help them thereby and their own playfulness to participate in their play by offering their strength advantage and the lightness of the child to lift, hold, swing and throw it. What acrobats are doing is to proceed from the simplest movements learned as a child towards ever more complex movements by simply continueing to explore the movement capabilities of the human body - it is thus not without a reason that in eastern Europe, where Acrobatic Gymnastics originated, it has been described as the “foundation” of all sports. From the exploration of movement capabilities of their own body, children proceed to explore what their bodies can do with other things, with tools etc. (and this playful exploration of handling tools/objects leads to craft of all sorts as well as to advanced juggling or equilibristic). Floor acrobatics is the continuation of the exploration of the capabilities of the body without any tools, while partner acrobatics is an extension of said childish exploration by including the bodies of others into the exploration of possibilities, by moving in cooperation. In the joy about and with the child, a father, feeling blessed, may lift his child up into the sky, sharing its joy and excitement. He may throw it up and catch it again, he may swing it around, the child wanting him to do it again and again… It is the joy and drill involved in a movement that it cannot perform on its own, as it can only be performed together. As well many mothers, while playing with their child, hold it on their feet, playing “flying”, a fundamental beginner element in Acro. All of this is acrobatics. Acrobatic Gymnastics is the refinement of this natural, playful practice and the result of following through with the exploration of human movement capabilities to the utmost extreme, codified into a complex art and a competitive sport system and educational training system for the preservation and progress of the art. Higher level acrobatics is born in and evolving from these very roots in childhood. And due to these very roots it shouldn’t be surprising that Acrobatics has always been a sports performed by partners with smaller or larger age differences, just as fathers with their daughters (not an unusual partnership in the Circus).

• Acrobatics as an inter-generational art: The acrobatic culture (from children playing with their parents and friends, over circus families, to modern acrobatic gymnastics) has always been a culture of inter-generational cooperation, which is a very specific characteristic of the art. In all kinds of other movement arts and sports, adults are teaching children, but they usually will not perform or compete together. In Acrobatics children aren’t isolated from the youth or adults as is the case in many other areas of modern life. In Acro it is normal and physically necessary that older teenagers work with younger children and adults work with teenagers. It is also by simple physics that acrobatics as a sport has been and will always be dominated by children or teenagers as upper partners. Also in the senior level of the sports with grown-up athletes of 15 or 16+, the sport will alwags be dominated by those teenagers as upper partners with child-like proportions or those adults with early-teen like proportions. This obviously does not exclude the possibility of rare exceptions, where a partnership with disadvantages in height and/or weight manages to overcome their opponents in difficulty with more advantages; but these cases will remain exceptions. / While it is obvious that for reasons of fairness these differences have to (and at least partially are) taken into account in context of sports/competition, it isn’t justified to make fun of or belittle such partnerships neither in competitive performance (where they already receive a lot of deduction for it, which may be fair in some cases and very unfair in other cases, because weight difference is more important but isn’t taken into account) nor in non-competitive performance (as for instance in traditional Circus families, where a father may perform with his young daughter). It is a simple fact, that without children acrobatics wouldn’t be practiced much and adult acrobats basically continue to act out and to preserve (or in many cases re-discover) this “playfulness” of childhood that is inherent in Acro.

• Acrobatics vs. Dance: Many of the things we wrote about Acrobatics above could as well be said about Dance. What is the difference between balletic and acrobatic movement? Like acrobats, dancers continue to evolve their movement repertoire in exceptionally complex ways. Most people stop doing so past a specific point in their childhood or youth, when having learned the most basic movements needed for everyday life; after that their movement starts to slowly degrade. Many children nowadays acquire more movement capabilities than strictly needed in modern society, such as climbing, swimming or jumping. But since these skills are no longer necessary for them, fewer children master these basic skills and more and more people loose these skills early. What once has been crucial to master has now become optional or “nice to have”, only done in the context of “recreational activity”. Thus, Acrobats as well as Dancers continue their exploration of the movement capabilities of their bodies way past the necessary skill set. I would say that there is no fundamental difference between a dancer and a floor acrobat; the difference lies in specific qualities and the focus or “direction” of their movement. Partner acrobats as they practice in Acrobatic Gymnastics add to their individual movement the additional realm of cooperation between two or more human bodies, but in “higher”, more difficult and more “vertical”, essentially “playful” ways of movement complexity, compared to what is done in different forms of dancing with a partner. While contamporary or ballet develop human movement between partners into the direction of the greatest elegance, softness, emotional expression and gentle intimacy, overcoming shyness and presenting themselves on stage in all their vulnerability, evoking diverse emotions, acrobatics develops human movement between partners into the direction of the greatest virtuous velocity, breathtaking and surprising stunts, unusual displays of strength, hardship and trust, overcoming fear, including playing with fear and especially with “wonder”, “catching” the audience. In the end, both Dance and Acrobatics are performance Arts and have many things in common; any difference that may exist dissolves in interdisciplinary disciplines like Acro Dance or Acrobatic Gymnastics, where dance is a crucial aspect of the performance. But one way to describe the difference may be that dancers develop their skills in a more lateral way and acrobats in a more vertical way. Dancers focus more on the subleties of expression, the elegance and variety of their movement, while acrobats focus more on the precision, difficulty and technical execution of their movement. But the border between Acro and Dance, if there ever was any, is fluid.

