The Study
Monitoring the detrimental impact of congested training periods on the strength levels and landing forces of young female aerobic gymnastics
This study watched two groups of gymnasts over four weeks — one group trained more often, the other trained normally. It found that the group that trained more showed worse jumping power and harder landings. This shows a link, but we can't be sure the extra training caused the changes because the groups weren’t randomly chosen.
Analysis score
Maximum 72 for a cohort study.
Where the score came from
When young gymnasts did more practices in a short time, their jumps got weaker and their landings got harder, which could lead to injuries. Doing the usual number of practices helped them jump better and land safer.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 539 / 100
Quality score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Yes, these changes are meaningful because weaker jumps and harder landings increase injury risk in high-impact sports like gymnastics.
- 2Gymnasts who trained 6 times a week for 2 weeks jumped with 11% less power and landed with up to 19% more force.
- 3Those who kept training 4 times a week jumped 9% better and landed with less force.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Heliyon
Year
2024
Authors
Dong Ma, K. Zhao, R. Silva, Ke Wang, Qi Xu, Zijian Zhao
Related Content
Claims (5)
When young female gymnasts train six times a week instead of four for two weeks, they hit the ground harder when landing jumps, which could make injuries more likely.
When young female gymnasts who train regularly add extra workouts for two weeks straight, they might lose some of their explosive jumping power compared to sticking to their normal routine.
When teenage girl gymnasts go from training 4 to 6 times a week for two weeks, their muscles and coordination get worse over time, especially in the second week — meaning piling on too much too fast might hurt their performance.
Teen girl gymnasts who train four times a week steadily get better at jumping power and handle landings more safely over a month, suggesting regular but not overloaded practice helps their bodies adapt and absorb impact better.
If you slowly increase your workout volume over time, your body adapts and you're less likely to get overly tired or burned out compared to jumping into intense workouts all at once.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.