Parents Overshooting

[gymstaryaya]

My dd seems to overshoot on everything! She has amazing tumbling skills and beam skills, but her front tuck seems to propel her too far. On beam, her full turns get overshot, because she can't slow down. What the coaches started doing was giving her 1 1/2 turns to do on beam and she nailed them. They added the round off backhand spring to her front tuck, and she nailed it. Now, they want her to do this pre-season meet, to see if she can score out of level 7 and go straight to level 8. She has ,on or over, 50% of the level 8 skills and the next meet isn't until the end of November! My dilemma is, she's 8 yrs. old and to score out of level 7, they had to change her front tuck, to a dive forward roll, because of the problem with the front tuck. The coach assured me that they had the same scoring value, but I'm starting to wonder now, is she mentally ready for all of this. What are the score values for these two skills?

 

[gymgal]

it sounds like you have too different issues here - whether she is ready for L8 (mentally, given her age) and whether she can substitute one skill for the other

I don't know about the score values of the tuck and dive roll but I'm sure a coach will be around to help with that but it seems to me the better way to go would be to work on learning to control her power. dd has this problem with "too much power" as well. The coaches have told her that while it is a blessing for when she learns the higher skills that need more power, it's important to learn to control it for the current skills.

Do you have long term plans for her? What are the coaches thinking long term? Are you looking toward elite for her? If not, then I would be looking to slow down her training. She will top out at L10 in just a few years and then have to stay there several years. If elite is the plan, then it's not unusual to test out of L7 for L8.

 

[gymstaryaya]

They do plan on her being an elite gymnast. I think she will do great as an elite, but I'm just worried a little about her mentality.

 

[txgymfan]

Will she go more hours as an 8 than a 7? If she is not going more hours then I think she should compete where her skills put her. What does she think about competing 8? If she excited and doing things saftely and you trust the coaches then I would say, let her try.

Yes, she will top out at 10 (or elite or 10, try elite, 10) but she can always learn new skills and try new variations. There were clips of a gymnast doing quad turns on beam. If she is great a turns she can always try more ( and they are very safe!).

Also, if you have questions about having a young level 10, I suggest PMing Bookworm. Her dd did more than 4 years at level 10 and will compete at a D1 school on scholarship this year.

 

[gymstaryaya]

Yes, she will go more hours at level 8! She is very excited about level 8 and very proud of herself for being asked to try. Her coaches are great and truly believe she can do it! I trust their faith in her! Thank you for the information and I will check with PMing Bookworm.

 

[Natasha]

As far as scoring out, she only needs a 31 or 32, so she should be able to easily get that move up score regardless of the front pass values. If she can't easily score out, then she probably isn't really ready for L8.

 

[gymmomtoo]

Just looked it up and she only needs a 31.0 AA to move up--so I wouldn't think that is an issue. And like gymtigermom said, if she can't get that, she probably isn't ready to move up anyway. Good luck to her!

 

[shelovestoflip]

It sounds like the coaches have a plan and that you trust them. I would just like to give you my 2 cents as a teacher...food for thought as you know your child.

You don't mention how many hours/days but at level 8 I'm guessing likely 5 days close to 20 hours.

That is a lot of time for an 8 year old (I'm guessing 3rd grade?) I know there are many kids out there who do it, so please if you are a parent of one of those kids, know that I'm not judging you. Only you know if your child can manage it.

I have 3 girls in my class this year who are on a local gymnastics team (at a good gym....they don't train elite but have many Regional and National competitors). The one thing I have noticed is they are always tired (6 years old...going 3 nights a week) and even in the few short weeks since school has started, I've seen the 'spark' that was there at the beginning of the year go out. They're wiped out.

I just think you should think about how it will impact your daughter to be there so many hours, potentially with girls who are older than her (not sure, you didn't mention this) She will also have even less time to be with her peer group at school.

Just food for thought. Though it sounds like she is quite talented and clearly can handle the new skills.

Hope this helps.

 

[gymstaryaya]

At her gym, they want you to get at least a 35 all around before the advance you!

 

[gymstaryaya]

Thank you and I have thought about all of this. First, she does cyber school. That works for her because she can't stay still long enough in a classroom! She is currently required to attend 3 times a week for 3 hours each day at level7, if she moves to level 8, she would go an extra day. Her gym also adds the option of attending practice 7 days a week for level 7 and up, but that is too much for her. I know that 12 hours a week is okay for her, because too much practice is overkill, plus she picks up very easily, which is why they're grooming her. Thank you so much for the advice and she never seems to tire out....lol!

 

[gymgal]

At her gym, they want you to get at least a 35 all around before the advance you!

If she is doing fine in the other events, this score won't be a problem, even with miss steps on the front tuck. And since her coaches don't see her over rotation as a negative (better for L8) they are likely to overlook the lower floor score.

It's pretty amazing that they are training her for L7-8 at only 9-12hrs a week. Even most L5-6 go longer than that. She must catch on really fast. But honestly, I would be concerned about competing L8 with such little practice time. It's not just about the skill development but the conditioning and strength training too. Just thoughts for the future. I know you said she has the option of going more days. That may come faster than you anticipate.

 

[txgymfan]

Sounds like you are in a great situation with a good kid, coaches and school. Let us know how it goes. We'd love to see video but understand caution when putting up videos of kids on the internet.

 

[gymstaryaya]

I will defiantly let you guys know how it goes! Thanks for the support!

 

[gymstaryaya]

She really does catch on quickly, and if she does score out, the plan is to have her first level 8 meet after the Christmas, New Year holidays. That way she'll have more time to prepare. She already practices level 8 skills and lots of conditioning, so I think she'll be alright. Thank you!