Parents Bars just not happening for my pre team DD

[pullover]

I'd love some thoughts on this. My DD has been on pre team since March. Since moving to pre team she's made a lot of progress on floor, beam and vault. She has all of the skills on these 3 apparatuses to move up to team (x cel bronze) -and even to do it well. But her bars just aren't coming along at all. She moved into the group with no skills on bar -she was just barely able to occasionally kick her legs over the bar -but not consistently and nothing like a long hang pullover needed for comp. Fortunately the x cel program at our gym is very laid back and they are willing to move her up to team and spot her on bars -if that's what we want. I'm leaning towards another year of pre team until she has the skills to compete. Her coach sounds confident that if we do this route she can compete bronze next year with a higher group of skills. I am still concerned that she doesn't seem to make any progress on bars at all and maybe she's just never going to be able to get these bar skills? She definitely lacks upper body strength -will this come eventually? Anyone have a gymnast like this who took this long to get a darn pullover?

 

[profmom]

I wouldn't worry about this. Most gymnasts will have uneven progress across different events. From March to August is only a few steps in what may turn out to be a years-long marathon of a love affair with this sport. Upper body strength will come eventually, as will the pullover. And then it will be on to the next skill that will require time, effort, and determination to conquer!

 

[MILgymFAM]

It took my younger daughter almost two full years to get her pullover/ back hip circle/ shooting star. In that time she could do things on floor for the xcel bronze team, and on beam and vault for silver or gold. Our team didn't allow kids to join till they had all the skills set by the coach (not the actual xcel bronze minimums) and they could do a certain list of ten skills/conditioning things. It was an environment where dd would never have gotten to be on the team, and she actually left the sport- in tears and feeling defeated (at 10)- for T&T. I think it's great your gym is so laid back and welcoming. I personally would let dd compete if she wants to this year- to me that's the point of xcel.

 

[cbifoja]

It seems to usually be bars that slows girls down or holds them back. :-(

 

[Committed]

She has only been in gym for a year and a half and is 6yo, right? What are her current gym hours?
You had mentioned team would be 4hours a week, and that would mean more practice on bars.

Bars is a tough event. She will get it , eventually.

 

[pullover]

She has only been in gym for a year and a half and is 6yo, right? What are her current gym hours?
You had mentioned team would be 4hours a week, and that would mean more practice on bars.

Bars is a tough event. She will get it , eventually.

Thanks. Preteam is currently 1.5 hours 2x per week -so 3 total. I had hoped that going to 3 from 1 hour of rec would help her get the bar skills quickly but this doesn't seem to be the case. Bronze is 4 hours per week.

 

[Ex member]

Don't worry your dd is not alone, my 7 year old dd started going twice a week for 2 1/2 hours each time since April and she hasn't got her long hang pullover yet either as they don't work on the much, when they do pullovers all the other girls are tall enough to kick off from the floor and do a pullover, dd can do them when she can reach the bar with her feet on the floor but not from hanging, the coach said that dd's size might be an advantage to her as she is the only one who has to try and do it the proper way due to her size, she is close and can pull up and get her knees to the bar but cannot quite make it over, I don't think it is lack of strength as she can do pull-ups and leg lifts from hanging and can do a pull-up and hold her legs in a pike on rings (she did this for fun in a summer fun camp at gym last week).

Dd's coach has never said that dd is having problems on the bar and seems pleased with her work so I am not that worried and think she will get it in her own time.

I am curious about one thing, do you need a lot of upper body strength to do pullovers from a hang or is it more technique or a combination of both? When dd does it she can get her knees to the bar but then cannot keep her arms bent and will drop back down again. Dd seems better at holding reverse grip chin ups then the normal ones on her chin up bar.

 

[Sasha]

It sounds like she is young, yes? And 3 hours a week in pre-team is not always enough for girls to get the strength needed for bars very quickly. I know Xcel is different in different areas of the country, but around here, the biggest difference between girls in Xcel and JO is skills on bars. If it weren't for bars, many of them could 'cross over' pretty easily. And they are often behind on bars due primarily to strength, which comes from the extra hours of conditioning in JO.

Personally, I'd let her compete and have fun. To me, that's one of the best things about the purpose of Xcel - that a girl doesn't have to have strength in every area to compete and enjoy gains at her own pace.

My DD learned the pullover on a playground bar, honestly, while enrolled in rec. She just tried a million times while playing around. First the 'cheat' kicking over kind to get the basic hand shift to come up (requires less strength), then the proper pull-up-first kind after that. She already had decent upper body strength, though, so if your DD isn't as naturally strong, it will just take time to build that up a bit. It would be a shame to let that one thing hold her back from competing Bronze. She would not be the first girl (or the last!) to compete without it!

@Tiny Dancer - if your DD can do a pull up, but struggles to keep her arms in bent pull up position to continue the skill, it could be strength, or she could just be dropping down for some other reason. Does she throw her head back when she is upside down instead of keeping her chin more tucked? I've seen girls do that and drop down all the time. I'm not a coach - just watched some videos of common issues.