• Acrobatic Gymnastics is one of the official gymnastic sports of the FIG (Federation Internationale de Gymnastique), in which the above mentioned disciplines that do not require apparata nor objects were codified in form of three major categories: Duo (2), Trio (3) and Quartett (4), with five possible formations: Mixed Pair (MxP or Mx2), Womens Pair (WP or W2), Mens Pair (MP or M2), Womens Group (WG or W3) and Mens Group (MG or M4). In the past there were mixed groups too, but no more. In these pairs and groups the partner perform acrobatic partner elements in Hand to Hand. There are other sports like “Cheerleading” that also involve the discipline of Hand to Hand to some degree, but objectively on a much lower technical level than in Acro. In Acrobatic Gymnastics hand to hand is performed on the highest levels. The pairs or groups compete only against other pairs and groups of the same category (e.g. Mixed Pairs only compete against other Mixed Pairs) in three different routines: Balance, Dynamic and Combined. But it also contains high level handbalancing (on the partner) as well as contortion and floor acrobatics to some degree. On competitions the same spring floor of 12x12m is used as in Artistic Gymnastics, primarily for safety reasons by landing from dynamic elements.
• Acrobatic Gymnastics History: ToDo… / (…) It was also not always the case that Acro is done without any Apparatus. Once, in the early years of the sports, Trapez was competed. Canes on a Podest were also a discipline on its own and for longer, which has since been discontinued on the international level, but is still possible to compete on regional competitions, primarily as a substitution and a way to keep practicing and competing for those who are momentarily without a partner. Some federations started to organise competitions on “Blocks” (small canes) since they are widely used in training for the preparation of the tops anyway and are much easier and cheaper to get and to transport than the large Podests of the past.
  • From Artistic Strength Sport to Sportacrobatics: ToDo
  • From Sportacrobatics to Acrobatic Gymnastics: ToDo
• Element: An element is the official term for the acrobatic skill that is performed either in a partnership or individually by the acrobat(s). Thus elements are divided into two categories: “Partner Elements” and “Individual Elements”. They ate also sometimes described as tricks or stunts, especially outside of gymnastics.
  • Motions and Links: Elements can either be performed on their own in seperation or be part of a Sequence. Balance elements can be seemlessly connected or “sequenced” via Motions. Dynamic elements can be seemlessly connected or sequenced via Links.
  • Partner Elements are those elements that are performed with a partner (in pairs) or partners (in groups). They are what acrobatic routines are designed around, they are what is judged primarily, what gives the most points and what the sport is essentially made of (in comparison to individual elements, which are less important). Partner Elements are divided into the two categories of “Balance” and “Dynamic”. Every element falls in one of these two categories, but can also be combined. For instance a balance position can become the starting or landing position for a dynamic element.
  • Individual Elements are those elements that are performed individually on the floor. They are less important than partner elements, give less value and in order to put more focus on the partner elements they have become optional in the senior level, while remaining mandatory in the age groups for reasons of skill development. Since this change in the rules many senior partnerships do not perform any individual elements anymore. Individual elements are divided into four categories: (1) Agility, (2) Static, (3) Flexibility and (4) Tumbling.
    • Agility Elements: Agilities are individual floor acro elements done from a standing or walking position and landing in a variety of positions, that are supposed to demomstrate agility. Some examples: A backhandspring from standing, landing in a lunge, a headspring with a 180° rotation into a plank, a salto from a standing position into side splits. Agilities differ from tumbling elements primarily through their setup of not running into it, not translating forward momentum into upward momentum (as done in tumbling).
    • Static Elements: Statics are individual balance elements like handstands, footstands or levers/supports performed on the floor. They have to be statically fixated for 2 seconds.
    • Flexibility Elements: Flexibilities are individual elements performed on the floor that are supposed to demonstrate a specific, standardised degree of flexibility, either statically in form of splits and bridges, or dynamically in movements such as walkovers.
    • Tumbling Elements: Tumbling are handsprings, somersaults and twists which, other than agilities, are performed with a run-up into them in succession by translating forward momentum into upward momentum. A typical example would be a Round-off → Backhandspring → Back Tuck.
• Dance, ToDo
• Choreography, short Choreo, (ToDo) / The choreography connects acrobatic elements with dance. Choreos are often divided into smaller “passagess” or “sequences”, often consisting of a specific choreo portion and an element or a sequence of elements.
• Artistry, ToDo
• Execution, ToDo
• Technique, ToDo
• Sequence, ToDo

Partner work (ToDo)

• Partner(s)
• Base
• Top
• Middle
• Fomation
• Pair
• Group
• Team
• Duo
• Trio
• Quartet
• Mixed Pair
• Womens Pair
• Mens Pair
• Womens Group
• Mens Group

Balance

• Balance
• Balance Categories of Elements
  • Handstands
  • Headstands
  • Supports
  • Footstands
  • Splits
  • Cross
  • Levers
• Point(s) of Support
• Hand to Hand
• Foot to Hand
• Foot to Foot
• Hand to Foot
• Head to Hand
• 2on2 (read two on two) means two hands on two hands or feet, or two feet on two hands or feet; when holding it hand to hand 2on2 can either mean having the hands separated or on top of each other (“knot”).
• 2on1 (read two on one) means two hands on top of each other (“knot”) on one hand or foot.
• 1on2 (read one on two) means one hand on two hands or feet on top of each other (“knot”) or one foot on two hands or feet on top of each other.

• 1on1 (read one on one) means one hand on one hand or foot, or one foot on one hand, or one foot on one foot. For example, the easiest and shortest way to describe a “One Arm Handstand held with one extended Arm of the Base” would be: High 1on1 HS, which does not define the base position though, so it could as well refer to a seated or a lying position, thus more precisely Standing High 1on1 HS. But since the standing position is the default, the standard position in Acro, and since the most essential 1on1 position is the One on One Handstand (less often a footstand or lever), “1on1” alone lets acrobats most often think of a standing high 1on1 handstand.

• Mono, Extended Mono is a different and less condensed way of describing One Arms. An “Extended Mono” is meant to be the One on One Handstand on straight arm, that is commonly used in non-gymnastic acro circles. We do not suggest using it, since it says less with more. Extended here refers to an extended arm of the base, which we use to define as “high” or “straight” arm, while “Mono” could either refer to one arm/foot of the base or one arm/foot of the top; it does not make it really clear that it is One on One, that both partners are balancing with one arm/foot only. Also while usually being used to describe a handstand, it doesn’t make this clear either, as it could as well be about a One on One Footstand or One on One Straddle Support. While obviously it will be clear what is meant by context (just as 1on1 as well refers to a Handstand most of the time), when it has to be described precisely, it is still shorter and more precise to say “High 1on1 (HS)” (if it is about a Handstand specifically) than to say “Extended Mono (HS)”, by which it is still unclear by the words if it is the base holding it with one arm or the top or both. A 2on1 Handstand is also “mono” on behalf of the top and also extended, and a 1on2 Handstand is “mono” on behalf of the base. But only “1on1” clearly signifies that both partners balance on one arm or leg.

• Short

• Extended is a different way to refer to straight or high arms used in non-gymnastic acro circles, which we do not recommend to use. Referring to the arms of the base as being “extended” is confusing, because when speaking of the position of the arms, we tend to think of shoulder extension, not elbow extension; extended arms refer to a very different position with the arms in extension (behind the back), while what this is really about is straight arms and most often, when speaking of a standing position, in shoulder flexion, not in extension. Thus, when acro gymnasts speak of e.g. Extended 1on1, they may refer to a position in which the base is bend over forward and holds the top on one arm held vertically in shoulder extension behind his back in a forward-fold, because here the shoulder holds the arm in an actually extended position, while a regular Straight/High Arm 1on1 has the shoulder in a flexed position.

• Bent Arms, a position of the arms of the base partner, which, in a lying position, equals the starting position in a floor press, with the elbows close to the torso, while in a seated, kneeling, lunging or standing position equals the position of the arms e.g. in a shoulder press, with the hands held about shoulder width apart.
• Straight Arms refer to the arms of the base partner, holding them straight, not bent, either in a 90° angle from the body/floor when lying, or in a 180° angle and in an overhead position (shoulder flexion) when in a seated, kneeling, lunging or standing position.
• Half Arm, …
• High Arm, …
• One Arm, …
• Two Arms, …
• Knot, …

Handstands

• Handstand, short HS, is a balance element on two or one hand with the body in an inverted position (head down, feet up) and the most fundamental and characteristic element of Acrobatic Gymnastics. In no other gymnastics sport are handstands performed on such a high level. In artistic gymnastics One Arm Handstands are very rarely seen, while they are common in Acro. Based on the orientation of the body in the handstand, there are different categories of handstands:
  • A: Straight Variations
  • B: Arched Variations
  • C: Piked Variations
  • D: Flagged Variations
  • D1: Gripped Flags
• Inversion, ToDo
• Category B: Arch Handstands, …, an Arch of more than X° is called a Deep Arch.
• Category C: Piked Handstands, also called L-Handstands, since the body forms an inverted L, in English most often called “Seven”, since the body has the form of a “7”. A variation of the Seven is the “4”, which is like a seven, but with one leg bent, resulting in a shape remeniscient of the “4”. Another handstand variation technically belonging to this category, that is not part of the official handstand elements, but is a fundamental position in training, is what we call the “Deep Pike”. Galina Sinyavskaya calls it “Visulka”, Sergej X describes it as the “Icycle”. This is a handstand in which the legs point vertically down, held close to the chest like in a seated or standing pike, while holding a handstand and keeping the hip above the shoulders, heavily resisting in the shoulders to not fall forward.
• Category D: Flags, … A Flag with the legs oriented downwards in an angle of 30-45° is called a Deep Flag.
• Category D1: Gripped Flags, …
• Figa is a One Arm Handstand from the category of piked handstands with a 45° rotation of the back with the legs held horizontally to the floor. A Figa where the back is twisted so much that the legs are not oriented sideways but behind the body we refer to as an Over-Figa. A Figa in which the legs are not held horizontally but pointing downwards as in a “Deep Pike” (Visulka or Icycle), we refer to as a “Deep Figa”. Both Over-Figa and Deep-Figa are not yet categorized as unique handstands in the ToD.
• Uncategorized Handstands:
  • Visulka / Deep Pike / Icycle …
  • Over-Figa …

