Recover Smarter

Hey gymnasts!

Every gymnast knows that you need to do conditioning to get strong. But, what is often forgotten is that, in addition to conditioning exercises, your body needs a chance to recover from those conditioning exercises. If you never give it a chance to recover, you body stays in a state of tissue stress, and this can lead to injury.

Additionally, gymnastics training shapes are body into certain positions or postures. All the squeezing, hollow body positions, toe pointing, and back arching has an influence on where gymnasts can stay chronically tight.

Common chronic postures for gymnasts:

• Forward shoulders from tight pecs (chest)

• Arch-y low back

• Tight calves from pointing toes and punching

• Tight quads and front of the hips

• Decreased upper back mobility

• Tight lats (underside of the shoulder)

• Weak muscles between the shoulder blades

• Tight forearms from gripping

Here’s a set of exercises designed to unwind you from the strains of gymnastics.