Parents preteam level 3 or compete level 3?

[balancing act]

Hi
My 6.5 yr old daughter has two options with gymnastics right now. I would really appreciate some feedback.

One gym would have her at level 3 (learning level 4 routine) preteam. Gym seems a little more serious, but she liked it. It is a pretty new gym/new group of girls for her. 6-7 hrs a wk.

Another gym has a level 3 group that competes.
She knows about 1/2 the girls at her level. 4-5 hrs a week.

Cost is the same, pretty much. Coaching seems pretty even. Gym are very comparable program-wise.

She likes the idea of being with more friends and learning a routine. Is there a downside to letting her compete level 3?

Thank you for your advice!

 

[gymgal]

cost would be one downside - you will need a competition leo and pay for the meet fees. Hopefully not much in the way of travel costs at that level but I know some parents talk here that their L3's travel.

I don't know - I think at this level it is more beneficial to focus on the skills and not worry about the routines. Learning and perfecting routines take a lot of time away from training - time better spent on the actual skills IMO. And the routines for L3 are extremely basic and boring.

I would also think about the repetition factor of compulsories for the families - Sitting through several meets each season listening/watching the same routines can get really boring. You will be doing this for L4-6 already. Why "torture" your family for an additional year? OK, sort of kidding there....

 

[Faith]

What gymgal said.

Plus, you know your daughter. What do you and she want out of gymnastics. Is it only ever going to be fun, or do you think you may want to keep the door open for higher levels.

What does each gym offer beyond level 3? Do they have optional/elite girls? I know she's young but if you think about that now it may save a gym change in a few years. What is going to keep her motivated and interested- training and gaining skills, or the excitement of competition and shiny leotards?

 

[gymboymom]

Ds learned L4 routines in pretream last year and is competing this year as a L4, I think it is going to work out much better than if he competed last year as a 3 (not an option for boys though). I agree with looking beyond the L3 choice. You say they are very comparable program wise. So I would also look at where dd would be happiest. I think the downside or advantage of competing L3 depends a lot on your child's personality as well.

 

[gym law mom]

I agree with gymgal. L3 is really a rec level and if she competes you will need to buy the leo/warmups etc plus do some meets. I would rather see the timne put in working on the basics and learning skills for L4.

 

[MaryA]

My daughter competed level 3 and loved it. She still seems very relaxed in competitions and it seems to me that competing so young may have helped develop that, but who is to say for sure? I'm sure a lot of it just has to do with her laid-back personality. That said, she repeated level 3 and now is a level 6 so this is our 5TH YEAR IN COMPULSARY GYMNASTICS and, while she still loves it, I AM SICK TO DEATH OF SITTING THROUGH COMPULSARY COMPETITIONS!!!!

However, given that switching gyms in the future can be really hard, I would say take the "competing level 3" element out of the equation. Spend some time in both gyms, talk to the parents, watch the coaches interact with the kids at all levels. Read all the stuff both gyms give you. Learn about their policies for missing practices and booster club participation and fundraising. Read their mission statement. I think the importance of whether or not your daughter competes level 3 is minimal over the long haul. Being in the gym that you feel is the best fit for your daughter and your family is what's most important.

 

[mayestra12]

Yes, agreed. Go with the gym that makes you happy regardless if they complete L3 or not. My dd competes L3 and loves it. She's the kid who loves competition and I feel she is getting a lot out of the experience even if the routines are boring. She hoping to move up to L4 next year and continue to progress in the sport. We switched from a gym that does not compete until L5 last December but not for that reason.

 

[balancing act]

Interesting point that switching gyms might be hard in the future. I have been happy with her coaching so far, but if having an established program through elites with TOPS, etc is a factor, then it wouldn't be either of the gyms we are considering. It would be a more expensive gym 30 mins away, which I saw as an option to look at in a year or two, if she still loves it and is progressing ok.
I am curious how many families made that switch to the more prominent gym vs how many started with that type of gym. A topic for another thread.

I am huge sports fan (basketball, baseball, football, Olympics) but based on the posts around here it sounds like watching compulsories will test my love of sports.

 

[GymGirl's Mom]

My DD competed L3

My DD competed L3 last year- this year her gym has decided not to compete the girls at L3 and just use it as pre-team. I am sad about it. DD had so much fun, it was very low key, a great experience, good team building, the skill build easily to L4 and well she just plain had a good time.

DD was very ready for L4, she is now on track to compete L5 and is uptraining now- she has her L4 stuff down, and is just working on perfecting routines and uptraining skills. DD is on track to compete L5 next year. I think her readiness is due in part to the experience of competing and learning and perfecting routines and skills to the point of "competition readiness".

Only you can decide what gym to send her to. DD's gym is competitive and has a large optional team and has many successful Level 10s every year. Is her gym the most competitive gym in the area with elites and many girls on an elite path- no- there is another gym with that honor. But DDs gym is large, and successful, has great coaches, and runs a strong program. I guess it depends on what you are looking for for her. There are literally 20+ gyms within a 30 minute drive from us. All different kinds- ones that focus only on TOPS and elites, ones that focus primarily on compulsaries and Prep-op, ones that are small and are trying to build a team, ones that are large and are successful in Levels 4-10. We chose the best gym for DD. Where do you think your DD fits in the best?

 

[MaryA]

There are literally 20+ gyms within a 30 minute drive from us. All different kinds- ones that focus only on TOPS and elites, ones that focus primarily on compulsaries and Prep-op, ones that are small and are trying to build a team, ones that are large and are successful in Levels 4-10. We chose the best gym for DD. Where do you think your DD fits in the best?

Wow. Not to hijack, but I simply cannot imagine having 20 gyms within a 30 minute drive. It boggles my mind! How would you ever choose? Is there a lot of gym-hopping? It seems like, with so many other options, there'd be a lot of "grass is always greener" going on.

 

[Geoffrey Taucer]

I think in most cases it's better from a developmental perspective to not bother with competition at that low a level. Honestly, I'm not even a fan of competition at level 4; I would consider level 5 or even 6 to be the ideal point to start competition if the only influencing factor was long-term technical development.

That said, long-term technical development is rarely the only influencing factor, and if she'll have more fun (and therefor likely work harder) competing lower-level routines than simply training skills, there may be benefit to that.

*Shrug* it really depends on the kid. From a coaching perspective, however, I don't like level 3 competition.

 

[GymGirl's Mom]

Mary A- yes there are a lot and there is some gym hopping- every year we lose some gymnasts to other gyms and gain some gymnasts. DD's gym is pretty established and has a lot of gymnasts at all levels so it doesn't really impact her gym too much- in fact DD's gym usually gains more gymnasts than they lose to other programs. The smaller, developing programs are the ones that end up losing many upper level girls-- I can only imagine it would be hard to be the only L8, 9, 10 at your gym. Many girls move to bigger gyms at the optional levels b/c they are looking for teammates, looking for coaches who have a track record of coaching at that level, looking for more equipment/better facility, or are looking to compete in college-- or any combination of the those reasons.