Does a gymnast have to be fit & healthy?

im doing a project on gymnastics for school im 12 and im addicted to gymnastics so I decidded to do it because its a project on your passions . anyway we have to come up with a big question that has a lot of little answers myn is does a gymnast have to be fit and healthy ? I would apreciate it if you could tell me some answers and what they would have in there diet and if they have to maintain a certain weight ? thanks. Ruby

Well to a degree yes I think they have to be fit, But I may be wrong...I've never seen a fat gymnast and I would think their diet would be like no junk food and like salad or something.

This is one of the dumbest and most obvious questions so far...

well, I am a gymnast, and yes we definetly have to be fit, you see, if we are too fat, we wont be able to do as many tricks, so... yeah... duh

um...did you really have to ask??? yes us gymnasts have to be super fit...not thin though...fit. I really think that if you want to be a gymnast you should start at the gym (24 hour fitness is good) and start there. well I eat junk food sometimes even though I never eat chocolate or drink sodas.

yes they do. it depends on what type of gym you are going. I did state gymnastics and trained with the victorian team for along time. I had a stricy diet and fitness prgram I had to stick to. I also couldnt weigh more than 50kg. hope that helps if you want anything else comment me

yeh you do have to be fit. but you dont have to be 'skinny.' I compete in heaps of gymnastics competitions and I have seen girls who look fat but its all muscle and they come first because of their muscle which gives them power and strength to perform good tricks/flips!
having a diet depends on whether you are an elite gymnast (which means really good and might compete internetionally) or whether you are a competitor competing in competitions for a local club for state and nationally. I compete for a local club but dont have a diet. I dont eat fatty foods (I eat them probably once in two months) but eat whenever I want.

there are some girls who are really skinny at my gym. I think it has to do with when you started doing gym. they started when they were 3 and 4 but the people who started later at the age of 7 and above arent as skinny.

but... yes gymansts are always fit and healthy

no gymnasts dont have to be fit! im a gymnast and a pretty good one and I weigh 165 pounds! just because most gymnasts are skinny doesnt mean all of them are! With the weight I have on me I can do all of my tricks fine! you can be as fat as you want just as long as you can do it!
so NO you don't have to be fit or skinny!
and if anybody got anyrthing to say about it you can look me up on myspace or aim!

Fun mail me!

uhmm. 'bsquare' apparently is not a high level gymnast.considering her thoughts on being 'as fat as you want as long as you can do it' advice that she seems to have given you.
I just moved up to the elite levels and the coaches are extremely harsh on your diet and your training hours.once you hit a certain level it is manditory for you to stay fit and healthy.it really depends on the level you are or if you are an international or elite competitor.of course recreational gymnastics (just for fun) does not require a certain body weight nor does it require a certain amount of muscle mass.once you get to competing in the meets of level 8 or higher, your health starts to become more crucial if you plan on making gymnastics a big part of your life.it's not necessarally a diet.it's your eating habits.like sweets and carbonated drinks such as coke would hinder your abilities in the gym.I occasionally do eat junk foods,but if I do, then I double my conditioning that day in order to keep myself in shape for my tricks.

hope I helped.if you have any other questions message me.

thankks chickka.

Well honestly, I think that when you start gymnastics, of course, it's just an activity, but if you start getting more intense and into the competitive mode of it, your health starts to be a big part of it. and of course you have to be fit, but gymnasts are already fit from conditioning. But yeah, if you arent fit, you wont be able to do certain skills.
Even though other people on here said that you should stick to to eating like salads and non carbonated stuff, I DISAGREE. I'm going into level 8, and I eat almost anything I want (and NO, im not fat). it's actually better for a gymnast to eat a lot of protein because we NEED IT! but to answer your question, yes.