QUANTIFYING LANDING IMPACTS DURING A LEG STRENGTH CIRCUIT IN MALE ARTISTIC GYMNASTS - A PILOT STUDY

Measuring landing impacts in gymnastics has previously been difficult and has rarely taken place in the daily training environment. The aim of this pilot research was to quantify the number and magnitude of landing impacts experienced by elite level male gymnasts when completing a leg strength circuit that they regularly perform in training. Acceleration data revealed gymnasts were being exposed to a high number of very high magnitude landing impacts (up to 9 landings/exercise and >10 g) during the leg strength circuit. These results prompted the development of two alternate leg strength circuits, specifically developed for gymnasts recovering from injury, which do not include the high loading exercises. Tibial acceleration is a promising method for the measurement of landing impacts during gymnastics training.