Biomechanics Research

Our bones grow and strengthen in the direction of principal stress [1].  Our body adapts to the training we do.  Are we, as coaches, adequately preparing our gymnasts for the next level of skill?  We propose examining the question: how do the ground reaction forces experienced through the upper limbs of a gymnast change throughout the normal progression of floor gymnastics skills? 

We will ask gymnasts of varying gymnastic ability to perform as many skills on the following list that they are safely capable of doing and examine the ground reaction force from a force plate.  Is there a large jump up in the forces experienced by the arms when moving on to a new, harder skill?  Do the forces gradually increase?

Answers to these questions can equip coaches with more knowledge to care for their gymnasts.  These results could show the benefits of drills and taking it slow.  These results could also show where current gaps are. 

Previous research has examined only a small subset of floor skills, focusing mainly on the ground reaction forces experienced on the upper limb in the front and back handsprings and round offs.  These research studies have also only included high level gymnasts and used a small sample size.  We propose collecting and examining data from at least 100 gymnasts over the age of five years old on the following list of skills:

[1] L. D. Bartel, T. D. Davy and M. T. Keaveny, Orthopaedic Biomechanics: Mechanics and Design in Musculoskeletal Systems, Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education, Inc., 2006.

We will examine the ground reaction force curves from beginner and experienced gymnasts to see how mastering a certain skill technique changes how the upper limb interacts with the ground. We will begin by looking at the following four skills: a handstand, a cartwheel, a back walkover/backbend, and a back handspring.

Do beginner gymnasts experience the same percentage of body weight force on their arms as experienced gymnasts in throughout these skills? Or is it higher or lower? Is the loading rate of beginner gymnasts similar, faster, or slower to those of an experienced gymnast? This research could help coaches understand how a gymnast’s interaction with the ground changes as they master a skill.