Supports

• Supports are categorized in the ToD among “miscellaneous elements”. We are suggesting to describe them as supports and consider them as a subcategory of handstands, since they are also performed on hands and have been termed as Supports in artistic gymnastics. A support is thereby defined as a balance element that is held on hands, but in which the upper body is not in an inverted position, as in regular handstands, and not held above the shoulders, but either in a more or less neutral upright position or in a horizontal position or anything between; in difference to which an actual “handstand” is defined as a balance on hands in an inverted position of the upper body.
• Front Support in the context of H2H is a position where the top is supported in H2H with the base, both facing the same direction, with the legs hanging down, slightly held in front, as in a Hollow Hang, with the body held in a hollow shape. The front support is not an element in itself, but a possible starting position for a mount (e.g. for a Podsechka from Front Support instead of from the floor, see mounts) as well as a transitional position that the partners move through during a Podsechka as well as during Diamidov or Dislocates. Usually performed on bent arms, but is also done on straight arms (e.g. when preparing for Podsechka or for Tempos performed to learn Hand to Hand throws), making it a fundamental position to master for pairs. The name is derived from the Front Support as performed on rings. In German I have termed it “Vorstütz” (meaning being supported in the front of the base). In a different context, in a horizontal orientation, a front support can also refer to a plank held on the hands of the partner in a lying position, or, in context of individual general preparation, it can simply refer to a regular “Plank”, the upper position of the Push-Up.
• Back Support, like the Front Support, but held in the back of the base on straight arms, the feet hanging down behind the head of the base, touching the bases upper back, likewise with the top holding a hollow shape. It is not considered an element in itself, but is used as a starting position e.g. to lift the legs into a Straddle Support or to lift into a handstand with momentum of the base. Just as the front support it is a fundamental position to master for pairs, by which the base can develop the necessary stability on straight arms due to the lower centre of mass, resulting in easier balance. It is therefore commonly used as a preparatory step before attempting support holds with a higher centre of mass, such as Straddle Supports. In German I have termed it “Rückstütz”, as it is supported behind or “in the back” (Rücken) of the base. Others may describe the same as what we called “Front Support” above, as it depends on from which perspective it is seen (while the top holds the hands in front of their body, it is held in the back of the base; and when the top holds the hands behind their body, it is held in the front of the base; therefore the names can as well be used in the oppositr way). In the context of general individual conditioning, as “Back Support” simply refers to what we describe as a “Reverse Plank”, as the arms “support” the body backwards, in an extended position.
• Tuck-Support is a preparatory element held on the hands with the body in a vertically tucked up position (not in a horizontally tucked up position, which would be a tuck planche). Less precisely it is described as a “Tuck Sit”, which we prefer to name a similar position, when actually sitting on the floor. The tuck support is not given value in the ToD (only in preperatory programmes), but obviously should be mastered before attempting L- or Straddle-Supports. In German I call it “Hockstütz”, as it simply means a “Stütz” (Support) with the legs “(an)gehockt”, tucked in.
• L-Support is a balance element held on the hands with the body in an L-Shape, where the upper body is in a vertical position and the legs are held straight and at least horizontally to the floor. Commonly also called L-Sit, which we prefer to name the position in which one is actually sitting on the floor. In German I am calling it “L-Stütz”. Another name for this element is “Pike Lever”, as the body is held in a piked position. We do not prefer this description, because the body can be held in a piked position in at least three different ways, only one of which is the L-Support. A V-Support would also be a piked lever, but with a different orientation (legs vertically, feet up), just as the Visulka as the other extreme (head-down, legs vertically, feet down). Therefore we would rather choose “Pike Levers” as the categorisation of different Support Holds in a piked position. There are two variations and progression forms of the L-Support which are both useful and important for higher level skills, both count as regular L-Sits and will not receive any kind of deduction or bonus, but each in their own way show an increased mastery of the skill:
  • Advanced L-Support with higher hips, where the legs are horizontally to the floor, but both the hips and legs are in more distance to the floor, e.g. at the elbow level. This progression develops the necessary compression strength for L-Press to Handstand on the floor.
  • Advanced L-Support with higher angled legs, where the legs are not held horizontally, and the hips are not raised significantly compared to a basic L-Support, but the feet are raised significantly higher, away from the floor in an upward angle. This progression leads towards the V-Support.
• V-Support is an advanced form of the piked support, in which the legs are lifted to at least a vertical position (or even further towards the head), while the hips are pushed up to in front of the arms as a counterbalance, with mostly the triceps resisting falling backwards.
• Manna, “Over-Support” or “Russian Lever”, is the most advanced form of a piked support, in which the legs and the hips are lifted so high, through and beyond the V-Support as a progression to it, that they again form a horizontal line, as in the L-Support, but above the head, with the arms in a highly extended position. In Acro the Manna only counts with legs closed.
• Crocodile, short Croc, also described as an Elbow Lever, is a support hold on bent arms with the body held horizontally but resting on one or both elbows.
• Bent Arm Planche is a Planche/Horizont on bent arms; it looks similar to a Croc on both elbows, but in difference to the Croc the body is not supported on the elbows but held freely between the arms, at most supported by the arms by squeezing the elbows together against the body inbetween them; it requires significantly more strength than a Croc. It is not considered an Element in Acro but it is an important position to master in the development of the Planche and the lowest position both in the Planche-Push-up as well as in the 90° Push-up.
• Planche is a balance on two hands on completely straight arms and the body held horizontally to the floor; to keep the Centre of Mass at about the hips above the wrists, the shoulders are leaning significantly forward beyond the wrists, which requires high level shoulder and wrist strength. To the advantage of top partners, the wrist flexibility requirements and pressure are much lower when performed in H2H (and thus involving less injury risk), than when performed on the floor, because of the different wrist angles; it can be held much more neutral in H2H. Due to excessive strength requirements the element is also called “Krafthandstand” in German, meaning “Strength Handstand”. Another German name for the element is “Stützwaage” (Scale Support) or just “Waage” (Scale) due to the body being held evenly like a balanced scale. Yet another German name for it is “Schwebestütz”, which translates to “hovering support” as it can appear almost a bit surreal with the body hovering, levitating horizontally above the floor. In Russian the element is described as an horizontal Handstand, short Horizont, which we consider the most neutral, purely descriptive term, therefore we suggest using it. In English the element is most commonly known as a “Planche”, which is confusing insofar as that the word has basically the same meaning as “Plank” too, which doesn’t require any balance; it just describes the rigid body common to both positions. A Horizont with the hands being apart by [??? at least two times the shoulder width ???] is called a Wide Planche. While a Planche where the Arms are ideally completely in a horizontal line alongside the body is called a “Maltese” or “Deep Planche”. In Acro though there is no differentiation between these; every planche held with the arms wide enough is considered a wide planche, without a need to actually hold the arms in one line to the body, resulting in the actual Maltese being very rarely seen, because it is much harder then a less wide planche, while not receiving more points.
• One Arm Planche is a Planche or Horizont on one arm. According to the ToD of the FIG the one arm planche cannot be performed. One arm planches as done in Calisthenics are not considered planches by gymnastic standards due to bent arms and other technical shortcomings. The element is said to be impossible because it is assumed that it can either only be performed with a bent arm and/or with the body heavily twisted or not completely horizontal; in the past and for many years the only person known who came close to a clean one arm planche was a handbalancer called Professor Paulinetti, who performed it like this; as can be seen the arm is very visibly bent. In recent years some handbalancers such as ??? and calisthenics athletes such as Valentin Blanc have shown cleaner one arm planches with an almost straight arm, but still a microbend remains. We think that it might be possible that in the future the possibility of one arm planches may have to be reconsidered, but the difficulty is so extreme that it is unlikely to be performed and reserved for athletes with specific body proportions favourable to the element. A different element that sometimes is confused with a One Arm Planche is the “One Arm Airbaby”.
• One Arm Airbaby, like the one arm planche, is also a balance element on one arm with the body in a horizontal position, but the body is turned sideways and it is considered a base position; it was performed in the past by a chinese pair with the top in a one arm handstand on the free arm of the base.
• Lever, …

