Conditioning Introduction to Conditioning Principles...1 Upper Body Conditioning...2 Core/Abdominals & Back...6 Intermediate Exercises... 10 Advanced Exercises... 12 Hips... 13 Legs/Lower Body Conditioning... 14 Ankles/Lower leg... 15 Whole body Exercises... 16 Specific Conditioning... 17 0
Introduction to Conditioning Principles Conditioning is one of the most important (and sometimes least fun) aspects of gymnastics. Being strong and flexible makes gymnastics easy right? Wrong, it does make gymnastics significantly easier and safer to learn but gymnastics can ever be referred to as "easy". Generally if gymnasts are enjoying what they are doing they will work harder, perform better, and improve faster. The best way to keep conditioning and stretching fun is to keep it varied. Variety in a conditioning program not only makes it more interesting but also makes it significantly more effective. Main areas to strengthen: Upper limbs, shoulder girdle, Abdomens, Hip and back muscles, Lower limbs. Conditioning is vital for: Reduced incidence of injuries Faster and more effective skill acquisition Reduced muscle soreness Prolonged period of participation More sustained and intense participation More rapid recovery from fatigue Principles of conditioning Overload: Doing more than the muscle is accustomed to. For bodyweight/ structural conditioning exercises used in gymnastics, this means increasing the number of repetitions, or moving on to a more difficult conditioning exercise. Progressive resistance: The intensity of exercise should be gradually increased. Specificity: The strength exercise should duplicate as closely as possible the exact movement pattern that is being trained. Recovery: Without adequate time for recovery, the gymnasts strength will decrease instead of improve. Other factors to consider with conditioning: Variation: The conditioning exercises should be varied every month at least, as our bodies adapt and become accustomed to a movement in as little as 4 weeks. To see further improvement the exercises should be changed. Reversibility: If you don t use it you lose it. Strength is relatively quickly gained, but these gains are reversed just as quickly. Keep this in mind in the beginning of a new term. Especially with your more advanced levels that include skills that require a level of strength. Range of Movement: All Conditioning exercise should be done through a full range of movement to ensure that flexibility is developed through strength. 1
Order of work: Exercises involving large muscle groups should be done first, to prevent injury as result of poor technique. Warm up: The specific warm up should include about 50% resistance or conditioning work. Most conditioning is directed to the prime movers, the large muscle groups that are involved in executing gymnastics skills. Working in the background are smaller stabilizing muscles used to absorb forces. The stabilizers are very important in injury prevention. You can target these stabilisers by enforcing correct body posture when performing any of the conditioning exercises. The moment a gymnasts starts to lose form, give them a break before continuing, or move on to another body part. Incorrect technique in conditioning exercises can also result in injury or poor technique when performing gymnastics skills, which can lead to injury. Upper Body Conditioning Block drill against the wall The block drill against the wall helps the round-off block on floor to initiate the flight phase. This is a valuable skill to teach the gymnast the push out of the shoulders when they block, which is present in most tumbling skills. Without this block action there is no flight phase making the snap down impossible on floor. This drill also re-enforces the tight shape position required for tumbling. This drill is a lead-up but can also be used as an enhancement once the basic round-off is learned. To do the drill, the gymnast will stand in front of a wall; about half a meter to a meter away depending on the length of the gymnast; arms stretched up, tight body. The gymnast leans in towards the wall keeping the tight shape, rounding the shoulders so that the hands lower slightly towards the wall without closing the shoulder angle. The moment their hands touch the wall, they should push/ block out of the shoulders and hands; lengthening the distance from the shoulder to the finger tips in a fast, powerful action; to push them away from the wall, maintaining the shape position. Errors to look out for: A push out of the arms, bending the elbows; or arching the back and then pushing the bottom out to help them gain momentum. Wall Push up Begin standing about ½-1 meter away from the wall. Place hands at shoulder height, shoulderwidth apart, palms flat. Bend arms, lowering whole body towards the wall, keeping head 2
