Beam

The beam is 100mm wide and 5000mm long. During training the beam is often set lower or flat on the floor (known as a practice beam.) Competition height however is set at 1200mm off the floor (Level's 1-3 set at 1000mm).  Springboards are used to mount the beam.

Once on the beam, gymnasts run, step, jump, turn, roll, tumble, and perform all sorts of moves requiring flexibility, agility and balance. It requires a lot of muscular control, courage, and concentration. Apart from whole-body strength, a flowing Beam routine builds accurate balance and a feeling of confidence with respect to heights and narrow, restricted areas.

Asymetric Bars orUneven Parallel Bars

Low Bar Height: 166cm+or-1cm (From bottom of rail to floor)

High Bar Height: 246cm+or-1cm (From bottom of rail to floor)

Spread: 130cm to 180cm+or-1cm (From inside to inside of rails)

In South Africa, Primary School kids can use a Junior set of bars (both bars are lower and can be closer together.)

Competitive routines typically consist of kipping (bending at the waist into a pike position), swinging, and circling maneuvers as well as releasing and regrasping the bars. Support moves should be used only for momentary positions. A gymnast should work both above and below the bars and use twisting moves.

The uneven bars develop strength and endurance in the arms and upper body and a sense of balance and timing as the gymnast works from one bar to the other. They also build confidence in the gymnast's ability to control her body while maneuvering through difficult moves way above ground level.