Article Services

 

Back

Gym Coach, Vol 1, July, 2007: Pages 15-17

 

The basic principles of conditioning

Valentin  Uzunov


ABSTRACT

Conditioning is recognized by most coaches as one of the most critical components to the training of any athlete for any sport. In gymnastics this is even more so as for a majority of the skills a high level of strength/power and flexibility is required to even attempt them. The importance of conditioning in gymnastics is clearly observable in the performance of the actual skills which seem effortless but at extremely physically demanding. There is an abundance of scientific research in the field of strength and conditioning, however there is very little specific to gymnastics. This article discusses only 4 of the most fundamental training and conditioning principles in strength for the design of gymnastics conditioning program: specificity, overload, individual differences, and variation. By understanding how these principles apply to the conditioning of athlete’s, coaches will be better able to control the acute training variables in their programs to produce better results. This is only a short discussion on the topic of strength and conditioning, which will best serve the beginner coaches.

 

Key Words: strength, program design, training principles, physical preparation,

© Copyright The Gym Press 2007 -