How to Do a Backflip
Master the standing backflip rapidly using a safe, progressive ground-to-air rotation method that eliminates fear and builds spatial awareness in steps.
- Read the tools, materials, safety notes, and steps below for free.
- Tap Start Camera Coach when you want hands-free voice help.
- Allow camera and microphone. Point your phone at the work; the coach watches your progress and tells you the next step.
🧰 Required Tools & Equipment
- ✓ Gymnastics crash pad or soft foam mat
- ✓ Flat grassy outdoor area or padded gym floor
- ✓ Smartphone with tripod for video review
- ✓ Spotting block or sturdy low foam booster
📦 Materials & Supplies
- ✓ Athletic tape or wrist wraps
- ✓ Fitted athletic clothing
- ✓ Water bottle
- ✓ Chalk for grip
⚠️ Safety Checkpoints & Warnings
- • Clear a minimum 10x10 foot area of all hard obstacles, stones, and uneven terrain.
- • Never attempt backward rotation if you experience neck strain, dizziness, or shoulder pain during drills.
- • Ensure a trained spotter is present if performing full airborne rotation without foam pit access.
📋 Step-by-Step Guide (5 Steps)
Perform Explosive Jump Warm-Up and Backward Shoulder Rolls
Warm up your neck, ankles, and wrists with circular mobility movements for three minutes. Perform five backward rolls over each shoulder on your mat, followed by ten explosive vertical tuck jumps where your knees drive up to your chest. Keep your chest tall and eyes focused forward during tuck jumps to set the proper takeoff posture.
- • Knees snap to chest level without leaning the torso forward
- • Smooth shoulder rolls across the mat without neck compression
- • Bending the chest down to meet the knees instead of pulling knees up
- • Landing with stiff, locked knees
Drill the Low Diagonal Macaco (Back Hand Plant)
Crouch low on the mat, place your dominant hand flat on the ground behind you, and look back over that shoulder. Push through your legs to kick your hips and legs diagonally up and over your planted hand, landing in a deep crouch. Repeat this 8 to 10 times to overcome the psychological fear of looking backward and traveling over your head.
- • Hips elevate higher than shoulder height during the arc
- • Smooth weight transfer from feet to base hand to landing feet
- • Placing the hand too far behind the body, causing hyperextension
- • Hesitating mid-kick and collapsing onto the elbow
Transition to a High-Angle Single-Arm Flash Rotation
From a standing squat, swing your free arm overhead while leaping backward, barely touching your guide hand to the mat for momentary support. Focus on driving your hips vertically over your head rather than around the side, turning the diagonal wheel into a near-vertical rotation. Use your smartphone to film your trajectory and confirm your flip axis is straightening out.
- • Hips travel directly vertical over the torso axis
- • Only fingertips graze the mat before landing squarely on both feet
- • Looking sideways instead of tracking directly over the head
- • Throwing the head backward before jumping off the ground
Practice the Two-Arm Set and Knee-Tuck Timing
Stand upright with feet shoulder-width apart, swing both arms back, and dip into a quarter squat. Explode upward toward the ceiling, swinging both arms fully past your ears while spotting an eye-level focal point in front of you. At the absolute apex of your jump, snap your shins inward toward your hands without flipping, landing firmly in place.
- • Arms extend fully overhead adjacent to the ears before tucking
- • Maximum vertical jump height achieved before knee pull
- • Tucking the knees early before full vertical leg extension
- • Throwing arms outward instead of straight upward
Commit to Full Aerial Rotation and Spot the Landing
Combine the high vertical arm swing and immediate aggressive shin tuck without touching the ground with your hands. Jump up, hold your eye contact forward until takeoff completes, then aggressively snap your knees to your armpits while grabbing your shins. Open your tuck as soon as you spot the landing surface below you, absorbing the impact on the balls of your feet with knees flexed.
- • Eyes re-spot the landing mat halfway through the rotation
- • Clean two-foot landing with knees bent at a 45-degree angle
- • Grabbing behind the knees, which slows down rotation speed
- • Under-rotating due to releasing the tuck too early
Credit: inspired by an original tutorial by pigmie — watch the original on YouTube.
Don’t have everything?
- No gymnastics mat or crash pad? thick mattress on grass or soft sand
- No smartphone tripod for review? propping phone against a water bottle at waist height