Turns in gymnastics are an important skill to make sure that you’re perfecting, especially since they’re in both beam and floor routines. Depending on whether you are participating in the Xcel Program, Compulsory or Developmental programs (or any other gymnastics program), the rules can vary slightly as well a deduction values, however, there are four main aspects of the turn that judges consider. Let’s check out and see what they are.

Completeness of the Turn

If you turn is not a complete turn, you can earn up to a .2 deduction – again, this varies depending on which program you’re competing in. You want to ensure that your turn is a complete turn. If you were to draw a circle on the ground for your turn, would you start and end in the exact same spot? If not, you can be earning deductions for this. In our example above, Skylar only performs a 1/2 turn, so if her turn was supposed to be a full turn, she might not even get credit for the skill. To practice, start with perfecting your 1/2 turns and then work up to perfecting your full turns. You can see our steps to a great full turn here.

Precision of the Turn

If you fall out of your turn, that is an obvious lack of precision, you can earn up to a .1 deduction in this area. You want your turn to be nice and clean with sharp, precise movements. In our video above, Skylar falls out of her turn, so she would receive a deduction for lack of precision in her turn.

High Relevé

Depending on the degree of your high relevé while performing your turn, you can receive up to a .1 deduction in this area too. In the video above, Skylar is slightly up on her toe, however, her foot is not all of the way up in high relevé, so she would have received a deduction in this area. You want to make sure that you are up in as high of a relevé as possible in your full turn. We have some drills that can help with that in this video from 4:38-5:35.

Body Posture/Alignment

Once again, you can receive up to a .1 deduction in this area of your turn. You want your body posture to be straight up and down so that your alignment is good. You need to stay in a tight, straight body position throughout your turn to reduce the deduction. In our video above, Skylar is not straight up and down, which throws her alignment off, however her overall body posture is relatively good, so the deduction would be smaller. You can see what your body posture should be like in this video at 1:17.

Since you can pretty much practice your turns anywhere, these are a great skill to practice at home! Check out these other skills that are easy to practice at home.

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