Gymnastic Classes

GSC Folding Downhill Mats Our folding downhill mats have multiple uses and are ideal for teaching beginning gymnasts basic rolls and walkovers. Filled with polyurethane and covered with 18 oz. reinforced, coated vinyl. Multi-colors only.

Don t compare your gymnast’s progress with that of other gymnasts. 2. Don t become overly ego-involved with your gymnast s success or lack of it. 3. Don t take judge s scores too seriously, especially at the lower levels. 4. Don t forget the need for fun in gymnastics. 5. Don t stand for unacceptable behavior from your gymnast during practice or competitions. 6. Don t participate in gossip about anyone in the gymnastics community. 7. Don t interfere with coaches and their coaching duties during practice or competitions. 8. Don t pressure your gymnast regarding skills or competition. 9. Don t set unrealistic goals for your gymnast. 10. Don t predicate your love or attention on your gymnast s competitive success. 11. Don t base your own ego or self-esteem on the success of your gymnast s progress or competitive success. 12. Don t lose your long-term perspective about the importance of your gymnast s participation in the sport. 13. Don t let yourself care too deeply about your gymnast s …

Further, certain skills and positions look better (even great) on certain body types. Finally, certain gymnasts just learn certain skills and skill groups better than others do. This is one of the beauties of the sport to help develop and see the unique style of each gymnast. Originality at Every Level There is no reason, however, why the same process cannot take place at every competitive level (except, of course, in compulsory routines, but we will assume compulsory gymnasts are already training optional skills). Gymnasts can feel the same sense of pride in their unique, original skills at the lower levels as well as at the higher levels. Invest the Time to Work Original Skills and Combinations To develop this kind of personal enjoyment and creative capacity, first, some time must be allocated to the task. For creative floor skill development, for example, we usually devote 15 20 minutes of time after basic warm-ups to working creative skill variations. Unique Skills and Routine …

The body wave is such a fluid movement that a complete and true ripple through the entire body is extremely difficult. Many gymnasts wave their arms around in the pretence of doing a body wave, but so often the body itself is doing very little. For this reason, I suggest that the learning stage should deal solely with the movement of the spine, with the arms eventually following the movement rather than initiating it. There are a number of practices which will help achieve the right sort of feeling for the body wave. 1. Stand with the feet a little way apart, and with the arms out sideways, try to flatten the back, keeping the head in line with the body. You might need someone to correct your position or stand sideways on to a mirror turning your head to see if you have achieved a completely flat back position. 2. From the position described above, lift the shoulders and round the top part of the spine, pulling the stomach in and pressing the shoulder blades upwards. 3. Relax the knee …

However, before launching into the practice of take offs, it is vital that the landing technique is worked upon. So many gymnasts land heavily and so risk damage their knees, feet and even their spine that the coach must ensure before all else that the gymnast can land safely and well without jarring either legs or back. The landing should be very resilient, toes touching the floor first, and then the rest of the foot, the ankle, knee and hip giving into the floor to cushion the landing. The following are some exercises for practicing landing: 1. Perform small jumps on the spot, feet together, stretching the feet and pointing the toes in the air, and bending the knees on landing. These small jumps when performed with the feet turned out slightly are called saut s. 2. Jump from both feet from a low height, bench or box top, to land on the floor, feet together, landing with control and resilience. 3. Run and spring from one foot, landing on two feet with resilience. 4. Run and leap, tak …

It was then that the International Gymnastics Federation gave official recognition to the various apparatus exercises, the rope, the hoop and the ball, and set up the first World Championships which were held in 1963. Not until some times later were the clubs and the ribbons events included. Since 1963, the World Championships have been held every alternate year, this being the major competition in the international calendar for rhythmic gymnastics. Gradually, other competitions have been introduced, European Championships were inaugurated in 1978, and then a Four Continents Championship, but the ultimate recognition for the sport was its inclusion in the Olympic Games for the first time in Los Angeles 1984. Current rules state that no more than two gymnasts per country are eligible for the Olympics, and that qualification is necessary before entry into the competition is allowed. The qualifying competition is a sudden death affair, just one chance in the World Championships preceding …

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 …

Fate is a Factor To a great extent a gymnast s experiences in life are the primary factor. There is no possibility for escaping all of the effects of heredity, talent levels, body type and just plain good or bad luck. But coaches and parents can and do have a strong effect on self-image, self-esteem, and therefore, the self-confidence of their gymnasts. And coaches should encourage gymnasts in the effort to build their teammates self-confidence. #1 - A Team Effort to Build Up Gymnasts A gymnast s view of themselves and feelings about themselves strongly affects their learning, motivation and competition performances. A coach or parent can help their gymnast develop a positive self-image by caring about them unconditionally, pointing out to them their abilities and talents and help them to celebrate their successes. #2 - Cheers Where Everyone Knows Your Name Your gymnasts will be too young to remember the above reference to the TV show from before their time, but the sentiment will s …

