Gymnastics tumbling mats, gymnastic mats, foam carpet tiles, and wood foam floor tiles are all a similar concept: a tough but soft surface where a person may safely fall down without hurting themselves. Such wood foam floor tiles or mats are common for gymnastics, whether at a high school or professional level, and they are used in other sectors ranging from martial arts classes to military and police cadet training, too. Such mats are easily bought, stored, and used, and they may require very little maintenance or upkeep to use even with heavy and powerful individuals standing on them. A 250-pound, muscle-bound martial artist is unlikely to break the pad under his feet, let alone a high school girl practicing somersaults for gymnastics. Whether they be gymnastics pads or wood foam floor tiles, these surfaces are an excellent choice for these physical activities. How can this be done?
Gymnastics
As the name suggests, gymnastics floor mats and wood foam floor tiles are very useful for anyone training for gymnastics. A gymnast who is practicing tumbles, walking on a tight-beam, or doing flips will want a soft surface on which to land, since a hard wooden or concrete floor may cause some bruising or even fracture a bone in the worst case scenario. Therefore, a training gymnast will deploy some soft but tough mats like these, whether they’e a high school student or a professional training for a major competition. What is more, these mats are used not only for practice, but also for actual events, since there too, no one wants bruising or bone fractures. These mats are safe to land and tumble on, whether by accident or on purpose. Any high school gym is bound to have a few such mats in storage for this use, and they might also use wood foam floor tiles too.
Other Uses for Soft Surfaces
It is not only gymnasts who are making use of soft, safe surfaces for practicing physical skills. Martial arts of all kinds are practiced around the world, well beyond their native countries, from karate to judo to Muay Thai. Here too, no one would want to break a bone or get nasty bruising during practice, so instructors are bound to have wood foam floor tiles or floor mats on hand to practice on. Many martial arts involve grapples, throws, or knocking over the opponent, and this is where floor mats come in. Similarly, wood foam floor tiles are soft but tough tiles designed to look like wood, and they have serrated edges that allow them to fit together like puzzles pieces. A karate school may use these to maintain the aesthetic of a wooden floor while having a safe surface on which to practice the art. Gymnasts may use these tiles too if they so choose.
Finally, police academies and military bases will use these gymnastics mats for practice, and for the same reasons as above. A drill instructor will not be happy if their trainees are forced to quit a practice session early due to bone fractures, and the same is true of police academies. In fact, these training sessions use many impact-softening technology, such as foam pads that a person may hold to allow a trainee to practice punches and kicks. Soft practice dummies may be used for kicking or punching, and pools of water are used to break the falls from rope climbing or monkey bars during military training. All of these soft surfaces ensure that training is rigorous but safe.
Mat Care
These wood foam floor tiles or gymnastics tumble mats are tough but light and easy to move and store, and they don’t have any fragile or brittle parts on them. This makes for convenient storage, but they should still be treated with care. In general, people are advised to keep food and drinks away from these mats or tiles, since such materials may stain them. Shoes and other hard or sharp objects are discouraged too, since they may cut the mat’s surface and cause it to leak stuffing. Worse, further use of a ripped mat may cause the tear to become wider and bigger, making the mat unusable. Such tears can be sewn closed, or the material may be removed entirely and replaced.