Gymnasts - When is the right time to buy grips?

Parents are often unsure about whether or not it is an appropriate time to buy their gymnast their first pair of grips. A gymnast's coach should be able to provide some insight on this issue, but here are some general tips for gymnasts and gym parents.

1. Grips can be expensive. A pair of Reisport dowel grips (which I used throughout my gymnastics career and highly recommend) goes for about $45, and other types of grips will cost at least $35. Since gymnasts are primarily young girls and young girls grow quickly, grips will need to be replaced every so often to fit the gymnast's hands. The longer you can hold off on grips, the better in terms of the amount of money that will have to be spent.
   
2. It is not entirely uncommon to see gymnasts from China and Russia competing on the uneven bars without using grips - even in the Olympics. Grips are not absolutely necessary. It is possible to get by without them.
   
3. That being said, grips do help a little bit with preventing big rips on the gymnast's palms (some girls do have trouble with the grips rubbing their wrists the wrong way and causing rips there instead, but in general, grips should help reduce the number of rips). Grips are not a solution to rips but can be one factor in helping to prevent them.
   
4. In general, I would say that the majority of gymnasts do not buy a pair of grips until USAG level 6 or 7. I got mine in level 7 and really did not feel that I needed them in level 6. There are some girls who get them in level 5 and others who don't get them at all. It is a matter of preference - usually the coach's preference, but also the gymnast's and the gymnast's parents. There are no rules that say you need a pair of grips by the time you reach a certain level.
   
5. The uneven bars skill that causes the most friction on the hands is probably giants, in addition to other circling moves. Front hip circles, back hip circles, and baby giants are part of the level 5 and 6 routines, but they usually don't constitute the majority of practice time. From level 7 on, gymnasts are going to be spending a lot more practice time on giants and connections with circling skills. Grips are going to help reduce the friction on these types of skills.
   
6. The primary function of grips is... Well, it's in the name. Grips help gymnasts grip the bar. This function is the most helpful when it comes to giants. Before then, the gripping function is much less needed.

Post on different types and brands of grips should be coming soon!

Home Gym Equipment for Gymnasts

It's a common debate in the "gymnastics world" whether or not parents should establish a home gym and allow their kids to practice their sport at home. One the one hand, having a floor beam and a single bar in the basement or rec room allows gymnasts extra practice time and serves as a fun activity to do at home. On the other hand, there are some safety issues involved when practicing without a coach and without proper landing mats. These are a few factors to take into consideration when deciding whether a home gym is a good idea for you or your kids. Another thing to think about is how often the gym equipment will actually be used, and whether the use will be worth the cost. This stuff can get pretty pricey, so for most people, the decision to buy home gym equipment is not one they make on a whim.

Other considerations:

• Amount of available floor space, and type of flooring. Mats and roll-up beams can slide on wooden floors. If you don't have a lot of space but still want a beam at home, you can consider buying a 4", 6", or 8" beam rather than a 10" or 12" beam, but your gymnast might not be able to perform a full routine on a shorter balance beam.
• Ceiling height. Often a gymnast on a floor beam will hit the ceiling just doing a simple jump. If you have an open area with higher ceilings that is carpeted, that will be the best place for your home gym. Medium height and high beams are available online, though I don't generally recommend those anyway because of safety, but floor beams will fit best in the average house.
• Size of equipment and available storage. Most floor mats will fold up nicely to be stored in a closet, and you can do the same with roll-up beams. Solid beams, bars, or pommel trainers will be more difficult to find storage space for. You can do like I used to and hide the beam behind the couch when company comes, but sometimes there is no real great solution to this dilemma.
• Can you make do without? A mat is a mat, but a line of tape on the floor can serve as a floor beam and do what it's meant to do with absolutely no cost. No harm in getting a little creative!
• Is it too much of a good thing? Some parents think the gymnastics should stay in the gym; time at home is family time and it reminds the gymnast that their sport is not their whole life. I tend to agree with this to an extent. One piece of gym equipment is fun to play on at home, but gym life, school life, and home life sometimes need to be separated. I don't advise parents to try to coach their kids at home - although they love gymnastics, they are under a lot of pressure and stress at the gym, and home needs to be a sanctuary.
• Supervision. Any gymnastics at home should be supervised at all times, and the gymnast shouldn't be doing anything they aren't absolutely confident in doing without a spot.

If you do decide to purchase some equipment for home, I would recommend both a mat and a floor beam. I am hesitant to recommend anything further for safety reasons. A lot of parents want to get their kids a single kip bar, but with a lack of safety equipment and with the bar not being bolted to the ground, anything above level 4 skills becomes pretty dangerous. The bar is not sturdy enough to hold very much weight, nor much swinging movement.

