There are several different definitions of gymnastics where are described the main characteristics and goals of exercise of this basic sport. The name gymnastics comes from the Greek word gymnos which means "unarmed", "without outer cover" and gymnasion which means exercise space and word gymnastics which means everyday exercise. It is interesting International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) do not have definition of word gymnastics. One definition of word gymnastics dates in Slovene language to 1975, which describes gymnastics as "a system of specially selected physical exercises and methodological procedures whose primary goal is harmonious physical development and improvement of motor skills, strengthening health, achieving agility, strength, speed, endurance" (Vazzas, 1975). In Slovene language, we can also find following definition: “gymnastics is kind of physical activity, which main characteristics is precise fulfilling time and space movement requirements” (Kristan, 1980). The Random House Dictionary of the English Language (1983) defines word gymnastics as physical activity, which develops strength and agility. Similar meaning have word gymnastics in Collins Cobuild English Language Dictionary (1987) where gymnastics is defined as physical exercise, often using equipment such as bars, mats and ropes that develop your strength, co-ordination and agility.  According to Anić, (2004) gymnastics is “the exercise of the body to stay or become flexible and harmonious” or “systematic exercise of the body” (Anić, 2010). Since ancient Greek times gymnastics have made in last two hundred years huge development.  It was not only created through the idea of "Mens sana in corpore sano", but also developed into sport under the idea of "Altius, Citius, Fortius". New branches of gymnastics developed, all of them can be on one side physical exercise and on another sport (competition). Under FIG government, following activities can be performed as sport: artistic gymnastics, acrobatics, trampolining, rhytmics, parkour and aerobics. The only non-sport activity governed under FIG is named general gymnastics. It is worth to notice – gymnastics is not a sport, is physical activity, when we add to this activity competition it is sport. The general definition of gymnastics dates to the 21^st would be: "a system of specially selected physical exercises and methodological procedures whose primary goal is harmonious physical, personal and social development, where with precise fulfilling time and space movement requirements develop mainly motor skills, motor abilities without or with using specially designed apparatus for exercise or competition". Gymnastics is activity (also sport) that can be adjusted to the age and material conditions (gyms, mats, apparatus) which makes it popular.

From the point of view of kinesiology, competitive artistic gymnastics can be briefly defined as a branch of activity in which aesthetically designed acyclic movement structures are evaluated according to a pre-prescribed convention of movement defined by the Code of Points (FIG) (Živčić, 2000). A concise definition of competitive artistic gymnastics with the most important features of the sport is: sports branch in which gymnasts perform gymnastic exercises on various gymnastic all-around equipment, consisting of a number of various gymnastics elements and their combinations (Živčić Marković, 2016). Artistic gymnastics is characterized by the disciplines of women's (vault, uneven bars, balance beam and floor) and men's (floor, pommel horse, rings, vault, parallel bars, horizontal bar) all-around. The exercise on each apparatus is defined by the Code of Points and consists of different elements and their combinations.

The basic groups of elements on the floor are acrobatic elements: rolls, handstands, handsprings and somersaults. Rolls are basic acrobatic elements with rotation of 360° around the transverse axis of the body with a change the contact of the body on the ground. They can be performed in a forward and backward direction, with flight and without hand support. Variants of forward rolls: tucked, straddled, piked, dive roll, free hands; backward rolls: tucked, straddled, piked. Handstands are acrobatic endurance elements that requires balance, where the center of gravity of the body is above the support. There are standing on the shoulders, on the head and standing on the hands. Handsprings are acrobatic elements with rotation of the body around the transverse (but also the longitudinal axis of the body) for 360° with the hand support on the ground where the body passes through the vertical and can be with one or two phases of flight. The group of handsprings includes cartwheel, round-off, forward and backward handsprings. Somersaults are acrobatic elements with a flight phase in which body rotate by at least 360°. The body in somersault can be tucked, piked and straight, and simultaneously rotated around the longitudinal axis of the body. They are performed in the forward, backward and lateral directions.

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