WAG Advice for an older gymnast

[LivGym23]

Unfortunately if the gym culture/philosophy is not open to older gymnasts, there isn’t a lot she can do, and I am sorry that is the situation you are in. If she really truly wants to compete and moving to a gym with an Xcel program is an option then that would be the best bet (although I realize not necessarily the most practical). Good luck!

Thank you!

 

[John]

I am in york County. I think too far to make suggestions.

 

[LivGym23]

I am in york County. I think too far to make suggestions.

Thank you anyways!!

 

[John]

Would you consider a Usaigc gym?

 

[LivGym23]

Would you consider a Usaigc gym?

Of course! I am willing to do anything to compete!

 

[kayjaybe]

I sent you a PM

 

[backflipruby]

I don't think age should really matter in gymnastics. If they want to do it; what's stopping them?
I just competed against a 40 year old doing level 8 and she won floor. She was truly inspirational.

 

[LivGym23]

I don't think age should really matter in gymnastics. If they want to do it; what's stopping them?
I just competed against a 40 year old doing level 8 and she won floor. She was truly inspirational.

Thank you!

 

[Aussie_coach]

Of course you can do gymnastics at any age, but for the gyms with age limits on their team entry (mine included) it is not nessesarily because they don't want to "waste" their coaching on those with less of a chance at a future.

In almost anything a person does there is a sensitive period, it is a time when you are best able to learn those skills the fastest. Everything you learn such as learning a second language, learning to read, learning flexibility, various sports, all have a sensitive period. In WAG this is prior to puberty. Any of these skills can be learned outside of the sensitive period but it is generally (each gymnast is unique) harder.

For us the reason is safety. When kids start to go through puberty they are at a point where they are far more vulnerable to injury. Bones and muscles grow at different rates, and you have these kids who just never had an injury before sometimes go through chronic issues. But the way a lot of gyms time it, kids start to really increase the intensity of their training, training hours and the difficulty of their skills, right about the same time those kids are due to hit puberty. We time the point we accepy kids into team so that the inesity lifts before puberty. When kids start to go through puberty, the same training hours can be maintained.

Puberty brings with it other issues as well. For some kids, a major change to body proportions and distributions, this can lead to a big drop in strength to body weight ratio. Thinking also changes around puberty. Prior to those time kids think in very concrete terms, where as though now they are developing the ability to think in the abstract and consider many things going wrong and fear can start to set in. Focus also changes with many new pressures added to their lives puberty, hormones, a lot more homework and expectations at school, more social pressures. When they are younger and they come to training, they are there in the moment and the focus is on training. As they get older it's harder to shut the other pressures of life out of their mind.

Energy levels can also drop. The little ones may just run from station to station and have seemingly endless energy. But a body going through major growth spurts and puberty can be a lot more sluggish. We have found that if you can get kids to a certain level prior to these changes, they are less likely to lose those skills they have gained and are able to continue to propel their progress forward despite these changes. If they don't hit that level (it is a skill level rather than an actual level), then you often face skill loss.