Footstands

• Footstand are balance elements in which the top is standing on and is held by the base on two feet or on one foot. Based on the orientation of the body in the footstand, there are different categories of footstands:
  • A: Front Scales and Arabesques (on one leg)
  • B: Standing Splits with legs to the side
  • C: Standing Splits in pike (upper body bent down into pike)
  • D: Scorpions (Standing Splits with upper body upright (straight or arched up/upwards))
  • E: Standing Splits arched down/backwards Variations
  • F: Stand on two feet
  • G: Backbends on two feet
• A: Regular footstands on two feet.
• B: Standing Backbends/Arch on two feet.
• C: One footed Stands with an upright body: Front Scales and Arabesques.
• D: “Scorpions”: Standing Splits, standing on the front leg (like in a “Needle”), in which the back leg is held up backwards in extension, either by strength or by gripping the leg while the upper body is held upwards; it is like a split on the floor with the back bend backwards to the back leg, just in a standing position, so that the back leg points up like the sting of a Scorpion.
• E: Standing Splits, standing on the back leg, in which the front leg is held up sideways, either passively with gripping it or actively held up by sheer strength.
• F: Needles are another form of standing splits standing on the front leg, in which the back leg is held up actively; but opposite to the Scorpion the upper body is not arched back, but in a front-fold, pike position; which makes it much easier to keep the back leg up.
• G: One footed Backbends/Arches are similar to Scorpions, but held standing on the back leg, then arched backwards looking towards at least the ceiling or the floor.

Base Positions

• Base Position is the position of a base during the performance of an element, e.g. while holding the top in a static hold, including the particular bases of support. Due to the plethora of possible positions it is difficult to categorise them. The ToD mostly differs them into these categories:
  1. Balance on two bent arms or on the head + one arm
  2. Balance on feet
  3. Balance on two straight arms
  4. Balance on one bent arm
  5. Balance on two straight arms, knotted hands
  6. Balance on the head only
  7. Balance on one arm
  8. Balance on one foot
  9. ….

Motions

• Motion is a change of position, going from one position to another. Motions are differentiated into Base Motions and Top Motions. An example for a base motion is to move from a standing position into a sitting position while holding the partner in a handstand. An example for a top motion is to move from a straight handstand into an arched handstand while standing on the hands of the base. In German a motion is called “Verwandlung” (transformation).

• Base Motions (Pairs) are changes of position of the base partner while performing a partner element (e.g. while holding the top). There are douzens of base motions and many do not have any common term to describe them yet. For pair motions I am suggesting the following terms. Please not that these terms are meant for easy reference when talking about a specific motion; in practice it is often most easy to just say: “into sit”, “to splits” etc., and that makes it clear already which kind of motion is meant when the starting position is known from which the motion has to be done. The terms below can be useful though when referring to them or teaching them in isolation, as the words contain both the starting position, the target position and the way towards it.
  • Sit-Down, getting from a standing position into a seated position. The Sit-Down has to be distinguished in a Sit-Down while holding the top on two arms and a sit down while holding the top on one, as the technique differs significantly.
    • One Arm Sit-Down: When holding the top on one arm, the base squats down and reaches for the floor behind him with the free hand. Depending on his flexibility and preferences, the squat is either performed all the way down “ass-to-grass”, then the legs straightened, or one leg is internally rotated to put the lower leg unto the floor and make it easier to straighten the legs from there.
    • Two Arm Sit-Down: With the top held on two arms, since there is no free hand, the technique commonly used is to first kneel down on one side, while positioning the other leg straight to the side, slightly in front; then sliding down with this leg while lowering the hips down and back into a sitting position, resulting in a half Straddle-Sit and half W-Sit, then moving the kneeling leg out over the side and straighten it to reach a full Straddle Sit.
  • Stand-Up, getting from a seated position into a standing position.
  • Kneel-Down, getting from a standing position into a kneeling position.
  • Lunge-Up, getting from a kneeling position through a lunge into a standing position.
  • Sit-Up (Base-Motion), getting from a lying position into a seated position.
  • Lie-Down, getting from a seated position into a lying position.
  • Get-Up, getting from a lying position into a standing position (e.g. as done in a Turkish-Get-up).
  • Torch-Up, is a motion when lying in ??? (lying on the back, legs up slightly straddled) and pushing oneself up into a Torch position.
  • Torch-Down, opposite motion of the Torch-Up, when lowering from a Torch into a position lying on the back while keeping the legs vertical.
  • Plough-Down, is a move from Torch to Plough, by lowering the legs from a vertical position in the Torch down to the floor into the diagonally downward position of the Plough.
  • Plough-Over, is a motion from lying on the back into the Plough position by lifting the legs over ones body towards the floor.
  • Split-Slide, sliding from a standing position into a frontal splits (Front Split Slide) or side splits (Side Split Slide).
  • 180° in the context of base motions is a motion performed with a 180° turn of the body. For instance: Standing, then turning to face the other direction while kneeling down, would be a 180° Kneel-Down.
  • 270°, see 180°.
  • 360°, see 180°. The 360° is most commonly done with a Sit-Down, resulting in a very complex motion of performing a full turn while sitting down, therefore called 360° Sit-Down, which can be and is done in various styles in different acrobatic schools. I am distinguishing the following major techniques:
    • Yaroslavl Style: This technique is used most famously by Aleksandr Kurennoi from the Yaroslavl School in Russia; first with his partner Anna Ivaseva, later with Anastasia Gorbatyuk. The major characteristic is that it is done through a wide and deep lunge without kneeling down at all (or if so then only lightly as e.g. in a hip flexor stretch with the hips in extension); then as soon as possible straightening the front leg to move it into the seated position; the focus on the wide lunge and the straight lines makes it a very elegant style, but it requires more hip flexibility than the other styles.
    • Gurgenidze Style: …
    • Sinyavskaya Way: …
    • Israelian Style: …
  • Roll-Down is an advanced base motion only possible with the top held in one arm, which is a transition from standing or kneeling to lying through a forward roll, while keeping the balancing arm overhead, which requires extraordinary shoulder stability and strength. In its easiest forms it is done with the top held at the hips in a horizontally lying split or scorpion, which doesn’t require much balance from the base; in its most extreme form it is done with the top in a 1on1 handstand, which requires tremendous balancing skill. While being hard, the opposite motion, the Roll-Up, is much harder to perform.
  • Roll-Up, a base motion from lying to kneeling and eventually standing (although one can also move to a different position after reaching the half-kneeling position, e.g. sliding into splits); it is basically a reversed Roll-Down and significantly more difficult.
  • Lying-Turn-Around is a motion in which the base holds the top in his hands in a lying position and turns around sideways either from prone to supine or from supine to prone (in other words: from belly to back or from back to belly), whereas in the prone position the arms are always bent, while in the supine position the arms can be bent or straight and have to be straightened and bended to some degree during the motion.
  • Standing Bend-Back is a motion from standing into a backbended position. We call it “Bend-Back” and not “Backbend” to lay focus on the process of bending back (not all the way down, as which the Backbend is defined, as the motion from Standing into Bridge).
  • Kneeling Bend-Back is a motion from kneeling into a backbend position on the knees.
• Base Motions (Groups) are motions of one or more base and middle partners of a group while holding an element (e.g. a motion of the middle in a pyramid while holding the top in a handstand). Base motions may be performed by one of the partners, by two partners in succession or by two or even three partners simultaneously. I am suggesting the following terms:
  • …
• Top Motions
  • Press Handstand or Press to Handstand, short “Press HS” is a press from a standing position into a Handstand. A Press HS can either be performed through straight-straddled legs, which is called a Straddle Press, through tucked-closed legs, which is called a Tuck Press, through half-tucked-straddled legs, which we call a Frog Press or through straight-closed legs, which we call a Pike Press. There are also variations of entering the handstand without momentum over the side, which is commonly called a Puppy Press. But depending on flexibility and body proportions there may be no “pressing” involved in it at all (consequently, pressing over one leg first is a common way of cheating the regular press). Another, uncommon variant we call the Side Press, where the press is initiated while standing with both legs sideways to the hands in a 45° angle; then pressing up with a 45° rotation; this press is a valuable progression towards the One Arm Press HS.
  • Spichag is the russian name for pressing to handstand from a straddle support, in English it is called “Stalder Press” by some and “Endo” by others, due to a different usage in artistic gymnastics. In German it is called “Aufgrätschen” (literally “Straddle-Up”), but this word, while being very descriptive, may be more fitting for a Sit-Up (German “Aufsetzen”) or V-Up (German “Aufbücken”) with straight, straddled legs (thus “Aufgrätschen”); we are therefore preferring Spichag for a common terminology.
  • …

