The Shakti Gymnast

When I was a Level 4 at Legacy Gymnastics, my coach told me to use a large pencil pouch to keep extra Leos and hair ties for an emergency at a meet. But, I found it to be more useful to keep things like tape, tape grips, hand ointment, lip balm, and bandages. I always bring it to the gym, just in case I need something. I like having everything in one place so I don't have to dig around to find things in my gym bag.  This is what my Gymnastics Pouch looks like:   What do you keep in your Gymnastics Pouch?

Three weeks before my State meet, earlier this year, I was warming up for my Level 6 routine on floor and when I did my round off backhandspring backlayout, I hyperextended my elbow.  I didn't tell my coach because I have hyperextended my arm before and I thought that the pain would go away. So I did the rest of practice with pain and it continued to hurt when I got home through the next day. When I relaxed my arm and straightened it all the way, it hurt and felt limp. It also hurt to put any pressure on it if I did handstands or cartwheels. So I ended up going to a Sports Medicine doctor and he said not to put any pressure on it and ice it 3 times a day for 20 minutes. At practice I was not able to do much, I mostly did conditioning and standing flips.  State meet was near and the doctor said that I couldn't compete. He said if I hyperextended my elbow again I could fracture the growth plate and the recovery time would be 6 to 8 months! He also wanted me to get a MR

I started using KT tape about a year and a half ago for Achilles Tendinitis (AT).  My coach was wrapping my foot with normal athletic tape and I ran out of it.  So, when we went to buy more tape, my mom found the KT tape and saw that there was a way to tape for AT.  Using Kinesiology tape is faster and easier for me to tape myself so I don't have to rely on my coaches to always tape my injuries for me.  The tape also allows me to have more range of motion compared to the normal athletic tape.   There are 2 types of KT Tapes, one is made out of cotton and the other one is synthetic. If you are not doing sports, I recommend using the cotton one. If you are doing sports, you should definitely use the synthetic version because it stays on longer, especially if you sweat a lot.  I continue to use KT for my AT and elbow tendinitis.  It helps with the pain and it is good for your muscles. The tape makes the skin pull away from the muscle and lets more blood flow to the injured ar