neutral. Push back to starting position. Keep your torso rigid and avoid sagging in the middle or piking the hips up. Modified Push Ups up. Begin on your hands and knees, hands shoulder-width apart, palms flat. Bend arms, lowering whole body down to the floor, keeping head neutral. Push back to starting position. Keep your torso rigid and avoid sagging in the middle or piking the hips Push ups Begin on your hands and knees, hands shoulder-width apart, palms flat. Extend the legs straight, resting on your toes. Bend arms, lowering whole body down to the floor, keeping head neutral. Push back to starting position. Keep your torso rigid and avoid sagging in the middle or piking the hips up. Plyometric Push ups Begin on your hands and knees, hands shoulder-width apart, palms flat. Extend the legs straight, resting on your toes. Bend arms, lowering whole body down to the floor, keeping head neutral. Powerfully push back out of shoulders and wrists, pushing body off the floor. Land softly slightly bending elbows on landing, to return to push up position. Keep your torso rigid and avoid sagging in the middle or piking the hips up. Pull ups Start from a hanging position, arms fully extended. Keeping your body as straight as possible, pull yourself up until your eyes are level with the bar. Hold for one second, and then slowly lower yourself back down to the starting position. 3
Shoulder flexion Secure elastic under feet at waist level as shown. Lift arms up towards ears, keeping elbow straight. Slowly return to start position. (Use elastic band or small weight) Shoulder Extension Secure elastic on door frame or wall bar. Grab onto elastic at head height. Pull arms down to sides, keeping elbows straight. Slowly return to starting position. (Use elastic band or small weight) Shoulder Shrugs Stand in good body posture, arm next to ears holding a weight in hands. Push weight up out of shoulders, lower back to starting position. Do not bend elbows, movement only occurs in shoulders. (Use elastic band or small weight) Levers Levers on Folded Mats/Bench There are many body positions in which the body weight is supported only by the hands arms. The handstand is one of the skills in which all the body weight is supported on two body parts and is inverted. This skill will be discussed in chapter 4. Other positions in which body is supported on two body parts, whether on the floor or on stacked mats, are often called holds. The hold positions are easier to perform initially on folded mats, benches, or chairs. H positions require a lot of upper-body and abdominal strength. In the beginning stages even a momentary lift of the legs to these positions will help develop gymnasts' strength. However, make sure gymnasts do not arch the back or swing the legs for momentum; instead, gymnasts should use abdominal strength for control and balance in these positions. 4
Tuck Hold This skill develops the upper-body strength that is necessary for future skills such as the straddle L and L. Begin in seated tuck between stacked mats with hands shoulder-width apart. Place hands on the folded mats with fingers facing forward. Extend arms by pushing down and straightening the elbows. "Roll" shoulders back for balance as tuck is elevated. Keep shoulders directly above hands. Keep head up and feet pointed. L Hold Same as tuck hold except for the following: "Roll" shoulders backward for balance as the abdominal muscles contract and the feet elevate to a pike. If you are unable to perform the L, work on abdominal strength by lifting legs a few inches off the floor. If lift cannot be maintained, lower the legs to the floor and lift the legs again and lower as necessary. Try to control legs and not let them drop to the floor. Straddle L Hold Same as L hold except for the following: Start in seated straddle between stacked mats. Roll" shoulders backward for balance as straddle is elevated. Assist: Place one hand under thighs. Place one hand on back. Levers on Floor Tuck Lever Sit in tuck with hands shoulder-width apart, fingers pointing forward the floor on either side of torso. Roll shoulders back and extend arms by pushing down and straighten elbows. Keep knees at chest height as tuck is lifted off the floor. Keep shoulders directly above hands, head up, and feet pointed Try to hold for 3 seconds. Return to sit in tuck. 5
L support Start in seated pike with hands on the floor shoulder-width apart, fingers pointing forward. Extend arms by pushing down and straightening elbows. Bring shoulders back for balance as pike is elevated. Try to hold for 3 seconds. Keep shoulders directly above hands. Keep head up and feet pointed. Return to seated pike. V Sit support Begin in a V-sit with hands on either side of hips and fingers pointing forward on the floor. Extend arms by pushing down and straightening elbows until V is lifted off the floor. Try to hold for 3 seconds. Keep shoulders directly above hands. Keep head up and feet pointed. Return to V-sit on floor. Core/Abdominals & Back The abdominals are some of the most important muscles in the body for gymnastics and many other sports. Having strong abs is crucial to being successful in many skills, or just maintaining form in most skills. Easy Exercises Basic sit-up Lie down on the floor on your back with your knees bent or straight, and someone or something holding your legs or not. Sit up to an upright position. 6
