Gymnastics - Terms

Become familiar with some terms that are commonly used in gymnastics!

• Gym - A short word for gymnasium and becomes a term to describe your home away from home.
• Skill - Any new movement you learn how to do.
• Tumble - Any sort of flipping or moving through the air.
• Tumbling Pass - Tumbling that is a series of connected skills across a space on the floor.
• Cross Tumbling - Tumbling across the floor from one corner of the floor across to the opposite floor normally your tumbling pass.
• Point - Used to tell you to point your toes - used for 99% of gymnastics skills.
• Chalk - Used to put on your hands before you compete - usually bar and sometimes other events - to stop you from slipping or sliding.
• Grips - Used on bar to stop you from falling off of the bar as well as preventing as many blisters.
• Rip - When using the bar and your hand has a piece of skin ripped off of it - doesn't happen until you start learning more advanced skills.
• Runway - Piece of ground that you run down to vault.
• Table - The object at the end of the run way that you go onto and push off it.
• Stick - Landing and of your passes or skills with a solid stop and not moving from where you land - as if your feet were glued into place.
• Tape - All gymnasts end up investing in tape after a little while because it serves many purposed. Tape can be used to support torn muscles, protect rips, hold things together, and even mark spots on the ground, vault runway, beam, and even bar.