The effect of 12 weeks of basic gymnastics education on anthroopometric properties and biomotor powers in girls

Aim The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of 12 weeks of basic gymnastics training on anthropometric characteristics and biomotor skills in girls. Material and Method A total of 40 girls between the ages of 6 and 8 who applied to the Samurai Sports Club sports school in Alanya district of Antalya and who had never had gymnastics training before voluntarily participated in the study. The girls who participated in the study were divided into two groups of 20 participants as Training Group (TG) and Control Group (CG) through randomized controlled method. In total five of the participants in these groups ended their participation, two from TG and three from CG, due to their health problems and due to the fact that some of them did not want to participate any longer. Thus, the final groups were as follows: 18 participants in TG and 17 participants in CG. TG group received basic gymnastics training one and a half hour daily and three days a week for 12 weeks. The developmental differences were followed through Eurofit test battery (Flamingo Balance Test, Plate Tapping Test, Sit and Reach Test, Standing Long Jump Test, Handgrip Strength Test, Curl-up Test, Bent-Arm Hang Test, 10 x 5 m Shuttle Run Test and 20 m Shuttle Run Test) and anthropometric tests (Skinfold Thickness, Body Length, Body Mass and BMI) used in both pre-test and in post-test in order to measure the anthropometric features and biomotoric skills of the girls. For the analysis of the research data, SPSS 25.0 statistical package program was used in the current study. The descriptive statistics of the obtained data were carried out; because of the number of participants, vii Wilcoxon signed rank test were done in order to reveal the differences emerging in the pretest and post-test. The significance level was determined as p<0,05. Findings According to the obtained data, a positive and significant difference was determined in the TG in terms of flamingo balance test, plate tapping test, sit and reach test, standing long jump test, handgrip strength test, curl-up test, bent-arm hang test, 10 x 5 m shuttle run test and 20 m shuttle run test (p<0.05). However, there was no statistically significant difference in TG in terms of the test carried out to measure the body fat percentage (p>0.05). On the other hand, although significant differences were found in CG in terms of flamingo balance test, plate tapping test, bent-arm hang test, 10 x 5 m shuttle run test and 20 m shuttle run test (p<0.05), it was determined that the difference was in a negative way. A statistically significant difference was found in the test carried out to measure the body fat percentage of CG (p<0.05). No significant difference was found in CG in terms of sit and reach test, standing long jump test, handgrip strength test and curl-up test. Conclusion In the light of the study carried out, it was concluded that a 12-week gymnastics training has positive effects on the anthropometric features and biomotor skills of 6-8 age group girls. Keyword: Basic gymnastics, child, Eurofit, biomotor skills.