WAG please all coaches help me! Giants in less than 6 months?

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I am a coach and currently I have a L5 group. All of the kids are very likely to be good L7 next season, we did a lot of upgrading recently. We got a new girl last month and she has been doing really well! She is a real angel and fits perfectly into our team.

She is pretty ready for L7 also, she has floor and beam ready, just needs to gain a little more confidence. The thing we have a problem with is bars. She is 12 and very big for her age (5’). She has good bars so far, but at her old gym has not been introduced into giants or bigger tap swings!
She can kip cast to handstand, she has nice sole circles and clear hips, als her tucked Flyaway. Our gym requires giants to get to L7, so this is a real problem!

I have to say she is pretty strong, she has strong arms and a strong core and is pretty muscular over all.

So if she wants to be a L7 next season, she would need to get her giants on real bar in about 4 months and then in between the bars in her routine by about August or September. So in about 6 months? Is this even possible? She said she is willing to try, but she is really afraid she won’t make it because oft he low bar because she is so tall! All the other girls do not need to care about the low bar yet, hence they are all smaller.

Do you think we could give it a go? I really want to, but I usually start with giant drills and bigger tap swings all the way from PreTeam, so I doubt this is possible.

Any tips?
 
Certainly possible. Put all your energy into being positive about the outcome and let that sentiment set the expectation for her. If you make her height an issue she'll get the message the skill is a stretch for her. Five feet tall is not a spoiler for the skill.
 
CoachRita, it is definitely possible to get a giant 4/5 months. But what concerns me is your statement that she is "so tall". According to the US govt growth charts, 5'0" at 12 years old is at most 50% for her age. Please don't tell her that she's tall or that this is a roadblock for her at 5'0, because both things are not true! I'm sure she will do fine with some confidence and training on both your parts:)
 
I am a coach and currently I have a L5 group. All of the kids are very likely to be good L7 next season, we did a lot of upgrading recently. We got a new girl last month and she has been doing really well! She is a real angel and fits perfectly into our team.

She is pretty ready for L7 also, she has floor and beam ready, just needs to gain a little more confidence. The thing we have a problem with is bars. She is 12 and very big for her age (5’). She has good bars so far, but at her old gym has not been introduced into giants or bigger tap swings!
She can kip cast to handstand, she has nice sole circles and clear hips, als her tucked Flyaway. Our gym requires giants to get to L7, so this is a real problem!

I have to say she is pretty strong, she has strong arms and a strong core and is pretty muscular over all.

So if she wants to be a L7 next season, she would need to get her giants on real bar in about 4 months and then in between the bars in her routine by about August or September. So in about 6 months? Is this even possible? She said she is willing to try, but she is really afraid she won’t make it because oft he low bar because she is so tall! All the other girls do not need to care about the low bar yet, hence they are all smaller.

Do you think we could give it a go? I really want to, but I usually start with giant drills and bigger tap swings all the way from PreTeam, so I doubt this is possible.

Any tips?
At her current level of course it's possible (not certain but totally possible). What area of the country are you in? reason I ask, is it would be better to visit a gym and have them show you how to do it.
 
I am a coach and currently I have a L5 group. All of the kids are very likely to be good L7 next season, we did a lot of upgrading recently. We got a new girl last month and she has been doing really well! She is a real angel and fits perfectly into our team.

She is pretty ready for L7 also, she has floor and beam ready, just needs to gain a little more confidence. The thing we have a problem with is bars. She is 12 and very big for her age (5’). She has good bars so far, but at her old gym has not been introduced into giants or bigger tap swings!
She can kip cast to handstand, she has nice sole circles and clear hips, als her tucked Flyaway. Our gym requires giants to get to L7, so this is a real problem!

I have to say she is pretty strong, she has strong arms and a strong core and is pretty muscular over all.

So if she wants to be a L7 next season, she would need to get her giants on real bar in about 4 months and then in between the bars in her routine by about August or September. So in about 6 months? Is this even possible? She said she is willing to try, but she is really afraid she won’t make it because oft he low bar because she is so tall! All the other girls do not need to care about the low bar yet, hence they are all smaller.

Do you think we could give it a go? I really want to, but I usually start with giant drills and bigger tap swings all the way from PreTeam, so I doubt this is possible.



Any tips?

yikes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
@WSCoachLY: Yes we do and I am pretty sure she will get it pretty quickly. But she is afraid of the "real"
bar because she feels she might slip
off and is scared of the wrist shift!

@Amber: Yes, I always tell
her! The girl herself says so. I will make a "lower" bar out of prewrap before she tries it on the real uneven bars!

@coachp: we are in Iowa!

@dunno: What do you mean?
 
5 feet is not tall, at 12 years old 5 feet is the average height. How short are your kids that 5 feet would be considered tall?

I am 5 feet tall and have no issues with this.

It sounds like based on the current skill level that giants in 6 months is a realistic goal. If she is working towards it every lesson.
 
where's the plan? your post made my head dizzy. kinda like i'm given 10 round dowels and i'm being told that i must place them all in the square holes in the wall in a closet with the lights out in 60 seconds and if i don't i'm going to suffer immeasurable pain and suffering. yikes!
 
I do believe that this is possible, but it really depends on her. I don't want to hijack this form but I'm 5'7 and 14 years old. Could I possibly learn Giants one day?
 
Our entire L5 and L6 team are 5' or taller save 1 kid. They are all working giant prep (L5) and giants (L6). The HC had the girls do lots and lots of 3/4's after working baby giants and miss the hips.
Also, if she can cast HS to clear hip to handstand, that fulfills the L7 requirement, so that may be an option as well.
 
DD was in same situation exactly coming into L7 - except she was 10 and only 4'4"....I will say that now at age 12 and 4'8" she has "gotten" her giants a couple of times (as in good enough to move onto real bars and get around by herself for 2 off and on) but due to other things going on has then stopped doing them (competed L7 without giants and was on podium all meets, then after getting them to same point again contemplated quitting, took 2 months off and is only now working back to her previous level "almost 8" skills).

I don't know if she would have hit the same wall if properly trained in compulsories....she got her cast HS in only a few months. Huge free hips. And her old gym was happy to have her compete without the giants as she did so well - so she didn't work them more months on end. I think having her compete without them was absolutely the right decision - but not working them was not. However, giants weren't required for L7 at her gym, and they didn't do level 6. And the clear hip doesn't have to be to HS to fulfill L7, by the way...

In any case, all I would say as a mother who has watched this misery....teach them correctly - sounds like she has potential to be a good bar worker - don't let the giants become what defines her. Set the goal, and in my opinion, nothing wrong with a year of L6 if she can't get them - better than having her succeed at L7 but be unable to get "out of it"...and all the confidence issues that go with that.
 

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