Sports Gymnastics

Do you want to master tough flips and jumps on the mats, but you don’t have the power and endurance to make it through a whole program? Do you need to develop a higher jump to be more successful on the pommel horse? Our Acceleration Program is perfect for getting you to the next level.

With the Athletic Republic Acceleration program, the average athlete will see a 2-4 inch increase in vertical jump, a decrease of 0.2 seconds in a 40-yard sprint, and a 50% reduction in recovery rates.

Below is a detailed overview of our Acceleration program:

Objectives

Components of Gymnastics Training

Dynamic Warm-up/Cool-down

• Dynamic warm-up consists of activities to increase heart rate, blood flow, muscle temperature and breathing rate. Warming up allows muscles to stretch more easily and joints to move more easily, thereby preventing pulling muscles, most commonly hamstrings and quadriceps.
• Cooling down ensures athletes relax their muscles and reduce next-day soreness.

Speed Training

• Gymnasts run on Athletic Republic Generation III Super Treadmills. These treadmills can reach speeds of 28 miles per hour and an incline grade of 40 degrees.
• Athletes are taught proper running mechanics at high speeds. Stride efficiency and power make a faster, quicker runner.
• Gymnasts also learn visually by seeing themselves in a mirror and by using Dartfish video motion analysis—something they cannot get in the gym.

Strength Training

• Gymnastics involves precise, multi-directional movements that require highly developed motor co-ordination; strength training will help fine-tune these movements. A sound weight-training program encourages stability in your physical strength as well as reduces the chance of injury.
• Gymnasts utilize bodyweight, free-weights, medicine balls, and circuits on state-of-the-art FreeMotion machines to strengthen muscles, joints and connective tissues.
• These exercises are biomechanically specific to gymnastics skills including muscle movements used in jumping, turning and flipping.

Cardiovascular/Endurance Training

• Typically, the body takes anywhere from five to seven minutes to reach a comfortable cardiovascular output after the rise in heart rate. Because a gymnastics competition can last longer than an hour, the body works in aerobic mode throughout the program.
• Cardiovascular and endurance training at Chelsea Piers BlueStreak includes short interval/high intensity sprinting sequences on our Generation III Super Treadmills. Drills will be related to the same energy systems and tactical movements utilized in a gymnastics competition, with a focus on sprint speed.

Plyometric Training

• Plyometric training is an effective form of power training ideally suited to gymnastics. Gymnasts perform specific plyometric drills for increased motor performance (coordination), explosive power, vertical jump height, lateral power and rotation and landing strength.
• Plyometrics combines elements of both speed and strength in single movement patterns that include the Athletic Republic PlyoPress, cord technology, longitudinal and vertical jumps, box jumps and medicine ball drills for upper body and middle body torso power.

Flexibility

• Gymnastics-specific flexibility stretching exercises include static stretching, isometric stretching, and active isolated stretching (AIS). Improved flexibility helps to prevent injuries by assuring the muscles and tendons work together properly.

Dynamic Balance

• With an event named Balance Beam, it goes without saying that balance is connected to gymnastics. As a gymnast’s body awareness and balance improves, it will be easier to achieve more difficult moves. Athletes will perform a series of balance specific exercises to strengthen their stabilizer muscles and allow for better on-apparatus control.
• Training routines include unstable and stable lifts, dynamic balance movements with the Bosu ball and a variety of off-balance workouts.

Agility

• Agility is the ability to change speed and direction while maintaining effective control of the body. In order to improve agility, gymnasts learn a variety of agility drills, including the speed agility ladder and advanced ground based agility patterns.
• Ground-based agility patterns are conducted on our indoor Field Turf, 400M track, sand pit and wood courts.

Core Stabilization Training

• Core stabilization is essential for proper posture, balance and stabilization. Functional exercises focus on spinal stabilization and increased proprioception (the ability to read and respond to changing conditions) during sports activities. A strong posture allows for solid landings, tight air positions, stable spin positions, and keeps the body’s gravitational alignment with the gymnast’s axis throughout every movement from the basic cartwheel to the elusive aerial.
• Core training consists of dynamic, multi-joint exercises that use free weights, medicine balls and FreeMotion circuit training.