Twist Your Lower Body

In a backside 180, you generate rotation using your upper body during the first half of the trick, then twist your lower body to complete the full 180 degrees during the second half. This is where counter-rotation comes into play. When you try to rotate your lower body in one direction while airborne, your upper body tends to rotate in the opposite direction as a reaction. The human spine consists of 24 movable vertebrae, and because each of them allows some rotation, you can twist your lower body without having to rotate your upper body nearly as much.