Turning Toxic Gym Environments to World Class Cultures – A “10 Quick Tips” Guest Post by Nick Ruddock
Today, I'm incredibly excited to be featuring a long-awaited guest post from my good friend Nick Ruddock. In my 20 years of gymnastics, I've been fortunate to witness some of the most incredible examples of world-class training environments.…
It’s Finally Here!! My Brand New Online Course “Keys To Developing Flexibility and Strength in Gymnastics” Now Available
I'm beyond excited to announce that my brand new online gymnastics course, "Keys to Developing Flexibility and Strength in Gymnastics" is officially here! I have been working nonstop with my good friend and Strength Coach, Rupert Egan, to create…
Avoiding Pre Season Pit Falls In Gymnastics: 5 Training Concepts We All Must Consider
For almost all gymnastics programs, the summer training cycle has finished and teams are now moving towards pre-season. In order to maximize performance and reduce the risk of injuries over the entire competitive year, gyms must approach this…
Treat Strength Like Skill Training – A Change In The Gymnastics Strength and Conditioning Paradigm
Today I am happy to bring readers another fantastic guest post by Rupert Egan. Rupert wrote Part 1 of this article series a while back, and I'm excited he is back for Part 2. I think Rupert brings up some crucial points here that coaches and…
Gymnastics and Lifting Weights: Don’t Fear Plates, Kettlebells, and Barbells.
This is an extremely controversial topic in gymnastics: should gymnasts use external weights and barbell work for strength. This "elephant in the room" concept is way too big of an issue to address in one blog post, but I still want to open…
Guest Post By Rupert Egan: Gymnastics Periodization To Maximize Performance (Part 1)
Today I'm super excited to start a guest post series from my friend Rupert Egan. I originally starting talking with Rupert last year regarding strength and conditioning concepts for gymnasts. I recently had the chance to spend a week with…
Improving Overhead Mobility and Transferring It To Handstands : “Overhead Shoulder Performance Complex” Example
I had a great response from the post I put up a few weeks ago related to improving split mobility through one variation of the "Hip Performance Complex" I have been playing around with. I think this approach to changing movement and building…
Improving Split Mobility and Transferring It To Beam: “Performance Complex” Hip Example
One of the biggest things I see is problematic in terms of performance and injury in gymnastics is when we focus so much on mobility, but then neglect the steps that should come after to change movement. These include drills to add dynamic…
Thoughts on Why To Use The Functional Movement Screen (FMS) In Gymnastics
A few months back, an article came out in Technique magazine about the Functional Movement Screen (FMS) and it's concepts. I think it was a great introduction, but I have been meaning to pitch in my two cents on why I feel using the FMS is…
Are Gymnasts Being Limited By Strength & Conditioning That Isn’t Individualized Enough?
If any readers had a similar up bringing in gymnastics to me, strength and conditioning was of course a staple in training. Come strength time you were given an assignment that was the same level of difficulty say 3 sets of 10 pull ups, dips,…