Mounts

• Alibekov, …
• Climb-up, climbing from the floor over the legs of the base on the shoulders of the base.
• Shoulder-Jump, a jump into Handstand from standing on the shoulders of the Base. A variation is the One-Arm Shoulder-Jump, where the top jumps from the shoulders of the base unto one arm of the base.
• Shoulder Jump to Head, a variation of the shoulder jump, often performed by Mens Pairs and Groups, where the top jumps sideways from the shoulder of the Base with one leg, swinging the other leg, into a One Arm on the Head of the Base.
• Jump-up to Back Support is a jump of the top from behind the base into Back Support.
• Shoulder-Plank-Up is a mount in which the top is lying on one shoulder of the base with the hips, facing down, in H2H; the base performs a squat with a short, explosive upward motion in order for the top to use the momentum to move up into H2H.
• Shoulder Press (HS), a press into Handstand from standing on the shoulders of the base.
• Jump-up is a mount where the top jumps from behind of the base, from the base’s calves, close to the knee, unto the shoulders or immediately into H2H.
• Lift-up is a mount where base and top are facing each other and hold their hands as for a Climb-Up, but instead of climbing, the base squats down and lifts the top from in front of him into a Back Support or any other support via a half turn around his body; the weight of the top is thereby held mostly on one arm only, while the other arm helps to stabilise the move.
• Podsechka is a mount where the top is standing in front of the base, both facing the same direction, holding hands behind the back of the top. The base squats down, while the top jumps; they first move through a front support and then either by using the momentum of the base or by strength or by a combination of both the top moves her legs through the arms of the base and into a handstand. There are different variations of podsechkas. The easiest variation is performed with bent legs, tucking through the arms of the base and into the handstand, which gives the least value. The variation seen most commonly is performed with straight legs which are pulled through the arms of the base, over the base’s head, then opened up when passing the arms into or through a straddle handstand, like done in a Press-Handstand, which ought to be mastered before. The most difficult variation is to perform it with straight and closed legs throughout, where the legs are kept together when passing through the arms of the base, then basically entering the Handstand via a Pike-Press motion. Podsechkas can also be initiated from a Front Support instead of from the floor, as well as from a Kneestand (same value as if done from the floor).
• Inlocate, another name for Podsechka commonly used in english-speaking countries. We do not recommend to use it since it is not descriptive for the element. See Podsechka.
• Cut-Back, a better translation of Podsechka that is rarely used. See Podsechka.
• Drag-Up
• Vikrut, also called Dislocate or short Disloc, …
• Cannonball, see Capriol.
• Capriol, … similar to the Diamidov, a Cannonball can also be performed in advanced ways with a 360° and even a 720° rotation, which requires a different grip of both partners on one side; it can either be re-catched after the rotation in a 2on2 HS or move into 1on1, which is exceptionally difficult.
• Half Podsechka into Cannonball, is an advanced entry into Cannonball, where the partners perform a motion similar to a Podsechka, but do not enter a handstand and the top does not move through the arms and over the head of the base; they accelerate upwards and the top moves into the tucked or piked position, in front of the bases head, then swinging down in the Cannonball and then through the cannonball motion upwards into the actual position.
• Podsechka into Cannonball is an advanced entry into Cannonball, by first performing a full podsechka into handstand, but then immediately swinging down from the handstand into the Cannonball and then entering the actual position through the Cannonball Mount.
• Diamidov, sometimes shortened to “Diamid”, is a mount similar to the Podsechka, but with one hand rotated as in the Dislocate, in order for the top to be able to release the second hand and perform a 360° rotation on one arm before catching it with the second hand again. An advanced variation is the Diamidov to One Arm, where the second hand is released during the acceleration and the rotation is performed without re-gripping the second hand; it is especially difficult due to the tendency of over-rotation. Another advanced variation is to turn the hands additionally in to enable a Diamidov 720°, with a 720° turn, which is very rarely performed; exceptional shoulder and wrist mobility and stability are required.
• …

Dynamic

• Dynamic
• Dynamics

• Link is the technical term for when two dynamic elements are fluidly performed in immediate succession, without pausing and without a “reset”, e.g. by a re-adjustment step or an additional squat/plié or any other initiation of force from zero. For instance: When catching a Salto back into F2H, decelerating the top through a squat, it would be a link if another salto is thrown from F2H by accelerating from the bottom of that very squat; it would not be a link if the first Salto is catched and the Base straightens the legs first and only throws the second Salto by squatting down again. This way a link can be part of an Element Sequence, but a sequence does not necessarily contain any link.

