Conditioning

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. What follows is a list of exercises and conditioning sets that can be used to develop strength for gymnastics, other sports, or just for general fitness. I have left out numbers of reps and sets because those numbers will be determined by the individuals fitness and strength level. A good basis is you should be able to do 2-3 sets of the same number of reps. Ex: if at the end of 3 sets of 10 leg lifts the last few are done with great difficulty or with assistance, then 10 reps is a good number. More or less reps can be done, or weights can be used to change the difficulty. Be sure to lower through the motion slowly, as the negative is more effective for building strength than the positive motion. Most of the exercises contained here are for general gymnastics conditioning. Exercises. Push-Ups - We all know what they are, yet there is a huge variety on how they can be done. Here are some varieties to try. Any of the push-ups can be done on the floor, parallel bars, or parallettes.

Yer Basic Push-up - Prone position, body tight and slightly hollow. Toes on the floor, hands below your shoulders. Lower yourself to the floor and push back to the prone position. No arching, bending, pikeing allowed. Keep your elbows close to your sides as this will isolate your arms better.
Knee Push-ups - Fairly self explanatory. Like a basic push-up, but your knees are your anchor point rather than your feet. This makes the motion easier.
Ball-Planch Push-up - This is a difficult type of push-up. The starting position is a ball planch. Dip down as close to the floor as you can keeping your body horizontal and without touching your knees to the floor and push back up to a ball-planch.
Hollow back press to handstand - Sort of a push-up, sort of a press. Start lying on your stomach with your hands near your hips. Lift your heels and push up to handstand, reverse the motion. If you start in a seal stretch and rock forward it makes the move significantly easier.
Pseudo-Planch Push-up - For those of us who can not do true planch push ups, this is a method of working towards that goal. Lying flat on your stomach with pointed toes place your hands near your waist and push up. Try to lean forward as much as possible. Your feet will slide as you do this so wear socks or it can be rough on the feet. As you get stronger doing this eventually you feet will lift off the floor and you will end up in a planch.
Planch Push-up - To those that can do them, the only true push-up, to the other 99.9% of the world, something that looks physically impossible. The name basically explains it. Doing push-ups in a planch position. If you can do them you know what they are.
Handstand Push-up - In a handstand lower as far as you can go and push back to handstand. This can be done against a wall either with your back to the wall or facing the wall. Facing the wall in the handstand will force better technique.
Tricep Pushups - Place your hands on a bar, or block about waist high. Feet in front arms back. Lower down till you are almost sitting on the floor, push back up.

Pull-Ups/Chin-Ups - This is a list and explanation of various kinds of pull ups.

Basic Pull-up - Hang from a bar with your hands about shoulder width apart. They can be done in an over-grip or an under-grip. The change in grip will change what muscle groups are used and how they are worked. Both kinds should be done for conditioning. The pull up should be done so that your chest is touching or close to the bar.
Wide Arm Pull-up - Hang with your arms wide in an over-grip. Pull up so that either your chest touches the bar or the back of your neck touches the bar.
L-hang Pull-up - Hang in an L in either an under-grip or over-grip. Do a pull-up maintaining the L position.
Pull-up to Lever - Starting from a bent arm hang with your chest to the bar, straighten your arms while dropping your shoulders back and lifting your toes to a front lever, then pull back to a bent arm hang.
Muscle Up - Starting from a hang on rings pull up high, shift your shoulders over your hands and push up to support.

Sit-Ups - 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.

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.
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.
N-ups - 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 on your back.
V-ups - Begin like N-ups. Bring your arms and shoulders up while lifting your legs to finish in a V position.

Various Leg Stuff - Some different ideas for developing leg strength and power.

