Gymnastic Classes

If you did not get enough sleep, rest and take a nap before class or practice. Make sure your body has enough energy from nutrition to last through your class or practice. Build Your Strength to Increase Your Safety Margin The stronger and more flexible you are, the less likely you are to get hurt and the more likely you are to learn gymnastics skills quickly and safely. Flexibility not only makes many skills more beautiful to watch (like back walkovers), but also can make you less prone to injury. So prepare for your gymnastics career first by working to make yourself strong and flexible. Make Sure You Understand What to Do Tell your coach if you don’t completely understand instructions on what to do. You should know and understand exactly what skill your teacher expects you to do and how they want you to do it. If you are not sure, ask! Understanding will also help you learn more quickly and do skills more safely. Follow Proper Skill Progressions and Master Skills It is extremely i …

Advancement in the sport depends solely on how well the basics are mastered. Similar to a pyramid, the larger a base of support (basics), the higher the pyramid will stand (ultimate goal level). The following criterion helps decide the placement of each gymnast: Physical Preparedness An assessment is made of the gymnasts strength, flexibility, endurance, agility, quickness, and suppleness. Emotional and Psychological Readiness of the Gymnast These attributes are observable in a subjective way, as opposed to an objective manner. They readily indicate the gymnasts ability to overcome reasonable fears, to make quick, yet sound judgments, plus self-motivation, and dedication to achieving their gymnastic goals. Present Gymnastics Skill Level By asking the gymnast to have acquired the skills needed in the next level routines before being considered to move up, the gymnastics skills and routine readiness for the coming competitive season can be projected. By combining all of the above fact …

Teaching Children Gymnastics: A Developmentally Appropriate Approach Teaching Children Gymnastics, Second Edition, shows teachers how to use an innovative and individualized approach to teaching gymnastics skills and how to link those skills into sequences. This text has been expanded to present 30 child-tested examples of gymnastics activities (called learning experiences) that are ideal for children in kindergarten through grade 6. The learning experiences are divided into three skill themes: traveling, statics, and rotation. Each learning experience may be explored for three or more lessons to provide up to a full unit of instruction. This book explains the why and how of teaching children gymnastics. It describes how learning experiences allow teachers to focus each lesson on one skill theme while at the same time drawing on other themes to support the development of sequences. This approach helps children advance more quickly from performing isolated skills to performing movement sequences.

I have seen gymnasts benefit from the general strength exercises such as push ups, but when it comes time to perform certain skills the gymnast’s muscles are not always prepared, accustomed to the sequence of movements for the skills, or strong enough in each position required to safely complete the skill. Gymnasts really need a variety of training to include sport specific training besides general strength conditioning in order to more closely simulate the skills in our sport. For example, many straight arm exercises such as the front lateral raise, press handstand, or planche drills more closely simulate gymnastics skills than bent arm exercises such as the push up, bench press, or reverse dips. Here is one straight arm exercise that has helped many gymnasts strengthen their chest, shoulders, and back muscles, becoming stronger in two very important motions. Since the gymnast often must be able to open and close the shoulder angle during skills on uneven bars, I have included a very …

The reality is that gymnastics is a great “gateway” sport, that is, it prepares any child for a higher level of participation in many activities because of the confidence developed and body awareness attained - both attributes of gymnastics training. There are also different levels of competition that don’t have to lead to Olympic competition or years of grueling training. By that, I mean that routines developed by USA Gymnastics can be used by AAU (Amateur Athletic Union), YMCA, school, and recreational programs without the emphasis on competition for competition’s sake but for learning how to perform, learning to enjoy the competitive experience, and learning how to express oneself through movement. Recovery from a fall Another great benefit of gymnastics training is an increased awareness of the body in activity making recovery from falls or strategic changes in body position easier to accomplish. Many gymnastics skills have a takeoff phase, the skill performance, and a landing pha …

Teaching Children Gymnastics: A Developmentally Appropriate Approach Teaching Children Gymnastics, Second Edition, shows teachers how to use an innovative and individualized approach to teaching gymnastics skills and how to link those skills into sequences. This text has been expanded to present 30 child-tested examples of gymnastics activities (called learning experiences) that are ideal for children in kindergarten through grade 6. The learning experiences are divided into three skill themes: traveling, statics, and rotation. Each learning experience may be explored for three or more lessons to provide up to a full unit of instruction. This book explains the why and how of teaching children gymnastics. It describes how learning experiences allow teachers to focus each lesson on one skill theme while at the same time drawing on other themes to support the development of sequences. This approach helps children advance more quickly from performing isolated skills to performing movement sequences.