Parents Brand New Gymnast! Advice please?

[MarinaAngel]

My daughter age 4 has just gone from the pre school class to her first proper gym session. She is at a well known club and has 1 lesson per week, 1 hour long.

From what im reading this isnt enough time if she eventually decides to take this seriously, and i wonder at what point is it the time to increase her lesson?

My other confusion is that i wondered whether she could start a saturday session at a different gym (the gym i attend has childrens lessons and one of the coaches told me to bring my daughter along). Is it Best to stick to one club?

In the meantime i am being aware of my own emotions and not pushing her. I dreamed of being a gymnast (but wasnt willing to put in the Hard work) and i am excited that my daughter loves it. But i am already feeling fear i may push her away from it if i keep mentioning it or suggesting we work out. How can i keep things cool but still keep her active and working towards gym?

Many thanks in advance for all help and replies!

 

[GymDadWA]

Let your club help guide her path, she is only 4 and has lots of time. 1 hour a week is fine to start, the coaches are always looking out for talented young girls and will be happy to invite her to do more if they see potential.

I wouldn't start training at a second club, but you might want to do other activities that can help gymnastics like Dance, Ice Skating, or Swimming, all those activities will help with balance, body awareness, and strength.

 

[MarinaAngel]

Let your club help guide her path, she is only 4 and has lots of time. 1 hour a week is fine to start, the coaches are always looking out for talented young girls and will be happy to invite her to do more if they see potential.

I wouldn't start training at a second club, but you might want to do other activities that can help gymnastics like Dance, Ice Skating, or Swimming, all those activities will help with balance, body awareness, and strength.

Brilliant Thank you. This is great advice. I had the instinct that her joining another club wouldnt be best. She also loves to dance so we Will look into that.

Also great to hear that one class a week is fine. Cost Wise, thats music to my ears

 

[MuggleMom]

Dont get dazzled by all the talk of high hours! The rec and preteam should be all about fun! 1-2 classes a week and 1-2 hours a class tops (in my opinion) When I read about 4-5 year olds doing multiple 4 hour classes a week it scares me. There is plenty of time for "high" hours later and the one thing I am learning right now is dont rush to get there! You dont get this time back and if they are they are all the time at a young age there is a higher risk she will outgrow gymnastics at a young age as well.

 

[3rd_time_around]

1 hour a week is normal and all she needs.

 

[MarinaAngel]

Great news Thank you so much!

 

[MarinaAngel]

Dont get dazzled by all the talk of high hours! The rec and preteam should be all about fun! 1-2 classes a week and 1-2 hours a class tops (in my opinion) When I read about 4-5 year olds doing multiple 4 hour classes a week it scares me. There is plenty of time for "high" hours later and the one thing I am learning right now is dont rush to get there! You dont get this time back and if they are they are all the time at a young age there is a higher risk she will outgrow gymnastics at a young age as well.

Very good point about going overkill and her having enough too soon.... Hadnt thought of it like that.

 

[Cmumgym]

Our preteam gymnasts are selected at age 5 from our recreational classes to then train 2 hours 2 days a week If she shows a lot of interest at 4 maybe when she is 5 try to put her into a recreational class 1 hour twice a week or 2 hours once a week. If at 5 to 6 years you haven’t received an invite or an assessment I would just send a email to the gym or let the coaches know that you are interested in her having an assessment. We have a lot of recreational gymnasts so sometimes coaches do overlook some children during the certain selection time or you might be away during that day etc. with Saturday training at 4 and just starting at a gym I would say is semi ok to be at another gym but by the time she is 5 if she would like to be in their preteam I wouldn’t be at another gym as certain techniques and ways of teaching coaches have can be different at other gyms which may lead to creating bad habits in skills that take ages to correct. I’ve always believed the best activities are gymnastics and music. If you can fit and afford more great but Gymnastics will end up increasing in hours if you go down this pathway so is best to expose little ones to other sports and activities while you can.