Apparently a simple split is not enough. With degrees of flexibility
correlating with tenths of points, gymnasts will try any form of
Voodoo to get that limb just millimeters higher. So you can imagine, the USOC got pretty excited when they uncovered researching showing 100 percent improvement in flexibility in male phys ed students.
The source of the absurd improvement relied less on Voodoo than it did on vibration. Research had shown that resting a limb on a vibrating surface during stretching greatly increased the flexibility of that limb. So, Dr. Bill Sands, leader of the Recovery Center for the USOC cobbled together $1,000, a local machine shop and an engineering intern to make his own vibration box. The machine itself is surprisingly simple. It’s shaped like a small pommel horse and shakes continuously at 30 hertz. After trials with young male gymnasts showed 400 percent improvements acutely and significant increases they felt that the device was ready for Olympic prime time.
In short, the results have been staggering, so much so, that they simply stopped studying because it works. Now, not only are gymnasts using this device, but synchronized swimmers, divers and even figure skaters are increasing their flexibility with this new device.
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