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 a bit as well.)
Calve Raises - Standing on a step, block, chair or other firm stable object. Stand so that the ball of your feet is supported and your heels are suspended. Lower down so that your calves are in a stretch position, then extend your feet to stand on toe. This can be done with your feet turned in, out or neutral.
Running Stairs - Fairly self explanatory. Run up stairs. This is one of the best ways to develop strength and power in your legs.
Block Jumps (fast) - 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 help develop explosive power for floor and vault.
Block Jumps (slow) - As above, but instead of rebounding, stick at the bottom and jump to the top of the block. This will help develop strength.
Pit Jumps - Just jump up and down in a pit, on a worn resi-pit, or other very soft non-rebounding surface.
Squat Jumps - Keeping your back as vertical as possible, bend down deep touch the floor with your fingers and spring in a stretched position.
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.

Medicine Ball Work - Medicine balls are a great way to help build power. Also many of the other exercises can be done holding a medicine ball. eg. try the squat jumps holding a 10 pound medicine ball. Do pull ups holding a ball between your knees.

Reclined Throws - Get a partner. Lie on your backs with your feet towards each other, knees bent, about 10 feet apart. (increase the distance to increase difficulty) Throw the ball to your partner. Use an overhead throw similar to an overhead soccer throw, except you are lying down.
Rear Overhead Throws - Go get your partner again. Stand 10 feet apart. Whoever has the ball turn around. Throw the ball backwards over your head to your partner. Turn around to receive their throw.
Lower Torso Conditioning - Sit in a pike. Hold the ball out in front of you with straight arms. Twist side to side fairly slowly, but with a wide range of motion. (If you do this too fast you can hurt your back)

Preventative maintenance - Injuries in gymnastics do occur, but they can be minimized by conditioning specific muscle groups.

Wrists - Our wrists were not designed to do what we gymnasts use them for. Some strengthening is called for to prepare them for the abuse. All exersizes should be worked with both arms.

Find a racket ball, tennis ball, or one of those stress ball thingys and squeeze repeatedly until your forearm is tired.
Set a newspaper on a table. Place your hand palm down near one corner and crumple it page by page with your fingers.
With a dumbell in each hand "nod" your hand both palm up and palm down.
In a push up position push down with your figertips so your palms come off the ground.

Ankles/lower leg - Yet another joint we push beyond design specs.

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.
Similar to the above. Repeatedly lift your toes off the ground.
Get surgical tubing or a theraband. Attach one end to a fixed object the other end to your foot. Work all four directions of flex. In, out, up and down.

Shoulders - Rotator cuff injuries are reasonably common, especially among male gymnasts.

Get our your stretch tubing, or theraband. Work all for flex directions(in, out, up, down) with straight arms. Use low resistance high reps.
Hold your arm at your side bent at a 90 degree angle so your hand sticks straight out. Work rotations in and out with the tubing.

Other - These are just a bunch of random exercises that I didn't categorize above.

