How to Become an Elite Gymnast
Being an elite gymnast requires up to 30 hours of training per week, plus coaching, exercising, stretching, and eating a healthy diet., Have the right body., Get a good coach., Have flexible school hours., Train for TOPS., Work hard in strength and...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Being an elite gymnast requires up to 30 hours of training per week
You need to be flexible and strong to be a Level 3, 4, or 5 student.
If you have never done gymnastics before, you better start now.
If you don't know how to do a cartwheel, start in Beginners.
You need to train as early as possible in order to have more flexibility at a young age. -
Step 2: plus coaching
You must know skills and stretches in order to be in a high level.
The Elites or USAG is when you may be on a team and start competing.
You need to keep track of your health because being on a team requires excellent nutrition.
Most gymnasts are small, short, and are reasonably thin.
That doesn't mean you should starve yourself.
It means that they aren't necessarily overweight.
They do have to be the right weight, and that means you cannot be underweight or else that may lead to further problems.
They normally have thick, strong muscles and great abs.
Do not overexercise.
It may lead to soreness, weakness, and you will be in severe pain.
But you must exercise at least five (5) times per week.
Six (6) is optional, but you need some rest.
You can take Saturday and/or Sunday off for rest. , Some coaches are too easy on you and some are too hard.
One coach pushed so hard on his Olympic gymnast that she became anorexic and bulimic and died at the age of
22.
That is––for sure––not a good coach.
A sign of a good coach means stability, precision, but still puts a little bit of pressure. , In order to be elite, you must train a lot.
Half of your day will be spent doing gymnastics.
Half of the elites are homeschooled instead of public school, but some may make plans to do part-time public/private school. , TOPS is a special USAG training program designed to help 7-11-year-olds prepare to become elite gymnasts.
In TOPS you will spend a lot of time working on strength, flexibility, and advanced skills, and then attend a testing clinic.
Your results will be compared to others across the country and those with top results will be invited to attend a training camp.
TOPS training is not absolutely necessary, but is a great way to make sure you don't have any weaknesses that could stop you from becoming elite. , These can be some of the most boring parts of training.
It's always more fun to be competing and learning new skills, but these are also the most important parts of training.
Don't cheat yourself! To do elite-level skills, you need to be very strong and very flexible. , Fear is one thing that stops many gymnasts from ever becoming elite.
The skills at the top level are scary but your coaches will know if you are ready to do them or not and will help you work toward them.
It is safer to trust in your coaches than to try skills and pull out because of fear. , The road to being elite will be very difficult one and there will be lots of times along the way where you will want to quit and go back to living a "normal" life.
Just remember that quitters never win and winners never quit. , Trampoline and tumbling causes less stress on muscles and joints, making it less demanding.
Also, the top trampoline athletes tend to be older, around 30 rather than the 19 that artistic gymnasts tend to be.
Alternatively, if you lack flexibility, or are larger, you can compete as a base in acrobatics. , As you work up the gymnastics levels, you need to enter some competitions to get experience.
Ask your coaches if they are entering teams to a competition or are hosting a meet. , When you have free time, you should watch videos of Olympic gymnasts like Gabrielle Douglas and Aliya Mustafina.
You can take notes of their artistry and technique which will help you in competition. -
Step 3: exercising
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Step 4: stretching
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Step 5: and eating a healthy diet.
-
Step 6: Have the right body.
-
Step 7: Get a good coach.
-
Step 8: Have flexible school hours.
-
Step 9: Train for TOPS.
-
Step 10: Work hard in strength and flexibility training.
-
Step 11: Eliminate fear.
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Step 12: Never give up.
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Step 13: Consider other forms of gymnastics
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Step 14: such as acre or trampoline and tumbling.
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Step 15: Enter Competitions.
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Step 16: Research.
Detailed Guide
You need to be flexible and strong to be a Level 3, 4, or 5 student.
If you have never done gymnastics before, you better start now.
If you don't know how to do a cartwheel, start in Beginners.
You need to train as early as possible in order to have more flexibility at a young age.
You must know skills and stretches in order to be in a high level.
The Elites or USAG is when you may be on a team and start competing.
You need to keep track of your health because being on a team requires excellent nutrition.
Most gymnasts are small, short, and are reasonably thin.
That doesn't mean you should starve yourself.
It means that they aren't necessarily overweight.
They do have to be the right weight, and that means you cannot be underweight or else that may lead to further problems.
They normally have thick, strong muscles and great abs.
Do not overexercise.
It may lead to soreness, weakness, and you will be in severe pain.
But you must exercise at least five (5) times per week.
Six (6) is optional, but you need some rest.
You can take Saturday and/or Sunday off for rest. , Some coaches are too easy on you and some are too hard.
One coach pushed so hard on his Olympic gymnast that she became anorexic and bulimic and died at the age of
22.
That is––for sure––not a good coach.
A sign of a good coach means stability, precision, but still puts a little bit of pressure. , In order to be elite, you must train a lot.
Half of your day will be spent doing gymnastics.
Half of the elites are homeschooled instead of public school, but some may make plans to do part-time public/private school. , TOPS is a special USAG training program designed to help 7-11-year-olds prepare to become elite gymnasts.
In TOPS you will spend a lot of time working on strength, flexibility, and advanced skills, and then attend a testing clinic.
Your results will be compared to others across the country and those with top results will be invited to attend a training camp.
TOPS training is not absolutely necessary, but is a great way to make sure you don't have any weaknesses that could stop you from becoming elite. , These can be some of the most boring parts of training.
It's always more fun to be competing and learning new skills, but these are also the most important parts of training.
Don't cheat yourself! To do elite-level skills, you need to be very strong and very flexible. , Fear is one thing that stops many gymnasts from ever becoming elite.
The skills at the top level are scary but your coaches will know if you are ready to do them or not and will help you work toward them.
It is safer to trust in your coaches than to try skills and pull out because of fear. , The road to being elite will be very difficult one and there will be lots of times along the way where you will want to quit and go back to living a "normal" life.
Just remember that quitters never win and winners never quit. , Trampoline and tumbling causes less stress on muscles and joints, making it less demanding.
Also, the top trampoline athletes tend to be older, around 30 rather than the 19 that artistic gymnasts tend to be.
Alternatively, if you lack flexibility, or are larger, you can compete as a base in acrobatics. , As you work up the gymnastics levels, you need to enter some competitions to get experience.
Ask your coaches if they are entering teams to a competition or are hosting a meet. , When you have free time, you should watch videos of Olympic gymnasts like Gabrielle Douglas and Aliya Mustafina.
You can take notes of their artistry and technique which will help you in competition.
About the Author
Joshua Vasquez
Brings years of experience writing about lifestyle and related subjects.
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