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CrossFit Journal Article Reprint. First Published in CrossFit Journal Issue 30 - February 2005Gymnastics & TumblingGreg GlassmanThis month we review a small yet denseout-of-print book titled Gymnastics andTumbling. First published by the U.S. Navyin 1944, Gymnastics and Tumbling istoday an obscure reference in danger ofextinction. We believe it is an indispensableresource for CrossFitters and intend tokeep it alive.Shortly after the United States’ entranceinto World War II, the United States Navyimplemented a physical training programfor future pilots based on training andpracticing various sports: “Successfulcoaches were commissioned so that theNavy might have the best instructionavailable.” The successes, methods, andrefinements of these coaches-turnedofficers culminated in the issuance of theNaval Aviation Physical Training Manualsby the U.S. Navy in 1944.The manuals were prepared by and forthe newly commissioned officers fromtheir experiences in teaching thousands ofaviation cadets. Their titles include: Handto-Hand Combat; Boxing; Wrestling; Football;Gymnastics and Tumbling; Soccer; Basketball;Swimming; Mass Exercise, Games, Tests;The Sports Program; Labor Engineering; andMilitary Track.Gymnastics and TumblingIssued by the Aviation Training Division, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations,U.S. Navy. Copyright 1944 by The United States Naval InstituteWhile our focus this month is on theGymnastics and Tumbling manual inparticular, much of its virtue may lie in thefact that the U.S. Naval Aviator’s physical of 9 CrossFit is a registered trademark of CrossFit, Inc. 2006 All rights reserved.Subscription info at http://store.crossfit.comFeedback to feedback@crossfit.com

Gymnastics & Tumbling (continued.)training program in total was inspired by war; modeledfrom successful sport practice, not science; designedand implemented by coaches, not professors; considerssport in the military training sense of physical andmental development and not for the sake of sport orrecreation alone; and, finally, was successfully taught toyoung men of ordinary physical capacity.Sports Program Stunts andRecord PerformanceFor complete descriptions and diagrams, refer topages: 322-334 of the book.The unique and essential contribution of gymnastics tofitness, and by extension to war fighting, is brilliantlyarticulated in Gymnastics and Tumbling (G&T). At theend of the chapter titled “Brief History of Gymnastics,”we find the powerful statement that “gymnastics andtumbling contribute in large measure to the demands ofa democracy at war.”On FloorBritish author D.W. Brogan said of America’s entry intoWWII, “For Americans war is almost all of the time anuisance, and military skill is a luxury like Mah-jongg. Butwhen the issue is brought home to them, war becomesas important, for the necessary period, as business orsport. And it is harder to decide which is likely to bethe more ominous for the Axis – an American decisionthat this is sport, or that it is business.” That we turnedto sport and not science to forge defenders was a wisemove at a critical moment. It is also pure CrossFit to letsuccessful practice trump more academic approaches.5. Hand walk (low parallels) - record: 6 tripsThe link between the values and physical benefitsdeveloped through sport training and the demands ofwar are demonstrated pointedly throughout G&T. Thedoubleedged benefit of mind and body developmentthrough fitness and sport are also well noted: “It is our duty to train the cadets to be superior tothat enemy, mentally and physically. Rigorous, tough,competitive sports offer an excellent medium tofulfill this mission. Records have proven that mentalimprovement of the cadets goes hand in hand withbetter physical condition” (v). “Basedow regarded physical activities as a meansto a complete education embracing both the body andmind” (4). “Pestalozzi believed that methodical exercisingtrained the pupil intellectually, morally and aesthetically”(5). “Jahn, the father of German gymnastics wanted tocreate “liberty loving, social and independent thinking by strengthening the degenerated muscle groups of1. Balance on toes – record: 49 sec.2. Forearm balance – record: 1 min. 47 sec.3. Hand balance – record: 1 min. 50 sec.4. Hand walk (floor) – record: 186 ft.6. Kneeling back-bend – record: 647. Leg