Crunches Lie down on the floor on your back, knees bent or straight, legs elevated or not. Bring your head up and in and lift your shoulders off the floor by rounding your back as much as possible. Holding your arms above your head will add to the resistance. V Sit Balance The V-sit is considered a support when the hands are placed behind the hips on the floor. A V-sit without hands is considered a balance. Gymnasts must have strong abdominal muscles to perform the V-sit. There are many types of skills that gymnasts can perform while in the basic V-sit position; these skills can add variety and provide the muscle strength necessary to perform the skill. The following are some variations for V-sit skills: Sit in tuck and support upper body by placing hands behind hips on floor. Lean back so that the hands and buttocks support the weight. Lift one or both legs off the floor in many different ways to build abdominal strength. Keep the abdominal muscles tight and lifted but not pushed out. Here are some more specific variations for V-sit positions: Perform V-stag. Perform V-sit flutter kick. Perform V-sit crisscross. 7
Perform V-sit while grasping ankles. A more advanced version of this would be to rock back and return to this balance position. (Start introducing the rock back in tuck position ending in balance v-sit) V-sit tucked/ Tucked Jackknife Yet again, on your back. This time lying flat and completely stretched out. Bring your arms in and shoulders forward while simultaneously bringing your legs up and in so that the top position is a tuck balanced on your butt. Front bridge / Push up Position Lie on your tummy, elbows on the floor, lift hips and stomach off the floor and hold for 10-30s up to 1 minute. Verbal/ Linguistic Begin in a prone straight-body position. Place hands under shoulders and push down on floor. Push body upward from feet until arms are straight and weight is evenly distributed on both hands. Support a tight body with arms straight. Maintain a straight-body position by keeping back straight, not rounded or arched. Logical/Mathematical Maintain a downward diagonal line from head to toes. Keep a vertical line from hands through shoulders with arms at right angle to floor. Keep feet at right angle to floor. Make the body symmetrical. Visual/Spatial Keep head in line with body. Look at floor directly beneath head. Keep heels right above balls of feet. 8
Keep fingers facing forward. Kinder cue: Make a ramp for the cars. Bodily/Kinesthetic Feel the floor as you push with hands until arms straighten. Feel abdominal muscles tighten to keep lower back straight. Feel back and buttocks muscles tighten to keep from piking. Squeeze legs and heels together. Keep muscles above knees tight. Musical/Rhythmical Push down equally and at the same time with both arms. Assist Place one hand under belly and lift at waist. Place one hand under thighs. Common Errors Body leans too far to one side. Body weight is not distributed between the hands and feet. Body is not in a straight line. Back is arched or rounded. Arms are bent. Torso is loose. Legs are apart and bent. Arch/ Superman Hold Lie on your stomach lift up arms and legs up into an arch with your heels squeezed together and arms by your ears. Dish Shape/ Hollow Hold Lying on your back arms by your ears- lift heels and shoulders off floor keeping lower back pressed into the floor. 9
Supermans Start lying on your stomach or kneeling. Then, lift one leg as high as you can and at the same time the opposite arm, return to start position. Legs & arms should be kept straight throughout. Repeat with opposite leg & arm. Swimming Start lying on your stomach. Lift arms and legs in the same ways as for the superman, but in a fast flutter motion. Move arms out of the shoulders, and legs out of the hips, keeping arms and legs straight. Candlestick extensions Roll back into a candlestick (see below) with your arms by your ears. Lower your toes to the floor, and then extend your toes to the ceiling. This also has the advantage of stretching your glutes, hamstrings and lower back in the process Intermediate Exercises Scissor Jackknife Lie flat on your back stretched out, arms by your ears, legs straight. Bring your arms and shoulders up while lifting one leg up straight meeting in a V Position, lower leg and upper body to lie flat again, now repeat with the other leg. A more advanced variation of this exercise would be to start in the shape position, performing the scissor lift without touching the floor with your shoulders or heels. Side Bridge Sit on your side using your hand to balance. Lift your body up into a straight line and hold this position for 10-20s. To increase the intensity, lift the top leg up in the hold. Repeat on the other side. 10
Back bridge Sit on floor legs stretched out in front, hands behind hips fingers pointing towards hips. Lift hips up, straight arms, hold hips up. Star gymnast off in the baby crab position, and then progress to the bridge. Arch Rocks Lie on your stomach in an arch with your heels squeezed together and arms by your ears. Rock back and forth, without dropping arms or legs to touch the floor. Hollow Rocks Lie on your back in a hollow position with your arms by your ears. Rock back and forth. Your lower back should be curved so that the rocking motion is smooth. Hollow Rock to Arch Rock Start in a hollow, do three hollow rocks, then roll onto your stomach without touching the ground with either your hands or your feet. Then perform three arch rocks and roll in the same direction back onto your back. Traverse the floor repeating this pattern, and then be sure to go back the other way as the roll is not symmetric. Tuck Ups Lie on your back lift your knees towards your chest aggressively so you roll back into a tuck with your lower back off the floor. 11
