Parents New to gymanstics and have some questions about talented and motivated 5 year old.

[Deleted member 14190]

My daughter is 5 and just started beginning gymnastics when she was four and a half. She has progressed amazingly fast and is extremely self motivated to practice constantly. For instance on Saturday she went to open gym for 3 hours and then came home and practiced at least another 3 hours. Again, all self motivated.

She has all level 3 skills except the front hip circle on bar and the back hand spring on floor, but cannot compete until next year (her birthday is in July). She wants to compete now, but we have no gyms that do level 2 competing in our area. I am afraid that by next year when she can finally compete level 3 she will be bored with those skills. She also has really good form.

On another note, the preteam programs here only work 1 maybe 2 days in the gym, but I am worried as she gets stronger that she will be wanting to work more and do more at home and injure herself. I am not trying to make her do anything, she wants to do more. Do you have suggestions?

Y9u are considering leaving your current gym so she can do level 2. ARE YA CRAZY, HAVE YOU EVER LISTENED TO THE LEVEL 2 FLOOR MUSIC? On a serious note, thousands of high level gymnasts around the country that never did L2, so.... She will survive and so will you.

 

[raenndrops]

It will work out. She won’t get bored. There are lots of skills to learn..My daughter was a level 2 at age five and then moved up to three. That was in 2012 when the levels changed. Then they made her repeat three again. And by 5 my daughter already had her back handspring, but they still made her repeat the level because when they changed they had to start doing the old level 4 skills. I was concerned about boredom also at that point but it all worked out she’s a 10 year old level 8 now.

Competing "new" 3 after "old" 3 was not repeating though... it WAS moving up.

 

[Peachy88]

And today she got her front handspring! Should I be concerned that our current gym only has level 3 and 4s for girls? It is a very loving environment that is in our backyard, so maybe really good for a 5/6 year old?

 

[duyetanh]

Y9u are considering leaving your current gym so she can do level 2. ARE YA CRAZY, HAVE YOU EVER LISTENED TO THE LEVEL 2 FLOOR MUSIC?

OMG, I just spit out my tea and snorted it up my nose simultaneously.....
LMAOLMAOLMAO

 

[ladybird]

And today she got her front handspring! Should I be concerned that our current gym only has level 3 and 4s for girls? It is a very loving environment that is in our backyard, so maybe really good for a 5/6 year old?

Yes, I would be concerned. You’ll be contemplating a gym switch in a year instead of now.

 

[mls529]

And today she got her front handspring! Should I be concerned that our current gym only has level 3 and 4s for girls? It is a very loving environment that is in our backyard, so maybe really good for a 5/6 year old?

Do you mean there is only level 3 and 4, nothing higher? If so, yes, you probably want to explore other options. If you mean that they don't start competing until level 3, that is normal. My daughter was at a local, loving gym until age 7, and then I realized that her gym really didn't have the training available for girls who wanted more of a fast track (they didn't compete JO). I wish I switched my daughter to the more competitive gym earlier, around age 5 or 6 instead of waiting. Of course, you never know what is going to come down the road (passionate 5 year olds could want to play soccer in 2 years instead), but I think it makes sense to check out other gyms now rather than later.

 

[Peachy88]

Do you mean there is only level 3 and 4, nothing higher? If so, yes, you probably want to explore other options. If you mean that they don't start competing until level 3, that is normal. My daughter was at a local, loving gym until age 7, and then I realized that her gym really didn't have the training available for girls who wanted more of a fast track (they didn't compete JO). I wish I switched my daughter to the more competitive gym earlier, around age 5 or 6 instead of waiting. Of course, you never know what is going to come down the road (passionate 5 year olds could want to play soccer in 2 years instead), but I think it makes sense to check out other gyms now rather than later.

Yes they only have 3s and 4s right now. They have had 6s and 7s in the past, but not right now. The boys team is quite good though because it is the only one in the area.

 

[duyetanh]

Yes they only have 3s and 4s right now. They have had 6s and 7s in the past, but not right now. The boys team is quite good though because it is the only one in the area.

That is a problem.

 

[Peachy88]

That is a problem.

Like move now at 5 or wait until the summer?

 

[mls529]

Like move now at 5 or wait until the summer?

In our area, girls are asked to be on team in April/May, and they start practicing with their team group in the summer. So, I personally wouldn't wait -- especially not until summer. You will want her new gym to work with her a bit before team evaluations in the spring (assuming your area has similar timing to us). I know it is hard to walk away from a supportive and loving gym, but it is good to get your daughter somewhere with a more complete team when she is young. Good luck!

