Simone Biles Debunks Every Gymnastics Myth Glamour

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Our Digital Cover star and Olympic Gold Medalist Simone Biles responds to popular misconceptions and assumptions about gymnastics and the athletes who participate in the sport. Do gymnastics really stunt your growth? Do gymnasts constantly have wedgies in their uniforms? Find out what myths are false and which ones ring true as Simone sets out clear the air.

Simone Biles Debunks Every Gymnastics Myth

Simone Biles has heard every myth in the book about gymnastics. Glamour asked the Olympic Gold Medalist to take to Instagram and debunk the most popular assumptions she hears about her sport. Biles broke these statements down into three categories: Sport, Lifestyle, and Physique.

Her first myth is something she hears a lot about gymnastics: gymnastics is not a sport. “I hear this a lot, but I feel like every four years, everybody tunes in to watch gymnastics. So it’s gotta be a sport at least,” says Biles. The Gold Medal Winning gymnast dives into the specifics of her training schedule, proving she is working just as hard as any other competitive athlete. “Right now I train 32 to 34 hours a week just to compete for about three or four minutes,” explains Biles. “It’s all sports combined in one.” Biles also sets the record straight about the supposed “short career” of a gymnast. “That’s not technically true because we can do it whenever.”

There is also a common assumption that to get into the sport of gymnastics you have to be well off due to the expensive outfits and competition fees. “It actually is a very expensive sport and it has to do with its also year long,” Biles explains. “We don’t have a season and then we can take a break. And you kind of have to train your whole entire life for it. So yes, it does get to be expensive.”

As for the question that is on all of our minds every time we watch gymnasts compete: Can gymnasts be afraid of heights? “ You actually can, but it doesn’t affect you in the gym when you’re flipping, because you don’t notice how high you are.” One rumor Simone Biles is always asked about is the theory that gymnastics will stunt your growth. “Still don’t know if that’s true or not,” says Biles, “but here I am at four-foot-eight, so possibly.”