Arch Rocks - Lie on your stomach in an arch with your heels squeezed together and arms by your ears. Rock back and forth.
Bar dips - On a set of parallel bars start in a support, lower till your shoulders are almost level with your hands, and push back to support.
Cross Pull-outs - From a support on rings, lower slowly towards a cross as low as you can and pull out back to support. (Doing this improperly can lead to injury, please consult your coach before doing these exercises)
Handstand shoulder shrugs - Do a handstand against a wall. Preferrably facing the wall in the handstand. Shrug your shoulders up and down without bending your arms. This will help to improve your block.
Handstand Walking - The name says it all. Just walk around on your hands. Forwards, backwards, sideways, hopping around. This will develop strength and a very solid handstand. Remember to keep good form.
Hang to Handstand - From a dead hang on rings muscle up and press handstand.
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.
Hug a Twinky - Yes, it's an odd name. This is for lower back, hamstrings, and glutes. On a vaulting horse 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 esentially standing on your chest, lower slowly. Some other object can be substituted for the vault.
L/Straddle L/V/Manna Press Handstand - Starting in an L/V/Manna on parallel bars, or floor, press handstand lower back to start position.
Leg Lifts - Hanging from a bar, bring your toes to the bar keeping your legs straight and breaking your shoulder angle as little as possible. This can also be done by bending your knees and lifting your knees to your elbows. It can also be done straddled lifting to a stalder position. (This is one of the best ab exercises around for strength.)
Manna Swings - From a support on Parallel bars swing slowly to a manna, or as close as you can get, then lower back to support. This should be done as slowly and controlled as possible with the back swing being minimal, non-existent if possible.
Planch Drills - The position is a push up position with your feet on a surface level with or above your shoulders. The closer your feet are to being level with your shoulders the more difficult this drill is. Lean as far as you can without falling forward. The goal is to lean enough so that your feet rise slightly off of the surface they are on. Small bounces of your feet can be done as well to make the conditioning more dynamic.
Seated Straddle Leg Lifts. - 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.
Seated Piked Leg Lifts - 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.
Skin the cat pull outs - This can be done either on rings or bars (high or parallel). Start in a hang. Starts like a leg lift, bent or straight, but continues through a basket position to a skin the cat. If you have flexible shoulders continue to roll through to eagle grip. Then, reverse the process (rotate forward) until you return to the position u started. This works to shoulders (both back and front), the abs, lower back and serratus. (This conditioning was submitted by a reader, anonymous)
Straight Body Lifts - Lie on your back with a sturdy support within arms reach above your head. Hold onto the support and lift your body straight to a candlestick position. Try and stay as open as possible with no arch. Lower back to the floor slowly.
Swing handstand on P-bars - great shoulder work. Even for women it is usefull. Will help with that pesky cast handstand. Be sure not to swing to the handstand arched.
Upper arm shrugs - Get in an upper arm support on P-bars. (a support with the bar resting across the back of your bicep and tricep, arms bent to about a 110 degree angle, and your hands on the bar). Then shrug up and down. Kinda like doing the funky chicken.
Windshield Wipers - Hang on a bar. Lift your toes to the bar. Then rotate your body back and forth so that your legs behave like windshield wipers. Your hips will rise a little as your toes go to the side and down.

Some Nifty Sets - A compilation of various conditioning sets to help keep conditioning interesting. In no particular order. All numbers can be changed to suit your ability. The numbers given are just to give an idea of ratio. Be creative, making up sets like these will help routine endurance, and keeps it fun.
Set A - 5 over-grip pull ups to contact the back of your neck touches the bar, 5 under-grip pull-ups, 10 leg lifts, all without coming off the bar.
Set B - On parallettes, L/V/Manna hold for 3, press handstand, 3 handstand push ups, lower to straddle L, press handstand, 3 handstand push ups, lower to L/V/Manna hold for 10.
Set C - Dead hang on rings, kip support, L press handstand hold 10, lower to support, 3 cross pull outs, fall back to inverted hang, front lever, back lever, front lever, back lever.<

Parallette Construction - A very useful piece of exercise equipment that can be made quickly and cheaply. What you need: About 6-9 feet of PVC or ABS pipe (decide how much you need based on the measurements below). Four T connections. Four elbow joints. Eight end caps. (the diameter can be 3/4-1 1/2 in. depending on the size of the person to use the parallettes) Your local hardware store should have this great stuff.
1. Cut two 10-14 in. pieces of pipe. (These will be the portions you hold onto) Stick an elbow on both ends of both of these pieces.
2. Cut four 3-8 in. pieces depending on the height you want, keep in mind the elbows and T joints will add to the total height. The most important part of this step is to keep all these pieces the same length. Place these in the other end of the elbows, and attach the T joints to the free ends.
3. Cut eight 4-6 in. pieces depending on the base width you desire. Wider is more stable, but takes up more space. Place these pieces in the available slots in the T joints and cap the other ends. You now have parallettes. 4. You will want to score the surface of the grip portion of the parallettes with a wire brush or scouring pad so that chalk will stick to it for a better grip.
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