How do gymnasts get so high into the air when they flip?

Question

How do gymnasts get so high into the air when they flip?

Answer 1

They are on a spring floor with springs underneath it.

Answer 2

Regulation floors have springs underneath them. Also, we do round-offs and back handsprings before most flips, which gives us some momentum to throw our bodies higher into the air.

Answer 3

we are not all on spring floor btw we are just soo amazing and everyone else is jealos of our body.

Answer 4

Gymnasts do tumble on a spring floor these days, but they didn't always.  Before the 1980s, gymnasts tumbled on a thin foam mat... and they still got really high in the air!  Spring floors don't really give you that much extra spring; their main benefit is absorbing some of the shock, to make it easier on a gymnast's joints.

But to answer your question:  when gymnasts tumble, they don't actually jump - they bounce.  They squeeze their leg and butt muscles really tight, which makes them somewhat like a rubber ball.  The momentum they get from running, roundoffs, and/or handsprings allows their bodies to bounce up high into a back or front flip.

Answer 5

They create a lot of momentum :)