How to balance school and gymnastics?

[KayleeGymnast51402]

Can you give me some tips on how to balance the two? I go to gymnastics 3 times a week (Monday Wednesday and Friday) from 5:30-8:30 depending on the weather, if it is bad I go from 6:00-7:30.

Lately it's just been really stressful. My grades weren't that good last quarter, and I really have pressure to get them up, otherwise I'll have to repeat and my parents will make me drop out of gymnastics.

Any tips?

 

[Aussie_coach]

Research shows that being busy actually improves your grades, not hinders them.

Kids who are busy have to learn time management, be organised and use time when they can. Kids who don't do anything after school, often feel like they have all the time in the world and waste it.

Also doing sports like gymnastics improves your concentration and memory as well as your cognitive skills. This makes learning easier and more effective.

Your hours are actually quite low for a gymnasts of middle or high school age, so the problem may not be that you don't have time, there could be so e other underlying issues at play. Spending excessive hours doing homework or study is not actually healthy or beneficial. They key is to learn how to get maximum benefit less time. Learning these skills will stand you in good stead to handle your adult life as well.

Get out a timetable and write down all the hours that you do have free. Such as Tuesday and Thursday evenings, waking up early in the mornings and doing some before school, the weekends, and before and after practice on your training days. Also you can utilise down times like bus trips to and from school or car trips to and from the gym for reading and study.

On gym days prioritise and just do the necessary bits of homework that need to be handed in the next day. And save your other work the tue, thu and weekends.

 

[flips123]

I'm a senior, so I've had a few years to figure this out. It's HARD. I had plenty of mental breakdowns last year. I don't have that hard of a time in school, but I am a huge procrastinator. You need to be proactive. Study/do homework whenever class is at a lull and before practice, that way you have time after practice to study and sleep. Sometimes I feel like it's really surviving it rather than balancing it. It was especially hard when I had gym immediately after track practice. Going non-stop from 6am-1am is NOT good for your body or your gymnastics. I was mentally and physically exhausted all of the time. This year is a lot better as I've learned to study and do homework at any chance I get.

 

[emilykatherine]

I'm a senior, so I've had a few years to figure this out. It's HARD. I had plenty of mental breakdowns last year. I don't have that hard of a time in school, but I am a huge procrastinator. You need to be proactive. Study/do homework whenever class is at a lull and before practice, that way you have time after practice to study and sleep. Sometimes I feel like it's really surviving it rather than balancing it. It was especially hard when I had gym immediately after track practice. Going non-stop from 6am-1am is NOT good for your body or your gymnastics. I was mentally and physically exhausted all of the time. This year is a lot better as I've learned to study and do homework at any chance I get.

I'm with ya I have break downs at least once a week on the car ride home, some days you'll just be tired and your not going to want to do it, but you have to! If possible see if you can get a study hall, I have one every day for an hour. I also do homework in between practice breaks and Thursday morning because I don't start school until 9 those days.

 

[KayleeGymnast51402]

I'm with ya I have break downs at least once a week on the car ride home, some days you'll just be tired and your not going to want to do it, but you have to! If possible see if you can get a study hall, I have one every day for an hour. I also do homework in between practice breaks and Thursday morning because I don't start school until 9 those days.

I actually have a study hall where if I can I do all my work, but if I didn't do the math work I have to deal with it, because the calculators are in math class only.

 

[rockyrose]

I definitely can understand where you're coming from. It doesn't matter that your hours are on the low end of the spectrum (mine are too!), it can still be exhausting to balance school, work, and a social life! My advice is to take a break after school, even for just 10 minutes to clear your mind and get focused before starting homework. Also, try to get to bed early!

 

[KayleeGymnast51402]

I definitely can understand where you're coming from. It doesn't matter that your hours are on the low end of the spectrum (mine are too!), it can still be exhausting to balance school, work, and a social life! My advice is to take a break after school, even for just 10 minutes to clear your mind and get focused before starting homework. Also, try to get to bed early!

The getting more rest is hard! I have to wake up at 6:00! And I have a problem falling asleep early, or staying asleep. Usually I have a dream or something waking me up.

My grades are improving slowly this quarter, but I have a little ways to go.

 

[flippinam]

I totally understand! Balancing school & gymnastics is HARD. My gym has light hours compared to most others at the same level (12 hrs/week for level 7). But my schedule is completely full. I also do track & compete on 3 academic teams for my school. So in the mornings before school, I have academic team practice. From 2:45-5:00 I have track practice. Then I go to gym (supposed to start at 5:00. I get there around 5:15) & finish at 8. Then on Fridays when I don't have gym after track, I have piano. Organization is key. I keep a planner & write down every assignment I have to get done each night. Once I finish it, I cross it off the list. Seeing what I need to get done written out helps me prioritize & plan better. As others have said, work whenever you have a spare second. Though my friends aren't too fond of this practice, I usually work on homework during lunch & can get a pretty good chunk done. I work during every class whenever there's any downtime at all. Your sleep schedule sounds just like mine. I also have trouble sleeping at night. What has helped me is to shower early (those tend to wake me up) & stick to a nightly bedtime routine to get my body into "sleeping mode". Also reading any book that I'm required to read for school seems to have soporific effects