 

[jessmomto2]

The pullover is tough my dd just got it after their class spent a month really focusing on conditioning. It is not pretty right now either lol she gets stuck for a second sometimes while trying to get herself upright. She has been working on it for six months.

 

[htimcj]

The pullover took my DD awhile to get. We repeated L3 (old) just because she couldn't get that particular skill. She was 6 at the time as well.

 

[raenndrops]

I'd love some thoughts on this. My DD has been on pre team since March. Since moving to pre team she's made a lot of progress on floor, beam and vault. She has all of the skills on these 3 apparatuses to move up to team (x cel bronze) -and even to do it well. But her bars just aren't coming along at all. She moved into the group with no skills on bar -she was just barely able to occasionally kick her legs over the bar -but not consistently and nothing like a long hang pullover needed for comp. Fortunately the x cel program at our gym is very laid back and they are willing to move her up to team and spot her on bars -if that's what we want. I'm leaning towards another year of pre team until she has the skills to compete. Her coach sounds confident that if we do this route she can compete bronze next year with a higher group of skills. I am still concerned that she doesn't seem to make any progress on bars at all and maybe she's just never going to be able to get these bar skills? She definitely lacks upper body strength -will this come eventually? Anyone have a gymnast like this who took this long to get a darn pullover?

They don't need a long hang pullover in Bronze. If she has a back hip circle (sometimes that is easier for a girl than a pullover), she could jump to front support, back hip circle, cast back hip circle, cast push away.

She may get her pullover any day now. The girls younger stepsister took over a year to get hers, but all of a sudden, she has it. Good luck to your DD.

 

[Azgymmiemom]

It will happen. She's young. My dd had the worst time with that stupid middle circle. At the time, it seemed devastating. But now she's training level 9 skills and there are a whole new host of problems. It never ends. Welcome to gymnastics!!

 

[BlairBob]

More rope climbs with feet, pushups and leg lifts.

 

[Ariekannairb]

Err my DD is training level 4 and still has a sloppy pull over. It is getting there and I am thinking a lot of it is just laziness, but since her previous gym never taught her to do it right and then we changed gyms mid season so she couldn't compete, it has taken quite a while for her to get even close. She jumps into it instead of doing it from the hang. Drives me nuts because I know she could do it if she would just do it, but she hasn't seen the value in it since she has moved up.

 

[mommyof1]

I think it took my daughter 7 or 8 months on preteam training 3 hours a week before she could do a pullover. She had no choice but to learn it from a dead hang because she was so short that her feet didn't touch the floor when she was hanging from the low bar, and the coach never gave them a springboard or mat to stand on. Conditioning was the key. They did a lot of pull-ups, rope climbs, L-hangs, hanging with toes to the bar, leg lifts, and hanging upside down with the bar at the waist (candlestick hold?). Then once she had the strength, it took her a little while to figure out the mechanics of the last 1/4 of the rotation.

 

[Amusibus]

Definitely a strength issue. Upper body yes, but also hip flexors.

She WILL get it. Do not stress.

 

[gymdog]

A conditioning routine at home would help if she's only going 3 hours a week. It is all about conditioning. The main factor in doing it right is strength and not technique, there is not a lot to teach.

Can she do pull ups and leg lifts?

 

[curlymop]

@Tiny Dancer - if your DD can do a pull up, but struggles to keep her arms in bent pull up position to continue the skill, it could be strength, or she could just be dropping down for some other reason. Does she throw her head back when she is upside down instead of keeping her chin more tucked? I've seen girls do that and drop down all the time. I'm not a coach - just watched some videos of common issues.

This reminds me of a phrase someone on here has used before: "Knees to nose, round she goes." I can't remember who posted that, but I know I read it on CB.

If you think it's a strength issue, I'd see if she wanted to work on pull-ups and leg lifts at home.

 

[MAcastsalot]

I don't know if your dd would like this or not, but we have a doorway chin up bar for all of us and she uses it regularly. We put a mat underneath for safety. We never suggested to her that she use it, she just wants to. My DD has the opposite problem of yours, tons of strength but little flexibility!

 

[pullover]

I don't know if your dd would like this or not, but we have a doorway chin up bar for all of us and she uses it regularly. We put a mat underneath for safety. We never suggested to her that she use it, she just wants to. My DD has the opposite problem of yours, tons of strength but little flexibility!

My daughter has no interest in conditioning at home. Ironically when she was in rec she felt a lot of pressure to get a pullover b/c she needed it to move from level 1 to level 2. Then she switched to pre team and since then it seems to matter less -of course the type of pullover that they work on in pre team is different -in rec they just let them sort of kick over sloppily.

It's funny but the kids who are willing to condition at home tend to be the "naturally" strong ones. I'm guessing part of the reason they are strong is that they gravitate to activities that build muscles -even just climbing in the playground, etc. My not naturally strong daughter HATES conditioning.