Search results

DON'T LURK... Join The Discussion!

Members see FEWER ads

  1. M

    Parents Making a financial decision about whether to continue

    Here is an explanation of the four tiers of extracurriculars. https://blog.collegevine.com/breaking-down-the-4-tiers-of-extracurricular-activities Many of the schools my daughter is looking at have said they want to see at least a Tier 2 activity. Making a varsity sports team is Tier 4. My...
  2. M

    Parents Making a financial decision about whether to continue

    I was the one who mentioned colleges' view of extracurriculars. I don't think it's quitting an activity that's the problem; it's that there won't be enough time to get to a high level in the new activity. My daughter gave up gymnastics at the beginning of her sophomore year and picked up one new...
  3. M

    Parents Making a financial decision about whether to continue

    Another thing to consider is that colleges say they are looking for a high level of dedication to an extracurricular activity. DP gymnastics certainly demonstrates that, especially if she is doing well at the state level, qualifying to regionals, etc. My daughter switched activities halfway...
  4. M

    Parents Making a financial decision about whether to continue

    My daughter retired at L6 and much less than $600/month in tuition, but everything we were spending on gymnastics is now going to her new pursuits. I don't think it's realistic to assume that you will save much by forcing her to retire, unless you are going to disallow all other activities that...
  5. M

    Parents Gym & Video Question

    I agree with this. But I will also say that to me, lots of parent-coach interaction or "feedback" is a red flag. The least toxic, most positive coaches my daughter had were the ones who never talked to the parents except to communicate logistics. The most toxic were the ones who were constantly...
  6. M

    Parents Grips

    Is she taping her hands or is she making "tape grips"? The latter can really help with ripping. She could also ask her coach whether palm guards are permitted--they are leather, like grips, but without the dowel.
  7. M

    WAG Xcel Friday morning sessions

    Yep, when they started recruiting my kid for preteam at age 4 no one mentioned the morning practices or Friday meets. They only mentioned morning practices when they handed out contracts for L3, when we were already in deep. But also, why can't gym owners have afternoon practices in the summer...
  8. M

    WAG Xcel Friday morning sessions

    This is yet another example of the market power the sport has over customers (parents). I think it's ridiculous that parents are expected to be able to pay the costs of their children's participation while also getting their kids to practice in the middle of the workday all summer and in the...
  9. M

    Parents Higest Xcel level an average/neighborhood girl can achieve

    I wouldn't assume that an inability to kick over is necessarily caused by a lack of back or shoulder flexibility. It could just be a lack of understanding of the physics of the skill. This is particularly common in rec classes where the coaches don't explain anything. I still vividly recall the...
  10. M

    Parents Higest Xcel level an average/neighborhood girl can achieve

    My kid would never be considered "athletic" compared with our neighborhood kids. The only natural talent she had for gymnastics might have been a feel for timing on bars. What she did have was determination and coachability. She successfully competed L5 and was getting ready to compete L6 when...
  11. M

    Parents Gymnast sibling jealousy

    Younger siblings have such an advantage. Often the parent will enroll the younger sibling in the older child's activities at an earlier age because they are familiar with the activity or it's convenient. Only the older child has to fight the battle to get pulled out of rec onto the team track...
  12. M

    Parents New gym mom

    I would be concerned about putting her in a class with older kids. If it's mostly 5-year-olds, are they working on bridges and other skills that are not safe for a 3-year-old?
  13. M

    Parents Understanding the decision criteria for movement between JO and Xcel programs

    It is really very gym-dependent. My daughter was at one gym where JO kids were constantly threatened that they'd be sent to Xcel if they didn't score high enough or perform certain skills consistently. Towards the end of her time there we found out that the gym's primary goal was placing well at...
  14. M

    Parents Dropping out of Pre-Team?

    If the sport is a huge drain on your time and resources now, it will only get worse as she moves up the levels. If she is still crying during practice it makes zero sense for the rest of the family to make those sacrifices. I'd pull her from gymnastics and have her try another sport. I would not...
  15. M

    Parents New Feature: Test It Out For Us!

    I did not like having to enter my e-mail address to view the results. If the Chalkbucket hadn't already had my e-mail address on file, I would have abandoned the quiz instead of entering it.
  16. M

    WAG Creating a Level 10+ Focused Team Program (Finances / Coaching / Athlete Selection / Facility / Etc)

    As the parent of a gymnast who invested a lot of years in not making it very far, I wonder whether the type of instruction provided at the compulsory levels has an impact on a gym's ability to produce Level 10s. I have seen gyms spend a lot of time in the lower levels polishing routines, make...
  17. M

    Off Topic Track & Field Forum? (Or Other Sports)

    I was thinking of this as an alternative to the level forums for parents of retired gymmies, not an alternative to your public track forum, which is a great idea.
  18. M

    Off Topic Track & Field Forum? (Or Other Sports)

    Could this be established as a private forum here? Parents of retired gymnasts?
  19. M

    Parents L10 gymnast (The Reality Of College Gymnastics)

    My point is that in other sports there are many more college team spots for those kids. And I don’t know anyone whose kids invest as much time in other sports as gymnasts do.
  20. M

    Parents L10 gymnast (The Reality Of College Gymnastics)

    I just cannot think of any other sport where kids who have trained 20+ hours a week since elementary school have such low odds of being able to compete in college. I have known D3 and even D1 athletes in other sports for whom the sport had always been just a recreational pursuit. Yet making a D3...

New Posts

Back