When your gymnast is out on floor, make sure that he or she takes breaks for water frequently. Hydration is key to good health. If he or she is sweating profusely, dehydration is possible, and that too can be a disaster waiting in wings.

Beyond all of hazards of gymnastics, there is treatment for any injuries received. Of course, if your gymnast is injured severely, a doctor visit might be best idea -- or even emergency room. However, that is simply common sense. On other hand, if your child is not injured severely, you may wish to take care of him or her yourself.

But whatever you decide to do, please understand I am not a doctor and you should always consult your family doctor if you have any problems or concerns.

For sprains, strains, bumps and bruises, you should use ice for first twenty four hours. Ice cubes in a plastic bag with a facecloth or a hand towel wrapped around bag itself is sufficient if you do not have a medical ice pack. Never place ice directly against skin - and never ice for more than twenty to thirty minutes at a time.

Three or four times in first day after injury should be sufficient. After that, gentle heat compresses will help to relax any muscle spasms or pain that isn’t taken care of with some kind of pain reliever (consult a doctor before giving your gymnast ANY medication).

Hopefully, you’ll never have to deal with injuries -- but remember, prevention is better than anything else. Keep this in mind and be safe.

Good luck!

By Murray Hughes Gymnastics Secrets Revealed ”The book EVERY gymnastics parent should read”

http://www.gymnasticssecretsrevealed.com/gymnastics-articles/gymnastics-injuries.htm

Gymnastics does not encourage violence in same way contact sports do -- indeed, when one is part of a gymnastics team, one has to work in synchronicity with and have a certain trust for other members, a valuable lesson in this individualism-driven social environment. This can certainly help in any future employment, especially if your child is interested in professions that involve lots of interpersonal communication.

Beyond practice, gymnastics also requires physical discipline. For instance, if you do not move in way that you are taught to move when on parallel bars, you will have falls and disappointment--and then, of course, you learn from mistake, pick up, and try it again. Playing at gymnastics braces a person for future in that way: it prepares them for inevitable necessity of determination and endurance in any of life’s endeavors, whether in business or in education. In conjunction with school study habits, practice for gymnastics can indeed lead a young person into a level and graceful confidence. In fact, for as physically driven as gymnastics happens to be, it is also an extremely intellectual sport: every motion requires forethought, for in game, if you do not think of what you are going to do before you do it, you’ll end up on mat.

Finally, and perhaps most obviously of all, there is fact that gymnastics will keep your child busy, as any other sport might. This means that he or she won’t be as likely to slip into a pattern of slacking or of hanging out with wrong crowd. Quite literally, when your child is at practice, you will know where they are -- you will not have to worry if they have wandered off somewhere or are unintentionally getting into trouble. This can lead to peace of mind for you and yours, most assuredly, which, like skills they will learn, are absolutely invaluable.

By Murray Hughes Gymnastics Secrets Revealed ”The book EVERY gymnastics parent should read”

http://www.gymnasticssecretsrevealed.com/gymnastics-articles/gymnastics-history.htm