How long does it take to learn a flick or back handspring?

How Long Does It Take to Learn a Back Handspring or Flick?

This is one of the most searched questions parents and aspiring gymnasts ask, and the honest answer is: it depends enormously on the child. But that's not very useful on its own, so here's a more detailed breakdown of what actually influences the timeline, and what a realistic range of expectations looks like.

What is a back handspring, and why is it such a milestone?

A back handspring (also called a flick in the UK) is the skill where a gymnast jumps backward, lands on their hands, and springs back to their feet in one fluid, explosive movement. It looks deceptively simple when done well. It is not. It requires strength, flexibility, timing, body awareness, and perhaps most importantly, the mental willingness to throw yourself backward and trust your body to follow through.

It is a genuine milestone in gymnastics and acrobatics because it is one of the first skills that involves real flight and backward momentum. Almost everything that comes after it in tumbling builds on what a good back handspring teaches.

So how long does it take?

For a child training once or twice a week in a recreational class, a realistic timeframe from complete beginner to first unspotted back handspring is anywhere from one to three years. That is a wide range, and it is wide for a reason.

For a child in a squad environment training multiple times a week with dedicated coaching, that timeline can compress significantly. Some children with the right foundations in place, good strength, flexibility, and no significant fear of going backwards, can achieve a first back handspring within six to twelve months of targeted work.

For context, the prerequisite skills alone, solid handstands, a strong bridge, a back walkover, and confident backward momentum, can take a year or more to develop properly depending on how often a child trains. Rushing past those foundations and attempting a back handspring too early is one of the most common reasons children plateau, develop bad habits, or lose confidence.

The factors that matter most

Training frequency is probably the single biggest variable. A child who trains twice a week is accumulating skill repetitions at roughly half the rate of a child who trains four times a week. Over a year, that gap becomes enormous.

Beyond frequency, the key factors are strength (particularly core, shoulder, and leg strength), flexibility (especially in the back and shoulders), and the psychological side of the skill. Fear of going backward is extremely common, completely normal, and genuinely one of the biggest obstacles coaches work around. Some children get a back handspring quickly but lose it to a mental block and have to rebuild confidence from scratch, which can add months to the journey.

Age also plays a role. Younger children often learn movement patterns quickly, but may not have the strength to execute cleanly. Older children and teenagers may progress technically faster but can find the fear element harder to manage.

What about acro and dance?

Back handsprings and flick combinations are not exclusive to gymnastics. In acrobatic dance, the skill is just as important and just as demanding. The prerequisite strength and flexibility work is essentially the same, and the timeline is similar. Children training in acro at Apex Dance Club in Earlsfield will work through the same fundamental progressions before this skill is introduced, because the preparation required is non-negotiable regardless of the performance context.

Can it be learned in a recreational class?

Yes, though it takes longer than in a squad environment. The coaching attention in a recreational class is shared across more children, and the hours spent in the gym each week are fewer. That does not make it impossible, just slower.

At SWL Gymnastics in Putney, Apex Gymnastics in Earlsfield, and Fulham Gymnastics in Fulham, recreational gymnasts absolutely do work toward back handsprings, and many achieve them. Squad gymnasts will typically get there faster and with cleaner technique, because the training hours and coaching focus allow for more deliberate, progressive work on the skill and its prerequisites.

The honest summary

There is no fixed answer to this question, and anyone who gives you a precise one is probably oversimplifying. A rough honest range for a child in regular coached gymnastics is one to three years from beginner level to a first clean back handspring. Squad gymnasts working hard in a good programme may get there in six to twelve months from the right starting point. The prerequisite foundations matter as much as the skill itself, and coaches who take the time to build those properly are giving children a far better chance of a back handspring that actually holds up under pressure and improves from there.

Patience, consistent training, and a coach who knows when to push and when to wait are worth more than any shortcut.