A balance beam for training gymnasts has been invented. The balance beam has the capability of absorbing the downward momentum of a gymnast landing on the beam and then providing a near equal upward thrust to the gymnast allowing greater heights and longer air time in an immediately following jump thus facilitating the quicker learning of gymnastic skills. To achieve this, the beam is supported within a frame of similar dimension as the beam. The components which support the beam within the frame are located at each end of the beam and consist of a special arrangement of springs and elastic straps which represent the embodiment of the invention.