Gymnastics

Gymnastics is one of the three foundations of CrossFit, pulling the best, most effective bodyweight movements and exercises straight from artistic gymnastics to boxes across the globe. Although there are a number of specific exercises and drills to improve your CrossFit gymnastics skills in accordance with your current level, our coaches believe there’s one simple, universal way to improve your performance – regardless of your abilities. 

Stretching is commonly overlooked, rushed at the start or end of a workout, or performed incorrectly. Though many believe this to be pretty much inconsequential, ensuring your flexibility is vital to your success in gymnastics. Correct stretching and flexibility training is proven to help athletes who have plateaued move forwards, assist in holding positions, and, most importantly, is vital to achieving a full range of motion.

Gymnastics, when performed correctly, often requires maximum effort – effectively and efficiently building explosive muscular training programs should blend both complex movement patterns and bodyweight exercises with a heavy focus on chest, arm, shoulder, and back conditioning works to develop an explosive strength-to-weight ratio mirroring that of elite gymnasts. Whether completing pull-ups, muscle-ups, handstands, pistol squats, or single-arm extensions, gymnastics will work to ensure each of your major muscle groups is truly challenged – often simultaneously! Whether participating in gymnastics as an element of CrossFit, individual training, or as a sport, you should find your body truly challenged, resulting in dramatic gains in strength, power, and grip.

Kipping pull-ups are an essential element of gymnastics training, and of CrossFit in general, having originally evolved as a way to perform pull-ups in a more efficient manner, generally resulting in the ability to complete a higher number of reps. The skill is now used throughout WODs and competitive CrossFit for the very same reason. 

Kipping uses lower-body momentum to help pull your body to the bar. By reversing their hip direction or creating a ‘swinging’ motion during the movement, athletes are generally able to complete the pull-up using less energy and strength, allowing for more reps to be done more quickly. This is a highly useful technique for those competing in CrossFit or completing an AMRAP workout.

Adults can do gymnastics classes of any form so long as they’re available to them! In fact, there are a number of gymnastics class styles and disciples open to those over the age of 18 – from traditional artistic gymnastics and tumbling training to CrossFit style gymnastics. 

CrossFit gymnastics is an excellent option for any adult, regardless of fitness level or age. This popular class offers a unique fusion of fundamental CrossFit skills – borrowing the best elements of traditional gymnastics and applying them to body-weight workouts designed to improve strength, speed, stamina, and flexibility. You’ll see plenty of stretching, pull-ups, muscle-ups, handstands, kips, and use of the rings throughout these sessions – but not so many backflips, handsprings, and vaults. If you’re looking to get involved in the latter style of gymnastics, search locally for adult artistic gymnastics classes.

The muscle-up is a key element of any CrossFit or gymnastics class and is often considered one of the hardest foundational bodyweight exercises to fully master. Common variations include muscle-ups performed on the rings (many athletes consider ring muscle-ups easier as they can adjust their equipment whilst performing the exercise), and the kipping bar muscle-up. 

This movement, when performed on a bar, begins with a hang, and ‘passes through the portions of a pull-up and dip’, before finishing in a supported position above the bar with the arms fully extended.  

Want to learn how to do a muscle-up? Sign up for a free trial session at Orwell Fitness’ Ipswich gym for an hour of professional fitness training and insight.

Gymnastics, when performed with a CrossFit focus and correct technique, is very much considered to be a form of high-level bodyweight strength training – benefitting body composition (particularly in the chest, arms, shoulders, and back), power, endurance, mobility, flexibility, and more. 

The amount of effort required to successfully complete a set of pull-ups, muscle-ups, dips, or exercises on the rings is immense – and often leads to the fast development of raw strength and power that forms the foundation of more complex gymnastics and CrossFit skills. 

Orwell Fitness are proud to offer a strength-focused gymnastics class, open to all ability levels. To find out more, read above. 

Gymnastics’ heavy focus on chest, arm, shoulder, and back conditioning works to develop an explosive strength-to-weight ratio essential to the performance of complex skills. In fact, continued training using gymnastics based exercises is proven to build significant levels of muscle tissue whilst burning fat, noticeably improving body composition. Whether completing pull-ups, muscle-ups, handstands, pistol squats, or single-arm extensions, gymnastics training in any form should work to ensure each of your major muscle groups is truly challenged – ideally simultaneously in order to achieve the best possible results. 

Orwell Fitness are proud to offer a strength-focused gymnastics class, open to all ability levels. To find out more, read above.

ROM, or range of motion, is a commonly used term referring to how far a specific part of the body (e.g. joint or muscle) can be stretched or moved. Achieving a generally high range of motion can prove greatly beneficial for any sport, discipline, or exercise routine, and is even proven to come in useful for general household tasks.   

Gymnastics is a particularly beneficial class or training style for those looking to improve their range of motion, or extended range of motion, without the burden of an external load. CrossFit style gymnastics in particular is accessible to all ability levels, teaching, exercising, and improving upon appropriate variations of bodyweight movements such as kips and muscle-ups.

Gymnastics, when performed safely and effectively, can be incredibly good for the body and mind – particularly in the case of instructor-led CrossFit gymnastics classes. This highly adaptable, bodyweight exercise based class offers its participants a brilliant level of scalability, meaning all ability and experience levels are able to attend, and complete exercises suited to them. Regardless of the difficulty of class content, gymnastics aims to deliver training targeting strength, power, flexibility, endurance, agility, balance, accuracy, coordination, and more. 

It’s important to ensure the gymnastics skills and exercises you perform are suited to your experience, ability, and strength levels in order to minimise the risk of injury. Coaching and group classes will assist in this.

Gymnastics classes are an excellent option for those seeking a bodyweight focused, scalable training class, and is highly beneficial as a foundational training session for CrossFit athletes. Their benefits are endless if training so completed properly – but we’ve got our coaches to list the main four. 

1. Build Upper-Body Strength 

This class’ heavy focus on chest, arm, shoulder, and back conditioning works to develop an explosive strength-to-weight ratio mirroring that of elite gymnasts. 

2. Develop Raw Power

Gymnastics, when performed correctly, often requires maximum effort – effectively and efficiently building explosive muscular power. 

3. Improve Muscular and Neurological Coordination 

The refined, precise nature of skills and movements performed in gymnastics get and keep your mind and body on the ball. 

4. Enhance Flexibility Levels

Suppleness and elasticity are key to an athlete’s ability to complete skills; building strength and reducing the risk of injury. 

5. Improve Control, Balance and Body Awareness

Gymnastics provides the perfect environment to control and stabilize weight at the end of your range of motion.