Lying Leg Lifts Hanging Leg Lifts Start lying on your back in a hollow and lift your legs through vertical, over to touch the floor behind your head with your lower back off the floor. Then slowly lowering the legs back to the starting position without lifting the shoulders or lower back from the floor. Hanging from a wall bar, bring your bending your knees and lift your knees to your elbows, slowly lower legs back to starting position. This can be made more difficult by straightening the legs at the top then lowering down slowly keeping legs straight. Back Extensions Lie on your stomach, arms by your sides, legs straight. Lift your chest up as high as possible without lifting the legs up from the floor. Heel raisers on tummy On a vaulting horse/ bench lie down so that your legs are dangling and the edge of the vault is at your lower abs. Lift your heels as high as you can, so that you are essentially standing on your chest, lower slowly. Some other object can be substituted for the vault. [trapezium or bench or small box or edge of the stage. Advanced Exercises Advanced Vertical Leg push Lie on your back with your legs straight. Place each hand palm down, just under hips. Keep your head in, and body hollow, lift your toes towards the ceiling. Just before your legs reach vertical extend your torso to lift your lower back off the floor. The top point is a candlestick. 12
Straight leg Jackknifes Lie flat on your back and completely stretched out. Bring your arms and shoulders up while lifting your legs keeping them together and straight to finish in a V position. Now lower back down to the starting position. To increase the intensity of this exercise you can start in the dish shape. Straddle Lever Lift to straddle standing. Sit in a straddle position, lean forward slightly and place your hands on the floor. Lift your legs up and back as far as possible. The farther forward your hands are placed, the more difficult the exercise will be. Pike Lever Lift to pike standing Sit in a pike, reach forward so that your fingers are past your knees. Lift your legs. Again the farther forward your hands are placed, the more difficult the exercise will be. Hips Hip abduction Start lying on your right side then lift your left leg as high as possible and return to start position. Repeat on left side. Hip adduction Start lying on your right side with your left leg bent and left foot on the floor in front of your hips and your right leg still extended. Then, should lift your right leg as high as possible and return to start position. Standing Leg Lifts Stand and lift one leg as high as you can. Try to minimize the kick involved and lift your leg. This should be done with both legs and in all directions, forward, backward and to the side. The standing leg should be kept straight throughout, and the torso should be kept aligned. Leaning is to be discouraged. This should also be practiced holding onto a stable object, and free standing. 13
Legs/Lower Body Conditioning The need to develop explosive powerful legs is essential for gymnastics. The more height you can generate, the bigger skills you can do. These exercises will help develop that spring. Mountain Climbers Start in a push up position. Bring one leg forward to a tuck position, then in quick succession switch which leg is tucked. (This will work your shoulders and stomach a bit as well.) Block Jumps Stand on the edge of a mid-thigh height block, heels out. Jump backwards off the block rebound back to the top of the block. Done in quick succession this helps develop explosive power for floor and vault. This can also be done forwards, and instead of rebounding, stick the landing. Running Stairs Run up stairs. This is one of the best ways to develop strength and power in your legs. Sprints Run as fast as you can. Should be done in intervals. e.g. sprint a certain distance, jog back to the start point, sprint again. Repeat. Squat Jumps Keep your back as vertical as possible, bend down deep touch the floor with your fingers and spring in a stretched position. During the squat phase your heels should remain on the floor. Variation: Do on a fat mat 14
Squat Jumps Across the Floor Start on one side of the floor/room. Bend down and leap as far forward as you can. Be sure to fully extend your body into a slight arch as you leave the ground. Challenge yourself to cross the floor/room in as few jumps as possible. Wall Sits Sit against a wall. Legs will be bent at about 90 degrees. This isometric exercise helps build primarily quads and glutes Other High hopping on each leg. Long hopping on each leg. 100 x stretch jumps on a fat mat. Ankles/Lower leg Heel Walks Walk around on your heels with straight legs. Tighten your quads. You will feel a burn on the outside of your shins. This helps prevent shin splints. DON'T do this if you already have bad shin splints. Let them heal first. Toe Raises Every time you do toe raises, turn around and place your heel on the step, then lift your toes and go back down. This will strengthen the anterior tibialis which will help prevent shin splints. OR Stand on floor and repeatedly lift your toes off the ground. Calve Raises Stand facing a wall for support, on a step, block, bench or other firm stable object. Stand so that the ball of your feet/ foot is supported and your heels are suspended. Lower down so that your calves are in a stretch position, and then extend your feet to stand on toe. This can be done with your feet turned in, out or neutral, on two feet or one at a time 15