lifts and sit-ups – record: 500/5008. Left side support – record: 1309. Right side support – record: 13010 Extension press-up – record: 4 min. 15 sec.,no. of times – 2510 a. One-arm extension press-up – record: 2 mins.11. Push-ups on hands – record: 32512. Push-ups on fingers – record: 8413. Push-ups slapping chest – record: 7514. Push-up with 9 lb. medicine ball – record: 30515. One-arm push-ups – record: 8416. One-half lever – record: 80 sec.17. Sit-ups (feet not anchored) – record: 232617 a. Sit-ups – back arched – record: 7518. Skip forward and backward over leg – record: 2119. Squat (right leg forward) – record: 4720. Squat (left leg forward) – record: 4120 a. Jump over stick – record: 3021. Wrestler’s bridge – record: 3322. Eight-foot jump agility test – record: 2.5 sec. of 9 CrossFit is a registered trademark of CrossFit, Inc. 2006 All rights reserved.Subscription info at http://store.crossfit.comFeedback to feedback@crossfit.com

Gymnastics & Tumbling (continued.)the body, thus liberating man from the shackles of anenvironment that made him feeble, that allowed hismuscles, and consequently his mental vigor, to decay”(5).Sports Program Stunts andRecord Performance cont’d “It is of interest to note throughout history, the riseand fall of nations has seemed to coincide with the riseand fall of the physical stamina of their people” (7).23. Elbow lever on deck – record: 3 min. 46 sec. “Athletic professionalism for the few and a lack ofstrenuous participation among the many broughtabout a decline in the national physical stamina and aconsequent decline in the power of Greece” (7).25. Hand walk fifty feet for time – record: 8.3 sec.Inspired by the demands of a world at war, thesehistorically conscious authors denounce the thencurrent (1944) level of gymnastics instruction inthe U.S. and blame the declining use of gymnasticsapparatus in American public schools and colleges onthe trend toward “mild recreational activities for themajority while strenuous competition was encouragedfor the small minority.” Ironically this complaint cameat a time when there were 100,000 American membersin one gymnastics organization alone; today there maybe fewer than 1,000 American male gymnasts over tenyears old.27. Head balance to hand-balance – record: 8The Navy utilized gymnastics for the discipline’s trainingeffects, not to make competitive gymnasts. This, in thewords of Captain F.T. Ward, the Director of AviationTraining in 1943, “is the reason that the books areunlike other sports publications.” This distinctiondrives the program’s practical approach and explainswhy the authors of G&T might have stated the value ofgymnastics to physical development and general physicalpreparedness better than most modern authors.In the introduction to G&T the authors explainthat “Gymnastics and Tumbling is included in theNaval Aviation Physical Training Program becauseof the strength and skills that are developed throughparticipation in this sport. These include improvementof upper body strength, and training in quick and correctdecision and action. Since there is no other activity todevelop full upper body strength, agility and balance thissport occupies a prominent place in the Naval AviationTraining Program.”The brief and powerful chapter titled “Values ofGymnastics and Tumbling” provides a list of furtherbenefits derived from gymnastic training:24. Forearm balance walk for distance– record: 43 ft. 9 in.26. Hand walk with 9-lb. medicine ball– record: 132 ft.28. Head balance, straight leg lifts – record: 4529. Push-ups, crab position – record: 9130. Squat balance touch knees – record: 4531. Squat jumps – record: 15632. Wrestler’s turnover on medicine ball– record: 3333. Wrist twist –record: 9 1/234. Diving roll –record: 14 ft. 4 in.35. Number of sit-ups in 5 min.; feet unanchored– record: 13236. Number of sit-ups in 5 min.; feet anchored– record: 15737. “V” position – record: 20 min. 25 sec.38. Forearm balance to hand balance – record: 239. V-Roll – record: 3240. Burpees – record: 40 in 30 sec.On High Bar1. Back lever – record: 53 sec.2. Front lever – record: 19.5 sec.3. Belly grinds – record: 264. Chins:a. Ordinary grasp, no kip – record: 46b. Reverse grasp, no kip – record: 46 of 9 CrossFit is a registered trademark of CrossFit, Inc. 2006 All rights reserved.Subscription info at http://store.crossfit.comFeedback to feedback@crossfit.com