Unlike some other sports, such as football or hockey, which may only get him or her into a college on a scholarship on an off chance, gymnastics has much more of a future to offer those who are capable. Professional gymnastics, gymnastics coaching, performances, and theater are only a few of the options beyond the aforementioned — quite literally, the sky is the limit. Professional gymnastics In terms of professional gymnastics there are quite literally dozens of substyles to choose from, all of which stem either from rhythmic gymnastics or artistic gymnastics. Dancing, juggling, tumbling, rolling, vaulting, horse and beams can be involved in a professional competition. Even the rings, which are limited only to men, are offered. Lucrative and fun for your gymnast, the professional sport is typically reserved for those who are extremely well-qualified. Lots of gymnasts who participate, though, are fresh out of school. No rule states that one must be an Olympic champion in order to ent …

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 …

There are the large commercial camps that only operate in the summer and are designed to attract large numbers of gymnasts for huge profits. There are also other gym programs, ranging from YMCA programs to regular gyms to college programs, that use this as an additional profit center. Large Commercial Camps Charging the highest prices, these camps offer a wide-ranging array of normal camp activities (even a variety of different types of camps) in addition to their version of gymnastics training. Coaching quality varies from college gymnasts to college coaches free for the summer to coaches who just happened to bring their team along to the camp. The best-known name coaches at these camps are usually either the camp directors and do little actual coaching or are merely visiting. It is not uncommon for name coaches to trade the use of their name in the advertising for the right to use the camp facilities to train their own gymnasts. Commercial Camps Other programs that run their own ver …

The landing of the dismount is a little wobbly but you keep it under control. “No!” you scream (inside your head) as you pull off your grip and stare at a flap of skin the size of a dime that is bleeding in the palm of your hand. You’ve ripped! Great, just what you needed, especially the night before a competition. Why did it have to happen now? How are you going to concentrate on doing your best in the routine tomorrow with the pain of a rip constantly making itself felt? You know that you are capable of doing the routine with your hand taped, but that edge of pain can be just enough to take your mind off doing the best routine you can. Chances are this situation has happened to many gymnasts at some point in their competitive careers. Most gymnast’s have suffered rips during workouts and been told by the coach to clean it up and get back to work on routines. That is not as mean as it sounds. As clearly illustrated above, a rip could occur before a big meet and you need to learn how …

But the routines and especially the vault were originally designed simply as training devices, not for competition. The Level 4 Vault Mat This is most obvious with the Level 4 vault a handspring onto big stack of mats. In order to add this vault into regular competitions, a new piece equipment had to be designed and provided at competitions completely separate from the normal vault horse/table. And unlike any vault at any other level, gymnasts do not land on their feet in the Level 4 vault requiring a whole new approach to judging the vault. You Don t Have to Compete Level 4 Another common misconception is that gymnasts are required to compete Level 4 before they can compete in Level 5. There is no Level 4 competitive requirement before you compete in Level 5. The only requirement for Level 5 is that gymnasts must pass a skill evaluation from a skill evaluator with a score of at least 75%. You don t have to compete Level 4! It is not required! Level 4 Skills are Almost Never Used …

Yet, all gymnasts begin from simple instructions for simple movements and techniques that are the foundation from which more complex and difficult techniques develop. Here in this article we will discuss two of the most basic gymnastic techniques. The cartwheel - First, stand in a lunge with your weight on your favorite leg (depends if you are left or right sided), bend your knees slightly and raise your arms. Reach forward with your right arm, assuming you are right handed, and kick your left leg up simultaneously. The left hand must follow instantly and as the hand touches the ground the right leg must be off the ground too. You will then do a straddle handstand momentarily. Afterwards, your left leg will touch the ground first followed by the right. Finish the cartwheel with the lunge position but the opposite leg is now in front. The handstand This is one of the most important skills in gymnastics. For a gymnast to proceed to more complex skills, he must first perfect the handst …

However, a word of warning should be issued to gymnasts both to prepare themselves thoroughly before attempting the extreme bend, and to learn the technique correctly. Injuries can be caused not just from over stretching or from dropping backwards too quickly, but from a poor recovery, usually cause by a lack of strength in the mid body region. It is vital that the gymnast is taught to pull up after the bend to return to a good standing posture, this, of course, will be aided by some strength work with the abdominal muscles. The back end is best learned first in a kneeling position as is the side bends since the hand can be used for support. Back End Keel on one knee, with your front leg extended forwards on the floor. Place one hand behind on the floor or the leg, and then bend backwards as far as is comfortable stretching the free arm overhead. Recover by pulling up to a straight body position, still kneeling, with tummy in, back straight and both arms above the head. Side Bend Knee …