• Salto
• Twist
• Tuck
• Pike(d)
• Straight
• Tsukahara
• Double
• Triple
• Arabian
• Gainer
• Nakat
• Ridocula, another word used for Nakat with unclear meaning and etymology.
• …

Individual Elements

Flexibility

• Splits are a flexibility display and a position in which the legs form one line with the hips in the middle; the legs being 180° apart, either by sitting in a split or by actively holding the legs apart; Splits can be performed frontal (one leg forwards - in flexion - and one leg backwards - in extension) or sagittal, with both legs to the side (in abduction), thus being differentiated in Front Split and Side Split. The Side Split is also known as Middle Split, Horizontal Split or Sagittal Split.
  In German the Front Split is also commonly referred to as “Frauenspagat” (Womens Split), while the Side Split is known as “Herrenspagat” or “Männerspagat” (Mens Split) based on antiquated rules in gymnastics according to which girls were not allowed to perform the Side Split as it was considered inappropriate to sit with the legs spread apart sideways; it has not (as is commonly assumed due to these two antiquated terms), any anatomical background; we are therefore suggesting to ommit these two terms, as they are only causing confusion and refer to the splits as “Front” or “Frontal” and “Side” Splits instead. A Split with the legs apart wider than 180° is called an Oversplit (German: Überspagat).
• Bridge
• Backbend
• Pike
• Pancake

Agility

• …

Statics

• Statics are basically Balance Elements but held individually. All the handstands, footstands and support holds can be performed as individual static holds too (see Balance. But there are a few static holds which are only or mostly performed individually and not or rarely on partners, such as Forearmstands, Headstands or Cheststands. Additionally we will also list static holds that are not considered as elements in acrobatic gymnastics, but that are useful in course of the development of said elements and are therefore commonly used (or ought to be used as we think) in the strength and balance development of athletes, such as diverse yoga positions.
• Frogstand, Sanskrit “Bakasana”, …
• Crowstand, Sanskrit “Kakasana”, …
• Tuck Planche, Sanskrit “Lolasana”, …
• Entry refers to a specific way of entering a position on your own, such as a handstand (when entering a position on a partner, it is called a Mount). We are suggesting to distinguish between dynamic entries and strength entries, where an example for a dynamic entry into handstand would be to jump or swing into it, while an example for a strength entry would be a press to handstand.

Tumbling

• Tumbling in Acrobatic Gymnastics is a category of individual elements, which… “Tumbling” is also an official gymnastic sport on its own, compared to which Acrobatic Gymnasts only perform very basic tumbling passes. In Acro tumbling is only a small sequence in routines and since individual elements are only obligatory in the Age Groups and not (anymore) for Seniors, senior athletes often do not perform any tumbling at all in their routines, buy it is kept in the Age Groups because it is considered essential to develop basic tumbling skills as a preparation of partner dynamics. Other than that, there are a few dynamic partner elements or sequences that are initiated by a tumbling pass, e.g. the famous Round-Off Salto or Twist unto the shoulders of the Base in Men’s Pairs, or the Round-Off Backhandspring into Cannonball, as sometimes shown by Mixed Pairs.

• Round-Off
• Rondat, see Round-Off
• Salto, …
• Tuck, …
• Piked, …
• Straight, …

Dance & Choreography

• Dancing Styles, different styles of dancing. A very particular characteristics of Acro, which contributes to the amount of creativity in the sports, is the incorporation of diverse different styles of dance. There are no rules in which way one has to dance in ones compositions (other than forbidding obscene moves). This enables acrobats and coaches to utilise all kinds of styles as they wish and deem fitting, mixing traditional and modern forms, from folklore to ballett or even hip hop (if excluding the aspects considered as obscene). The styles most commonly seen are Contemporary and Acro Dance, mixed with various partner lifts from different traditions, which are rewarded by the rules as they are one way of expressing partnership between the athletes, floor acrobatics and choreographic jumps or “leaps”. We therefore include the most important dance terms from Ballett, Contemporary, Acro Dance and other traditions of moves that are most commonly seen in Acro.
• Adagio, is a particularly way of dance or choreography in which the partners move very slowly and gracefully to create a specific mood and tension, often utilised in Duo show acts. Adagio is rarely ever seen in Acro compositions because the short time window of 2min to 2min 30s make this style more or less impossible.

Steps

• Chassé, …

Pirouettes

• Pirouette, …
• …

Leaps & Jumps

• Butterfly Kick, short B-Kick, …
• Butterfly Twist, short B-Twist, …
• Split Leap, see Grand jeté.
• Grand jeté, “great throw”, is a frontal split jump, in which the legs are thrown into a frontal split during the flight phase. An advanced variation is a split leap with a half turn, see Grand jeté en tournant.
• Grand jeté en tournant, “Great throw and turn”, is a Grand jeté with a half turn (180° twist).
• Scissor Leap, a jump where both legs are thrown straight up in front of the upper body, but not at the same time, but after another, crossing each other in the middle; an advanced variatiom is a Scissor Leap with 180° rotation, which is also known in Ballet as the “Grand Jête”.
• Straddle Jump …
• Piriouette Jump …
• 540° …
• …

