Gymnastics Research Paper

Emily Pascavis
Karl Bakkum
English Comp.

Gymnastics

Long ago, gymnastics was very different from what we know today. Gymnastics comes from the Greek prefix “gymno- or gymn-” which means, “to be naked”. The Greeks used gymnastics for entertainment, performing naked. When the Romans conquered Greece, they took over the sport. They used it for its functional uses. The used the wooden horses to practice the quick mounting and dismounting of their actual horses during battle. Which later became the men’s event that we know today as pommel horse. Awhile later, Roman Emperor Theodosius banned the sport. It was not seen or used again until the late eighteenth century.

Friedrich Ludwig Jahn is credited with starting gymnastics clubs in …show more content…
It helps get you physically fit and tones your body (club gymnasts are the more serious gymnasts that practice upwards of 24 hours a week).

The one thing that has remained prominent since the beginning of gymnastics is the mental aspect. As a sports psychology consultant, Dr. Alan Goldberg has worked with gymnasts at all levels around the United States from elite all the way down to recreational gymnasts. He (along with others) specializes in helping gymnasts overcome fears and blocks to be able to perform to their full potential under pressure. Gymnastics is FILLED WITH PRESSURE. It’s a solo act, all on you, for example in the event of balance beam you are flipping/twisting five and six feet, above a four inch wide beam that is four and a half feet off of the ground. The mental side of gymnastics is that mysterious and oftentimes unexplainable world between body and execution. Oh how easy it would be if gymnasts could just do what coaches told them to whenever their bodies were ready! But that is not how gymnastics works; training your body is only one part of what's necessary to learn and consistently execute a “trick” or “skill” in the gym just in front of your coaches and teammates, or at a meet in front of thousands of people. You also have to learn  to compete with, and train your own mind. Success in gymnastics can only be achieved when you begin to work on the mental side

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