Gymnastics Equipment, Floor Mats, and Apparel
WhiteRockGymnastics.com is here to provide information about gymnastics equipment such as beams, bars, and grips as well as gymnastics floor mats. Sections are also devoted to apparel designed for gymnastics, such as leotards or scrunchies, headbands, and other accessories. Please browse the many areas of our site to learn more about these items, as well as some general info related to the sport.
Gymnastics involves performing a variety of exercises. These exercises may be performed on parallel bars, balance beams, high bars, pommel horse, uneven bars and still rings. There are many subsections of the sport, including acrobatic gymnastics, aerobic gymnastics, artistic gymnastics, display gymnastics, power tumbling and trampoline.
As a sport, gymnastics was first practiced in ancient Greece, a civilization who valued physical prowess unlike any other. They even built large, open spaces to accommodate training athletes, known as gymnasias. These areas were designated for running, jumping and wrestling. Some of the skills practiced had practical applications, including mounting and dismounting a running horse.
The creation of the Olympics may also be attributed to the Greeks and their valuing of athleticism. Unfortunately, during the 4th century, Emperor Theodosius banned the Olympic Games because they had become soiled with corruption. As a result, the popularity of gymnastics and other sports fell to the wayside.
Centuries later, in the early 1800s, gymnastics were able to make a comeback. This is attributed to Fredrich Ludwig Jahn’s invention of the horizontal bar and parallel bars as strength-building equipment for young men. The popularity of the “new” sport quickly developed throughout the 19th century until it was finally included in the 1896 Olympic Games. The sport was standardized in 1954, with only a couple additions since. An example of a fairly modern addition is the development of the women’s uneven bars.
Few other sports involve exercises which combine physical strength, agility, and coordination to the same extent as gymnastics does. To many people, this makes it one of the most pure, fluid and graceful disciplines out there.
Modern gymnastics involves uneven and parallel bars, balance beams, rings and floor exercises that test grace and flexibility. Parallel bars have been a staple of men’s gymnastics since the late 1800s. These elevated gymnastics bars emphasize static holds. Since the athletes spend most of the time above the bars, upper body strength plays a vital role in this activity.
Companies in the late 60s began to manufacture uneven bars as a separate apparatus from the parallel bars. These gymnastics bars emphasized more release-moves than the other kinds. Developments in the following decades allowed the bars to be moved further apart. This increased the difficulty of the techniques. Only women can compete in the uneven bars, and vice versa for men on the parallel bars.
It is not recommended to practice gymnastics without the proper equipment as the sport can be a very dangerous. Mats, appropriate clothing (including leotards), grips (when performing on bars or rings), tape, and first aid kits are all necessary to ensure the safety of the athlete.
Of course, good gymnastics equipment can only provide so much safety. It is important to practice at a reputable gym with coaches that emphasize safety above all else. Also, it is wise to get the approval of a doctor before embarking into the world of acrobatics – and to stop immediately if the physical activity causes any pain.
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