Strength & Conditioning

• Strength Training … Strength Training is often divided into two categories: Training without external weights (with ones bodyweight only) and training with external weights, e.g. weightlifting. As described further above, Hand to hand is heavily strength based, it is weightlifting humans both slowly and controlled as well as very explosively. We also mentioned that Acrobatic Gymnastics was originally coined “Kunstkraftsport” in German, meaning “Artistic Strength Sport”, which described it very well: It is a Sport focused on the artistic, beautiful expression of strength between the partners through partner elements: Lifts, Balances, Throws and Catches. Thus especially for bases it is absolutely crucial to develop strength, in order to be strong enough for their partners, to become able to lift, balance, throw and catch them. While for the tops it is crucial to develop the necessary strength to move, press and bend their bodies in space while remaining as light as reasonably possible. Therefore it should not be surprising that the strength requirements and the entire approach to strength training between Base and Top partners is very different. They have of course many things in common too, but there crucial differences. While tops train to achieve and become efficient in specific bodyweight skills, bases train to become strong enough to handle the external weight of the partner efficiently. Therefore there may often be little to none external weight training involved in the strength training of tops (other than e.g. ancle weights), while there may be a lot of external weight training involved in the strength training of bases. If that is so, the question arises: How strong should one be?
  • Strength Goals of Base Partners: Base partners do not just have to be strong enough to move the top partner anyhow; they have to be strong enough to move them safely and with amplitude and ease. From this demand follows automatically, that the weight of the partner should be easy to be moved by the base. What is easy though and how does it translate to the main lifts? And at which point, if at any, is one “strong enough”? In order to answer this question, we should take a look at how it is done by those who really specialise in strength. The most specialised discipline in which the lifts are performed with the highest technical precision is Olympic Weightlifting. Other than that Acrobats are also well advised to learn from Oldtime Strongmen due to their unusual methods to build unusual strength. While weightlifting is essential for many moves we have to perform as bases, we also have to become strong in very unusual and more asymmetric ways and it is the Oldtime Strongmen which have the most experience in this regard. They are the historical source of all modern weightlifting and at the same time they are historically linked with Acrobats, as they both originated within the Circus Culture. In fact oldtime Acrobats in many cases were both Acrobats and Strongmen, lifting and holding humans in acrobatic ways as displays of their strength. Before we can set some standards for specific lifts though, we have to evaluate which lifts should be the main lifts of a base, which lifts are most important to practice and which are giving the most carry-over to his acrobatics.
  • Exercise Selection for Base Strength: In Balance, Bases have to regularly push the partner into an overhead position with full elevation. Thus a vertical pushing exercise will be crucial to perform, such as the Press or Handstand Push-ups (HSPU). In fact, the HSPU is not only a staple exercise for Acrobats, it is also regularly performed with full range by many Chinese Olympic Weightlifters as an accessory exercise, in addition to the press, because they know its effectiveness and mix open chain and closed chain exercises.
  • After pushing the partner up the partner is held on straight arms in an overhead position, on two or one arm. Thus, an exercise for overhead strength and stability will be necessary. Such as an Overhead Isometric Hold or Overhead Carries both on two arms and on one arm. One aspect of this training is the development of strength in the shoulders and back, for which heavy barbells or (depending on the strength needs) heavier partners suffice. A different aspect is the development of grip/forearm strength and strength in the wrists, for which heavy Kettlebells held in a Bottom-up position are recommended.
  • In Dynamics Bases have to perform Squats regularly when throwing a partner and the Squat that comes closest to the movement of bases - e.g. with the partner in F2H or RF2H - is the Front Squat. Like in the Front Squat the weight of the partner is more in front of the body allowing to stay more upright. Therefore it is recommended and has much more carry-over to the bases needs than Back Squats. Another thing in common with Weightlifters: In Chinese Weightlifting, the Front Squat is an essential accessory exercise.
  • But when catching back into hands from a dynamic element, a stride stance is often used and in Balance too are many motions in which the base has to move unilaterally, into a lunge or similar positions. Thus in addition to the Front Squat a Split Squat is recommended. It can be a regular Split Squat, Bulgarian or wide Split Squats with knees over toes for the development of more Hip Extension.
  • The Core has always to be strengthened. For tops, pure bodyweight exercises can bring them far and will suffice in most cases, but for bases extra weight will be necessary to give them enough core strength and stability to handle the forces they are dealing with, especially in Dynamics. One of the most important and most effective exercises in this regard are horizontal Back Extensions or Arch-ups (combined with isometric holds) for the back (again used regularly by the Chinese Weightlifters as well), switched out regularly with Reverse Leg Lifts. For the front Horizontal Over-Sit-ups are recommended to strengthen the core also in full-range, in an extended position of the spine on one hand. But also an exercise that prevents extension will be crucial to perform, to get strong in preventing unwanted extension, such as weighted planks, Chupa Chups or weighted Hollow-Ups and Holds. This latter skill is as well trained by partner conditioning exercises such as Holds and Shoulder Swimgs in a Back Support, because while focused on the elevation and flexion of the Shoulder, a lot of attention has to be paid to prevent extension in the lower back while doing so. But specific exercises as mentioned above to strengthen this anti-extension more specifically will be of much use.
  • In Dynamics things sometimes do not go as planned and a catch may cause some asymmetric force through the spine of the base which can lead to injury. In order to prepare for such more unilateral impacts and off-alignment situatons, it is crucial for bases to strengthen the side of their core through some side bending exercises. Ideally one in a lying position, e.g. “Sidelying Arch-Ups” or “QL Raises” as they are also called, and one in a standing position, such as the Standing Barbell Side-Arches. Again, both of these exercises are as well regularly performed by Chinese Weightlifters for reasons.
  • In addition to the vertical push, a horizontal pushing exercise is recommended. While horizontal pushing is rarely needed in standing acrobatics, horizontal pushing strength alongside vertical pushing is essential for shoulder stability and joint health. Bodybuilders and many other lifters regularly train the Bench Press and seem to consider it a main lift. For acrobatics it is rather useless. It did not play a role in the training of Oldtime Strongman and most of the Chinese Olympic Weightlifters never do Bench Presses either. It is an overrated exercise but really only of much use for the looks. Weighted Push-ups are more useful and functional for shoulder stability and have much more carry-over to gymnastic skills that aren’t necessary for a base, but may be nice-to-have, such as Planches, which can also be used as a Base Position in Balance. And you guessed it: Of course Chinese Weightlifters practice weighted Push-ups all the time.
  • Based on the above analysis, we can summarise the following exercises as the most essential strength training exercises for bases:
    • Vertical Push: Press, HSPU
    • Overhead Stability: Overhead holds and Carries
    • Leg Strength: (Front) Squats + (Romanian) Deadlifts + Split Squats + Full range Calf Raises
    • Back Core: Back Extensions + Reverse Leg Lifts
    • Frontal Core: Weighted Over-Sit-ups, weighted Hollow Ups, Chupa Chups
    • Side Core: Lying and standing Side-Arches
  • Perceived Exertion and Performance Standards in Weightlifting or: What is easy? A weight that you can move controlled, with good form, with a fast concentric and a slowly controlled eccentric for only 1 rep is maximally hard (if it cannot be moved with good form, not with control, just somehow forced up, it is not maximally hard, but simply too hard). A weight you can move like this for just 5 reps is still very hard. A weight you can move like this for 10 is moderately hard. A weight you can move like this for 20 is relatively easy and a weight you can move like this for 30 is actually easy.
    • Vertical Press Standards: The press is perhaps the most crucial lift for base partners to practice. The top partner should ideally be easy to be pressed. In many partnerships this goal cannot realistically be achieved, but should nonetheless be strived for. In this case, when pressing the partner strictly is not possible with ease, it is absolutely crucial that at least push-pressing the partner is “easy”. By the definition given above, when we say that pressing the partner should be easy in Acro, it means that we aim to be able to press our partner 30 times in a row, very controlled, with good form, explosivelly up and going down slowly. It should not be surprising that a base which is able to e.g. press a 40kg top partner like this for 30 times, can of course also press at least double the weight. That said, it does obviously not surprise to be able to press the partner just a few times with lots of effort; that is not “easy”. The partner has to be easy. And since the tops, if lean, cannot make themselves lighter, the bases have to make themselves stronger. When practicing partner pressing with the top partners, there is some carry-over into the other direction too. For example: Even if someone only ever trains with a weight of e.g. 40kg, but becomes very efficient with it and improves by pressing it much more often per set and with more control and more speed in the concentrics and reaches a specific efficiency with it, you can be very sure that this person can also press much more weight for a few reps, even if never practicing it. This does not mean that this is the most efficient way though. If one would mix his conditioning (work with less intensity) with heavier strength training regularly at least sometimes, he could obviously press more maximum weight and he could also progress the volume of the lighter weight faster by doing so. Thus, pressing the top does of course not suffice and should not replace working with heavier weights. Ideally, pressing the top should only feel like an accessory exercise. It is therefore that we speak of “Partner Conditioning” when working with the weight of the partner. In reality it is often partner strength training, but it is always the goal that the weight of the partner becomes easy enough that it is no strength training anymore. And if the weight of the partner does not suffice to build strength anymore, it is obvious that heavier weight has to be used for strength training. Now, due to the goal in Acro of the top being roughly about half the weight of the base at most, many acrobats think that Handstand Push-ups are the most important thing to do for vertical pushing strength and that becoming efficient at Handstand Push-ups (e.g. performing 20-30 reps with speed and ease and full range (so not just lowering into headstand) is preparing the base well enough for the top when the top has about 50% of the weight. I think this is not an unreasonable assumption. Additional training with heavy weights may be additionally beneficial, but it is pretty useful as a standard and it can bring a base partner very far in his shoulder strength with no equipment. The possibilities to increase the intensity even more are endless. Apart from the full range Handstand-Push-up, Ancle Weights can be added or Weight Vests or the weight may be shifted more to one arm. A complete and clean one arm Handstand Push-up has not yet been performed by anyone; so the potential for strength development is high enough. Nonetheless external weight remains useful as an alternative way of strengthening the shoulders.
    • Deadlift Standards: …, Just as push-pressing the partner can obviously not replace regular press training with high intensity, Cannonball Swings and Cannonball Rows with partners or Kettlebells, while crucial to be regularly conditioned, are not meant to replace Deadlifts.
    • Now that we clarified what some standards are that we should strive for as a base, the question may arise how to build up to this strength in the first place: Using iron weight or human weight?
    • Iron vs. Human Weight: The advantages of weightlifting iron in form of dumbbells, barbells and kettlebells are that (1) it has been proven to be effective, (2) can be done safely, (3) allows for an easy progression of intensity by overload in small incremental steps and (4) does not require others to train. The disadvantages are: (1) It does require weights and other equipment (such as barbell holders). While weight can be adjusted easily between sets, (2) the intensity cannot be reduced mid-set without the help of other people and (3) Children (which are the majority of Acrobats), cannot just be told to practice with weights at home; they have to be carefully teached, guided and supervisioned during training. The advantages of weightlifting human partners are that (1) it is fun to do, especially for children, which is very important factor in the training process, (2) weight can be adjusted easily mid-set, in that the top partners reduce their own weight by lifting themselves partially; allowing the base to always finish a set and have a longer, more consistent time under tension.

