Parents Strength vs flexibility

[Blessed4x]

A couple coaches have mentioned that my DD (L2-3) has exceptional strength but needs work on flexibility. Just curious if that is typical? From a physiological standpoint it makes sense. She's got that shorter, thicker body type and very defined thigh and calf muscles. Not that it matters....she's having a blast and I'm sure she'll get her flexibility too. Being a nurse I just seem to ponder these things . By the way, our first 2 hour class went very well. In usual fashion, on the way home, she informed me of how many days until she could go back. I swear she would live there if they rented out rooms!

 

[Deleted member D3987]

yes, that's typical.

 

[mayestra12]

I don't know the answer but it's interesting. My dd is probably the opposite. She's very flexible but needs to work on strength. She's of the longer / leaner body type.

 

[Midget's Dad]

Flexibility and strength seem to have an interesting dichotomy. The prevailing belief way back when (I recall hearing this a lot in the 80's) was that those that are more muscular will always struggle with flexibility. So this was almost always followed up with some advice about not overtraining through weight workouts for certain athletes that need to be flexible (in my case it was as a hockey goalie, and in fact I was pulled from being a goalie because I was considered too muscular to be able to flex as much as needed)

However, current research has shown that stronger muscles actually assist flexibility. The stronger a muscle is the farther you can stretch it before the stretch reflex kicks in. When you stretch, the nervous system activates the myotatic reflex. Also called the stretch reflex, this mechanism is your body's natural defense against muscle tears. It is essentially reigning your muscles in when it feels they have gone too far. The good news is that you can train this reflex to fire much later, thus improving your pre-tensile range of motion (i.e. how far you can stretch before your muscles tense up. This equals deeper splits). Research has shown that connective tissues (tendons, ligaments and fascia) also lengthen over many applications of stretches, which can delay the onset of age-related reductions in flexibility.

But with all that said the amount of muscle specifically around the joints can hinder stretching, but with time and training even that can be overcome. Luckily for females, they also come with a greater amount of a chemical called Relaxin which decreases the resistance of the ligaments to stretching, and helps them make faster flexibility gains than guys (grrr) They also tend to have greater range of motion in most joints, in particular the ball joints like the hips, shoulders, and ankles.

So the good news is that even though she may be stockier it does not mean she cannot achieve high flexibility. And while the muscle density might slow things down, the higher strength can offset that to some degree.

I always love getting something I can actually answer. I have been studying this a lot recently as I started taking Taekwondo and am working on my own flexibility, much to Midget's amusement. She really seems to love dropping, cold, into full splits right in front of me as I am trying to stretch.

 

[vagymmomma]

My DD is a naturally strong and working hard at the flexibility type as well (though she's not stocky at all -- shoulder flexibility continues to be a work in progress). I actually find that most gymnasts seem to be the opposite (at least at the lower levels) -- lots of natural flexibility and need to work on strength. My experience is strong = good bars. The higher levels of gymnastics definitely need both.

 

[Blessed4x]

Wow...thanks for that info! Exactly what I was looking for without spending any time on google. I do think her strength will serve her well for this sport, and the fact that she'll probably be a maximum of 5 foot tall according to the docs.

 

[Bajanswife]

My 8 yo DD is super strong too - she has those short muscles that just bulk up really quickly. She isn't bad at flexibility - she can do the splits, but not oversplits. Her difficulty is in getting her muscles to work together in such a way that her legs look straight and her body is hollow. She can make her legs do amazing things but never be straight! The thing is, she thinks they are straight - they feel straight, but they are not. Obviously this really affects her scores in meets.

 

[gymmomof1]

My 8 yo DD is super strong too - she has those short muscles that just bulk up really quickly. She isn't bad at flexibility - she can do the splits, but not oversplits. Her difficulty is in getting her muscles to work together in such a way that her legs look straight and her body is hollow. She can make her legs do amazing things but never be straight! The thing is, she thinks they are straight - they feel straight, but they are not. Obviously this really affects her scores in meets.

This sounds like my DD too! She also has to really strech her shoulders to get them loose but DD is good at the vault and tumbling not so much with beam and the graceful moves lol.

 

[Bella's Mom]

Bella follows that pattern. She is very strong but still, even after four years of gym, cannot get her splits all the way down. She has pulled her groin muscle several times in gym and her coach has said it's going to happen until she increases her flexibility.

And daughter is short and muscular.

 

[Canadian_gym_mom]

My daughter is a giant muscle. She is so strong. She has okay flexibilty for splits, but seriously can not do a short bridge and struggles with the long bridge.

I am assuming that at some point this will hol dher back from higher levels but for now she is just loving gym for what it is.

