Compulsory Levels in girl's gymnastics include Level 1-6. Levels 1-3 are Pre-Team and usually don't compete. Levels 4-6 have Teams and compete in meets. Optional Levels include Levels 7-10 and Elite. Elite Levels compete are the only ones to compete in international competitions as well as national competitions. College gymnastics is somewhere between Level 10 and Elite Level.

The competitive season in gymnastics lasts approximately 4 months. However, since gymnasts are constantly perfecting the skills they already have and learning more advanced skills (needed to move up to the next Level), they practice year round.

Every 4 years after the Olympics, the Code of Points for gymnastics routines is upgraded. The effect is that over the long run gymnastics keeps getting more challenging. For example, a routine that earned a 10.0 in a 1984 competition might earn less than 9.00 in 1998, even if done perfectly.

Gymnasts are truly complete athletes. They use almost every muscle in their body to perform moves that vary from the artistry of dance to exciting, powerful tumbling passes, and from the control and balance in the "psyche" event of beam to the strength and timing of the uneven bars. Speed, power, strength, flexibility, control, balance, concentration, timing, and endurance are some of what is required of gymnasts. In addition, gymnasts have to have patience, dedication, and guts!