Exercises

• Exercises are seen here as movements performed to condition the body, drill specific skills or to build strength, individually or with the partner(s), thus being conditioning, skill or strength exercises, as well as exercises for flexibility development.

• (Body) Shaping
• Arch, …
• Hollow, …
• Side Arch, …
• Arch Body Hold
• Hollow Body Hold or Dish. In German it is called “Schiffchen”, which is a diminutive form of “Schiff” (boat), meaning “little boat”; it is described as such due to the curved shape which reminds of the shape of a boat with the lower back, which rests flat on the floor as the deepest position (like the lowest point of the boat below the water). The hollow body is a crucial position to master especially for handstands. A specific utilisation of the “Hollow Body” Shape are “Hollow Body Rocks”, which consists of holding a hollow body shape while rocking back and forth. Another common utilisation of the hollow body are transitions from Hollow to Arch (and Side Arch) Body Holds by rolling over the side.
• Plank is a static position on all fours with straight legs. We refer to a Plank as the position performed on straight arms. When performed on the elbows we refer to it as an Elbow Plank. It is a crucial position to master and condition to prepare the wrists and develop static tension in the core. It is also the upper position of a Push-up. The lower position of a Push-up we refer to as a Bent-Arm Plank.
• Reverse Plank is like a Plank but in reverse, by facing upwards. When the same is done with bent legs instead of straight, it is called a Table.
• Table is a static position on all fours, but facing upwards, with the legs bent 90° and the hips and arms in extension. Some refer to it as a “Bench”. It is also used as a base position in trios. Little children without training background often make a table when asked to do a bridge, before having learned how to position the hands or lacking the strength to push up from this position. Independent from that it is an effective beginners exercise for preparation of the required hip extension and to strengthen the arms in extension; in this way it is an easier variation of the Reverse Plank.
• Push-up, …
• Cobra-Child, moving back and forth between the Cobra and Child pose.
• Cat-Cow, moving back and forth between the Cat and Cow pose.
• Child-Push-up, moving from a child pose into a push-up and back, either remaining on the knees or straightening the legs when entering the plank, before lowering down.
• Handstand Push-up, …
• Pike Push-up, also called Drinking Deer Push-up, …
• Sit-up, …
• Crunch-up, …
• Hollow-up
• Arch-up
• Back Extension
• Leg Extension
• Reverse Leg Extension

• Over-Sit-up

• Shoulder Press, short Press, …
• Pull-up
• Row

Flexibility Drills

• Tricep Stretches
• Shoulder Capsule Stretches
• Standing Leg Lifts
• Seated Leg Lifts
• Wrist Stretches
• Bridge Push-ups
• Bridge Rocks
• Bridge Walks
• Split Glides
• Split Holds
• Frog Stretch
• Standing Piriformis Stretch
• Lying Piriformis Stretch
• Couch Stretch is a quadrizeps and/or hip-flexor/psoas stretch in a kneeling position with the back to the wall.
• Lying Quad Stretch is a quadrizeps stretch while lying on the back, with one or both feet under or close to the hips; depending on flexibility it can be done supported on straight arms behind the back, supported on elbows or lying on the back. When done with both legs simultaneously and wihout any kind of hand support and not lying down, but actively holding the position and hovering over the ground, it is called “Heroes Pose” (the closer to the ground the harder).
• Heroes Pose
• Tailors Pose
• Butterfly
• Split-Pull
• Cheststand-Pull
• Latissimus Stretches
• Calf Stretches
• Hamstring Stretches

Partner Conditioning

• Bird Push-ups means lying on the back and pushing the partner up and down while the partner holds a Front Bird (ideally touching chest on chest).
• Partner Push-ups are weighted push-ups where the Partner serves as the weight by either lying, sitting, kneeling or standing on the back or the shoulders of the one performing the push-up.
• F2H Push-ups means pushing the partner back and forth from bent to straight arms by the feet, in a F2H (foot to hand) position, while lying on the back; it is essentially the acrobatic version of a “floor press” (with which it shares the same limitations in range compared to the bench press), but requires more stability, comparable to push-ups in rings. It belongs to the realm of “Horizontal Pushing”. Obviously, a full range version of the exercise can be done by lying on a bench instead of on the floor.
• F2H Press is a shoulder press with the partner serving as the weight held by the feet in a F2H position, usually done seated or standing. It requires much more stabilisation than the shoulder press with barbells and dumbbells and is thus an important exercise to develop full range stability from the bent arm position to the overhead position. When performed in a straddle or pike sit on the floor it both requires and helps building mobility, enforcing proper alignment and especially extension in the thoracic spine, just as the regular floor-seated shoulder press. It may not be used to replace work with static weights if those are available, as it is much harder to load it past a specific point, but it is highly recommended to be done additionally on a regular basis, as it not only helps to develop stability in the base, but in the top too, as well as confidence in F2H.
• F2H Flies are like Dumbbell flies lying on the floor, just performed with a partner in F2H and ideally with straight arms. Can be used as preparation for wide arm elements in H2H.
• F2H Pullovers are an exercise where the base is lying on the back, holding the partner in F2H on straight arms, the arms then move into shoulder flexion, resisting the flexion while lowering down, then pushing back up; ideally performed with fully straight arms.
• F2H Tempos
• RF2H Tempos

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