Whole body Exercises Burpees Start from a stand, drop down to a pushup position. Bring your legs up under you and jump as high as you can. We recommend doing these with a pushup each time you are in the pushup position. Jumping Jacks Most people have performed these in a PE class at some point. They are an excellent way to warm up, and can be included in a conditioning set either as a station where fatigued muscles are allowed to recover while metabolic demands are kept high, or if modified as a significant component of a met-con circuit. Jumping jacks should be practiced both with arms and legs in concert (legs straddling while arms are swung upward) or in opposition (legs straddling while arms are brought down). You can challenge yourself by seeing how high you can jump on each repetition. At the point that the legs are brought together you can perform a squat. Consecutive star jumps. Consecutive star jumps with squats. Roll up straddle Jumps. (Roll backwards into candlestick- roll to stand up without using hands- explode into star jump- stick landing. Repeat) Reverse Jack knives Start in a standing pike with your hands/ feet supported on a rolling device, or low rings. Extend out until you are in an open hollow position as open as possible, pull back to a standing pike. 16
Wood chops Start standing with feet shoulder width apart, holding a weight in both hands. Squat down, lowering weight just past Left knee. Lift weight up towards Right shoulder, turning torso but maintaining straight arms. Specific Conditioning Strengthening the Predominant Movement Patterns Body Alignment Dish Shape Handstand, stretch jump, Hurdle, Block, Arc Shape Superman for dive roll, Jump back for flick flack, Flat back landing, Heel drive for dive roll & Handspring Extension at the hip (pike to arch) Ex. Flick Flack, Kick to handstand, Handstand fall over into bridge Conditioning: Back extensions Flexion at the hip (arch to pike) Ex. Flick Flack snap down, Pike jump, any movement that requires the gymnast to lift up their legs Conditioning: V-sit ups, Jack knives, Leg lifts Shoulder Extension (Lowering the arms forward) Ex. Pull for front somersault, Forward roll Conditioning: Push up position, Wheelbarrow walks Shoulder Flexion (Lifting the arms up & extending back) Ex. This action is present in almost all gymnastics positions which are one of the main reasons why gymnastics is such a great balancing sport. Conditioning: Shoulder extensions, Superman, Shoulder stabilisers Spring (Rapid consecutive jumps) This requires and develops the ability to maintain the tight shape body position required to perform the block action, jumps on tramp, and tumbling movements. Conditioning: Start with stationary shape position holds and then move one to more dynamic actions such as the rocking shape and arch, now progress to doing punches on floor first on a level floor, and then onto a height, moving forwards, backward and sideways. Run up Conditioning: Two feet hopping for distance One foot hopping for distance Stride run, Hop form one foot to the other in running motion, making strides as long as possible. Skipping 17
Practice arm action, standing on a spot, slow mo, then fast Run at varying speeds, ¼ speed, ½ speed, ¾ speed, and full speed. Hurdle Conditioning: Hopping Hop over obstacles Jump from a height and bounce over obstacle Step, hurdle to jump and reach for some high object Pre-flight Conditioning Round off, Dive Cartwheel, Dive roll & Handspring Leap frog Push up position Push up position with feet on a height Handstand against the wall Handstand Block Conditioning Leap frog on level ground & over objects Wheelbarrow hops Push up hand claps Handstand push out of shoulders against the wall Handstand hop Block drill against the wall Handstand Conditioning Handstand balance with a friend Wheelbarrow walks, hops, forward & backward leans Holding the handstand tight position lying on stomach and back Shoulder Shrugs Fun Conditioning Games Create an obstacle course warm up & conditioning. Wheelbarrow walks and circuits, Bridge Tunnel All the gymnasts hold the bridge position while each of them gets a turn to crawl through the tunnel or roll a ball through the tunnel. Wind screen wipers: Standing in push up position, gymnasts move hands or feet in a semi-circle shape, keeping feet or hands stationary, or moving pieces of equipment from one point to another (i.e. Bean bags). V hold Bridges: Gymnasts balance in Tuck v-sit or straight v-sit, lifting their legs off the floor and holding it there while you try to roll a ball all the way through. Frisbee walks/push: Hold Push-up position, with hands or feet on a Frisbee, either push Frisbee forward with hands or drag Frisbee behind body with feet. Dish Hold ball pass: Gymnasts to all lie next to each other holding Dish Position, Pass ball from one person to the next and back, hopping ball before passing. 18
Ball pass with feet: All gymnasts lie on their backs, legs up 90 deg. Straight. Holding ball in between legs, pass ball to next person. Tight arch Bridge: All gymnast rest shoulders and lower legs on a separate bench, lifting hips to straighten out body, see who holds the longest. Push up position high 5: Gymnasts partner up, facing each other in push up position. Clap same hands 10x or to a beat or rhyme. 19