 

[Empowered]

My DD is a naturally strong and working hard at the flexibility type as well (though she's not stocky at all -- shoulder flexibility continues to be a work in progress). I actually find that most gymnasts seem to be the opposite (at least at the lower levels) -- lots of natural flexibility and need to work on strength. My experience is strong = good bars. The higher levels of gymnastics definitely need both.

Sounds like you are describing my daughter. Very strong, but also long and lean... and about as flexible as an oak tree, especially in those dang shoulders. She can swing those bars though.

 

[Lissy]

Dd seems to be both. She has lots of upper body strength along with that her shoulders and lower back are really flexible. She struggles with splits, she can do her right side along with oversplits, but her left side still has a ways to go. Her straddles are also not all the way down. She is short for her age, but has long legs for her size.

 

[AlexsGymmyMom]

Dd seems to be both. She has lots of upper body strength along with that her shoulders and lower back are really flexible. She struggles with splits, she can do her right side along with oversplits, but her left side still has a ways to go. Her straddles are also not all the way down. She is short for her age, but has long legs for her size.

Your description also fits my DD to a tee. She has her right and middle splits but not her left splits. She has great shoulder and back flexibility. She is petite for her age but has long legs. She has become a pretty powerful tumbler but not as graceful as you would think for her body type.

 

[momof5]

My DD is short and muscular too. She is shaped like a triangle. She has thinner legs then upper body but they are very muscular and powerful. She is more muscular then lots of her other gym friends. She can oversplit both r and l split and has crazy straddle flexibility. She has good shoulder flexibily but not overly flexible. She is about in the middle range for shoulder flex compared to the other girls she trains with (L8 - 10.)

 

[ajanele]

My oldest daughter is quite the opposite. She is uber flexible, think contortionist-like. Now that she's getting older & training more her strength is really starting to increase, but it's definitely something she's struggled with; mainly upper body. Her coaches & I have noticed that with a lot of skills she uses her flexibility to 'cheat' rather than using & building those muscles. Now that everyone is more aware (Belle included) there's been a noticeable change in her strength.

It's interesting to see the differences in kiddos.

 

[gym_mom]

My DD just told me yesterday that her coach told her that her legs aren't strong enough. She's one of the most flexible kids on the team, and she's stronger than your average non-gymnast, but she's definitely lacking in the "powerful muscles" department.
If strength is inversely correlated to flexibility, then that makes total sense.

 

[mamaoftwo]

Well, I have thought about this quite a bit for my own DD! She seems to be in the middle... She's fairly flexible as she has all 3 splits and can "pancake (?)" while making it look effortless, but has no over splits yet (though coach has not really worked them). The other moms actually frequently comment about how flexible my DD is (makes me feel strange, how do I reply to that? I usually say, "Yeah, she has been working on them at home").

She is missing some upper body strength - so can only manage 1-2 chinups before needing a break so far, but seems to have a relatively strong core and legs (leg lifts aren't a problem). But, her coach told her to get a chin-up bar for home and to get to practicing them. We got one.

To make L4, the girls need all 3 splits, 10 "perfect" chin ups and 10 "perfect" leglifts in order to make team (among other things). At least that is what the rec families are told. I know of a few instances when former L3's were taken onto L4 missing some of it (though of course the team coordinator does know those kids well, them having been on L3 and all). So, our gym definitely wants both strength and flexibility in a gymnast, but I think the guidelines serve as an "out" for them.

 

[vagymmomma]

To make L4, the girls need all 3 splits, 10 "perfect" chin ups and 10 "perfect" leglifts in order to make team (among other things).

Wow, you must have a very competitive team. My L6 DD still wouldn't make your team's L4 cutoff and she placed in every event at L4 and L5 States. She's got about an inch to go on the middle split (though she has the over splits on both left and right legs - and her upper body strength is pretty ridiculous). It really makes me appreciate the head coach at our gym. Not sure what she saw in DD when she invited her to try out for the team, but it certainly wasn't inate flexibility with any body part.

 

[themonkeysmom]

My ds is a bit of a mixed bag, I guess.

He's short, strong, and visibly muscular, but flexibility is all over the place. He's all the way to the floor on middle splits, but a good foot away from side splits; and while his shoulders are tight, his elbows hyperextend.

I'm sure it will all work itself out eventually.

 

[MyBoysFlip]

My 6 yo DS is really flexible - all three oversplits and crazy bridges. He's the only boy at most strength & flexibility classes and I laugh watching him lay in center splits smiling away. He's strong too - push ups, V ups, pull ups, press handstands but... sometimes it seems he is so little that he lacks power.