Here are some of the most reputable sites to get quality gym equipment for home.

American Gymnast
http://www.american-gymnast.com/shop/Home-Use-Equipment-C12.aspx

This site has your basic 1.5"-2" floor mats, kip bars, floor and low beams, pommel trainers, etc. They also have "hand, hand, foot, foot" cartwheel mats for the littles. This is a very reputable company. I haven't used any of their home products personally but I would assume this is as close as you could get to a beam that has the same width, texture, and squishiness as a regulation beam.

The Beam Store
http://www.thebeamstore.com/

The Beam Store has bars, floor beams, raised beams with metal legs, and mats. For the boys they do have some mini parallel bars or parallets. The thing I really love about this site is that it is SO safety-conscious. It has a lot of beam/mat combos, which is great. Their beams also have a wide and long foundation under them, making them a whole lot safer (granted, more expensive) than a stand-alone kip bar. I have an 8-inch beam from this site. It feels a little wider than a regulation beam just because the foam and the suede they cover it with is a little thicker, but it serves its purpose. Most of the beams come in assorted colors, as well, which can be cute.

Gym Supply
http://www.gymsupply.com/

This site has more than just home gym equipment. They've got some institutional equipment, grips, gifts, apparel, etc., but they also have the basic beams, mats, and bars. They have some strength training equipment that could be used for anybody wanting to work out at home, not just gymnasts. They also carry all of the Nastia Liukin products! In her line, there is a pirouette bar which is great for home use as well as a 9" beginner beam (and it's pink!).

Gymnastics Movies and Books

Just thought I'd point you guys towards some books and movies about gymnastics that you might be interested in! Unfortunately you don't see gymnastics in the media too much, but I have found a few things I enjoyed.

My FAVORITE gymnastics book is called "Gymnastics: The Trials, The Triumphs, The Truth" by a guy named Dan Gutman. I have loved this book since I was a little girl. There are a few bios in there of famous gymnasts, both men and women, of the past. It provides general descriptions of all the events and has a "gym talk" vocabulary section, which is pretty funny :) It also talks about some of the down-sides of the sport, like some occurrences of eating disorders in elite gymnasts. My favorite part about the book is the stories/biographies of Nadia Comaneci and Olga Korbut and their journeys in gymnastics!

There is a movie called "Nadia" that also gives an overview of Nadia Comaneci's life, being trained by Bela Karolyi in Romania and reaching success at a young age. It's a little corny but VERY interesting and definitely worth a view, in my opinion. It gives you some insight into her life, and you learn that she had to overcome many obstacles. You may be able to find this at a library, but you might need to do some searching. I also know that is available on VHS from Amazon.

Another is a Lifetime movie called "Little Girls in Pretty Boxes" about a gymnast who moves from her more fun, relaxed gym to a very serious gym to follow her elite dreams. The movie deviates a little bit from the real world of gymnastics (ex: at the meets, the gymnasts compete with spotlights moving all around them. It's just little things like that), but if you're willing to look past that I think it's a worthwhile film.

This next one I would direct both to you as gymnasts as well as to your parents. It's called "Gymnastics" from the Sport Psychology Library. I have not read it myself but have heard it's immensely helpful in giving insight on how to overcome the mental obstacles that gymnastics presents.

Then, of course, we've got "Stick It" and "Make it or Break it" :)

Who knows, maybe I'll write a gymnastics novel someday. But only if all my blog readers promise to read it and pretend like they like it :D

Where can I get good leotards?

This is a question I have answered repeatedly on Y!A. The simplest answer is, you should be able to find them at your gym! If not, look for leotards at other gyms during meets. If you are not competitive, or if you just would rather order online, you can go to...

http://www.gk-elitesportswear.com/CGI-BIN/LANSAWEB?PROCFUN+ELT_BUILD2+CHKDST1+DEV+FUNCPARMS+DSTCD_E(A0070):ELITE

http://www.snowleotards.com/catalog/

http://www.dancewearsolutions.com/gymnastics/leotards/default.aspx?gclid=CJrb95aovqICFQ0hDQodjktK7A

http://www.leotardworld.com/

http://www.look-it.com/index.html

http://www.k-beeleotards.com/

And my favorite...
http://alphafactor.com/
This site is cool because it allows you to customize your leotards with your choice of colors, materials, and crystals. You'll need a coach to help you order it.

Or you can look at any of the other sites you can find just by searching Google :) Sometimes there are ads for discount leos posted on this blog, as well, since they get really expensive sometimes.