Being a triathlete is an intensive commitment to the physical body. There isn’t one specific road to success. Each athlete must find their own path.
It’s important to understand many different training philosophies so that you can find what’s best for you. Gymnastic training is an ancient method of working out that has been used by thousands of people throughout the ages to build strength, flexibility, and health. Keep reading for your quick guide to gymnastic workouts.
1. Trampolines
The trampoline is a mesh pad with a lot of bounce, that is used to launch a human being into the air. By jumping into the mesh, the elastic force from the person’s own body weight is used to propel them upward.
Competitive gymnasts use the trampoline in several different sports. The vault, synchronized trampoline, double-mini trampoline, and tumbling to name just a few. You can use a personal trampoline that can be purchased at any big box retail store.
The personal trampoline is a great cardiovascular workout. You just jump up and down. Don’t bounce too high or you’ll risk injury.
2. Pull Ups
A gymnast focuses on body control exercises that give real, functional strength. From that perspective, the basic pull up is one of the best exercises you could do to train as a gymnast.
Imagine the scene that plays out in every action movie: The hero jumps from the explosion, only to hang off the cliff with only one left hand holding onto the ledge. The literal cliff hanger!
if you want to be the hero, you have to be able to pull your own body weight vertically upwards from rest. The basic pull up is an often overlooked exercise, but incredibly easy to integrate to any routine.
The Biceps brachii, one of the two main muscle groups used in a pullup, are thin muscles attached to the chest and arm. The intense effort needed to do a pull-up shred this muscle. The good news is that you really don’t need to do a lot of pull-ups to get a good workout in.
Find a metal bar or a ledge – someplace you physically pass on foot many times a week. Maybe it’s a park you pass on the way to the grocery store, maybe it’s a concrete staircase in your building. Make a commitment to max out your pull-ups every time you pass this object.
You’ll be shredded in no time!
3. The Hollow Body Hold
A popular and easy workout to try that builds core strength and resilience in the hollow body hold.
First, lay on your back with your hands extended above your head, like super-man laying on the ground. Now slowly engage and raise your core, keeping your spine straight and in alignment.
At the same time, you raise your feet so that your body forms a slight “crescent” shape, like a flat “U”. Breathe deep and slow, and hold the position and long as possible.
The Hollow Body Hold is a perfect exercise for people recovering from spinal or neck injuries, hernias or sciatica issues. Go slowly, and start with very shallow crescents, barely off the ground.
4. Yoga
The word “gymnasium” the source of gymnastics comes from the ancient Greek. It means, well, a building where you exercise. Gymnastics comes from a tradition known by most people as “Western”.
Yoga – which means ‘union’ in the ancient Sanskrit language – is a physical education system from the Orient [Eastern] world. There are many similarities between Western Gymnastics and Eastern Yoga.
Yoga is much more than a physical system. It also concerns itself with philosophy and metaphysics. However, in both traditions, there is an escalation of mental and physical focus, and both include isometric exercises in their routines.
5. Weight Lifting
In popular conceptions, weightlifting and gymnastics are different things. However, weightlifters can benefit from gymnastics, and all serious gymnasts lift weights.
Every gymnast workout routine has some aspect of strength training in it. Lifting heavy objects, whether body weight or externals loads, is the best way to gain physical strength.
6. Jump Rope
Sometimes, in our desire to have the latest and greatest, we overlook the simple things in life. Rope jumping is as old a gymnastic workout as, well, rope! You don’t need any fancy gear to get blasted, just find a piece of heavy rope!
Jumping rope improves dexterity, and gets the cardio going. What isn’t often thought of when jumping rope, is that it can improve your entire muscular system, thickening bone density and staving off osteoporosis in women.
“Low impact” is often thought of as a good thing, and it is, but some impact goes a long way. Consider doing some inversions or even some hanging situps after doing a rope jump workout.
7. Swimming
Another perfect workout for an aspiring gymnast is swimming. Did you know that humans are among a very select group of mammals with very little body hair? Some scientists attribute this to the “aquatic ape” theory, which says that human ancestors spent a lot of time in the water.
Whether or not our ape ancestors actually spent most of their time in the water or not, it’s indisputable that the human body is made to move in the water. Any gymnast workout plan is going to include the type of hardcore cardio you can accomplish with workouts like swimming.
8. Classic Gymnastics
There are many different types of activities that fall under the rubric “gymnastics”. The historic events are generally different from men and women. Find out more about the proper equipment and get the right stuff.
Men can do sports like the vault, or the horse. While women often excel at floor exercises, tumbling, and the balance beam. Classic gymnastic sports are a link to the past, as many of these activities are thousands of years old.
Gymnastic Workouts
Gymnastic workouts are a classic and time-tested method to build strength and flexibility. As the cornerstone of Western athletics, gymnastics play an integral part of any athletes training regime.
Check out our training blog for more great info on all kinds of athletic techniques.