A trampoline can be used for various purposes. One of the most common uses is by gymnasts. They use the rectangle trampoline to learn new stunts that are difficult or dangerous to learn. A backflip is one of those stunts. You can learn how to do a backflip on a trampoline. A trampoline offers protection because you will be landing on a soft mat. The protection makes it easier for you to try the stunts without hesitation and fear. This article takes you through the different stages of learning a backflip. Though you should learn how to do a frontflip before learning a backflip, you can still learn this without worries. Now, let’s get to it. Be warned, this isn’t something you’d want to try on a kids trampoline.

What you need before you start

Stretching is a way to start. Stretching would help your muscles to relax and get you ready. You should also move the body joints in a bid to keep free and moving. So, a little exercise would really help with what you are about to do.

Doing a backflip on a trampoline

A 14ft trampoline gives you safety and protection that allows you to try different parts of the flip. To start, you are going to divide the backflip into stages and try out the different stages involved.

The high leap

This first step might seem unimportant or unnecessary, but it is key to getting it all right. Practice your jumping and leaping till you can get it right. You should be able to leap high enough and also land on your feet.

The back fall

Some also refer to it as the backdrop. The next step is in two stages. The first stage is immediately after the leap. Once you leap, push your legs forward and your upper body backwards. This would change your body orientation. Since you are landing on the trampoline, it becomes safer and easier to do the back fall.

The next step is to complete the flip. When you fall on your back, the trampoline gives you a bounce. With this bounce, finish the spin by throwing your legs and spinning it over your body. Repeat the steps till your body gets familiar with the process.

The back half-spin

The next stage is dividing the backflip into two. Instead of taking off on your feet and landing on your feet, you would land on your hands, then on your feet.

This process is quite easy, and you only need a small leap to generate the spin needed for this.

As you jump and lean backwards, you raise your hand above your head. Your hand going backwards above your head gives you the momentum. When you land on your hands, use the energy and spin to lift your legs over your body. Then immediately, you flip your legs above your body and land on your feet.

You can start this half-flip without leaping at all. Then as you get used to the process, take off with a small leap to generate enough spin. The spin would help you lift your legs above your body in the second stage of the half flips.

The proper backflip

Now that you have conditioned your body to learn the steps involved in a backflip. It is time to learn how to do a backflip on a 10ft trampoline.

The backward leap

This is like the first step of conditioning. Take a high leap and lean a bit towards the back. You don’t want to lean towards the back too quickly because that would not generate enough height before the spin. When you are about to leap, make sure your arms are stretched out, and they are a bit behind your body.

As you start to lean your upper body backwards, starting with your head, you should raise your legs and tuck in your knees. Then, the arms should come to the front and hold your legs just below the knees. This will give you a curved shape mid-air.

The flip

Use your arm to pull your legs mid-air in a bid to generate more spin. Once you generate enough spin and your legs go backwards above your body. Then you start to release your legs to land on them. As you release your legs, it is important to return them to their straight position. You should also stretch your arm back to its original position. This would help maintain balance.

Landing

You should try bending a bit when landing after the first few trials. This would help reduce shock to your leg and keep balance. With enough practice, you would learn how to land on your feet properly.

There you have it, you have done a backflip! With time, it gets easier, and you might not need to hold your legs mid-air anymore. Remember that the key to everything is generating a very high leap. It will give you enough space in the air to complete the flip. As your body gets used to the process, you derive more fun from it.

Safety tips

If you are doing this for the first time, it is a good idea to have someone else around to help supervise your flip. You should also start each spin at one end of the trampoline. From the end, practice the backflip towards the middle of the trampoline. Do not backflip from the middle of the trampoline, so you don’t land outside. With that, you are good to go.

Conclusion

It takes a lot of practice to master how to do a backflip on a trampoline. However, with patience, you would soon be pulling it off like an Olympic gymnast. The fun part is that the whole process is totally safe. The trampoline allows you to land on soft ground. Keep practising to get better. You can also learn more about the trampoline by checking out our posts.