How frustrating can it be for a gymnast to spend years of hard work and training (and mom and dad’s money), and suffer an injury right before an important competition? Even worse, a gymnast may be forced to quit the sport altogether and face a lifetime of problems due to injury. We all know that gymnasts need to train year round to be consistent, and injuries can be nagging interruptions to that training. Strength and conditioning cannot guarantee a skater will be injury free, yet it can significantly reduce the risk and chance of injury. With the proper strength training, a skater’s body learns to adapt to the forces caused by gymnastic elements by strengthening joints, tendons, ligaments, and muscles. Weakness and lack of flexibility invite an injury to happen. A stronger, healthier body can take a gymnast a long way, and allow much safer training!

What's more, strength and conditioning can help promote the correct alignment of your body. Many overuse injuries can be caused by biomechanical alignment problems, flexibility imbalances, and strength imbalances. Most common problems are knee patellofemoral pain, SI joint pain, rotator cuff tendonitis, ankle sprains, and numerous spinal conditions. By improving the balance of muscle flexibility and strength, as well as body mechanical alignment, a gymnast will have a greater chance of reducing the occurrence of these injuries, among others.