Biological, physical fitness and motor coordination profile and its associations with the performance of practitioners of rhythmic gymnastics at sports initiation: a systematic review

ABSTRACT Describing the biological, physical fitness and motor coordination profile and its possible associations of these variables with the performance on rhythmic gymnastics (RG) of practitioners of sports initiation. Systematic search of articles carried out from the 20th to the 23rd of July, 2022, on three databases: 1) PubMed; 2) SportDiscus and 3) Google Scholar. The search was conducted through an advanced research tool, from the constructing of descriptors and keywords related to the theme. The selection of descriptors and keywords was performed through consensus of published sources (original and of systematic review articles) and inserted in English language in each database. 10 articles were included in the descriptive summary of data. The greatest part of these studies is of female practitioners, having the data collection in its majority in the European region. The profile of beginner gymnasts was characterized by low values for BMI, BF%, high values for stature, high indexes of flexibility, explosive strength, motor coordination and balance. Flexibility, explosive strength, muscular endurance and high levels of motor coordination were the variables which most presented positive associations with the performance on RG. The values of body mass and skin folds presented a predictive negative power on the success of RG movements. The impact of different variables on the beginner gymnasts’ performance evidences the necessity of working physical and motor components in a way that it supports the objects of development of each practitioner considering the biological, physical and motor aspects.