 

[Peachy88]

So she is currently training at another gym that we are "testing" at the same time. They will start a group of preteamers in January and I have been told she would join this group when they begin. I am having a hard time with it though because I don't like the gym as much. The male head coach calls her "sweetheart" and underestimates her abilities which just confuses her. For instance, he wanted them to jump on the spring board and do a roll onto the vault mat which she did and then he told her to keep her arms straight. Why don't you just ask her to do a handstand which she can do. They also lower their beams for the class and she is constantly falling off. She hardly ever falls off the high beam because she is concentrating. There is one more gym that is kind of between the two in terms of higher level gymnasts that I want to check into. There really is not a highly competitive gym in our area so this may be a problem some day. An hour away is a VERY good gym, but boy that seems like way too much, even later down the road.

 

[2gymkids]

So she is currently training at another gym that we are "testing" at the same time. They will start a group of preteamers in January and I have been told she would join this group when they begin. I am having a hard time with it though because I don't like the gym as much. The male head coach calls her "sweetheart" and underestimates her abilities which just confuses her. For instance, he wanted them to jump on the spring board and do a roll onto the vault mat which she did and then he told her to keep her arms straight. Why don't you just ask her to do a handstand which she can do. They also lower their beams for the class and she is constantly falling off. She hardly ever falls off the high beam because she is concentrating. There is one more gym that is kind of between the two in terms of higher level gymnasts that I want to check into. There really is not a highly competitive gym in our area so this may be a problem some day. An hour away is a VERY good gym, but boy that seems like way too much, even later down the road.

I would just be careful of assuming you know the coach's intent. A lot of pre-team is perfecting very basic stuff- just because a kid *can* do something doesn't mean they will, for a long time. A lot of gymnastics is basic, boring drills and conditioning. That doesn't mean this gym is great- I can't say without seeing it, but there may be very good reasons for what they're asking her to do, and lowering the beams, etc. When my DD was on pre-team, her coach was a total perfectionist. They spent almost an entire year perfecting their round-off and rebound before ever thinking about introducing a back handspring....and when they did, it was very slowly. In the end, though, it paid off.

 

[amiandjim]

Agree with the above. My daughter is a level 3 and they still practice straight jumps off the springboard, plain old cartwheels, etc...of course they do higher skills but basics and form are very important for team gymnasts. Honestly, a lot of team training is boring!

 

[duyetanh]

Sorry...not to be snarky....but the one hour drive comment is very funny for many of us here who drive more than that one way 5 days a week......blah.

 

[Sk8ermaiden]

I would just be careful of assuming you know the coach's intent. A lot of pre-team is perfecting very basic stuff- just because a kid *can* do something doesn't mean they will, for a long time. A lot of gymnastics is basic, boring drills and conditioning. That doesn't mean this gym is great- I can't say without seeing it, but there may be very good reasons for what they're asking her to do, and lowering the beams, etc. When my DD was on pre-team, her coach was a total perfectionist. They spent almost an entire year perfecting their round-off and rebound before ever thinking about introducing a back handspring....and when they did, it was very slowly. In the end, though, it paid off.

I was going to say the same thing. *Usually*, IME, it is the better coaches that take longer to introduce the higher skills. Based on what I have seen at the high power gyms around here, they spend the pre team years on basics, basics, basics, and strength, only moving on when they are absolutely perfect. It is gyms that are not very competitive, or only have rec teams that will rush the little kids through skills.

DD was at what I believe is the second best gym in the entire large metro (we are in Texas - there are a lot of excellent gyms to choose from) and they spent 2.5 years on conditioning, shapes, cartwheels and how to run and backward rolls to push up, handstands on beam, pullovers, casts and back hip circles and wall bar, wall bar, rope, more wall bar and more rope. That is all. Round offs and back handsprings and back tucks on the trampoline were JUST being introduced at the end of the 3rd year of preteam (girls ~7 years old). We had a couple friends move from our gym to the best gym in the city, and they are moving even slower. This changes after a few years. The fantastic basics and incredible strength, means that once they are ready, the begin to acquire new skills at a pretty fast pace. Around level 4ish?

Also, I know this will probably not be well recieved, but EVERY parent I have heard say, "She has an X, why don't they let her do her X?" Has been missing the form errors of her daughter's X - which is typically the answer to the question. If her roll on the mat has bent arms, then in the eyes of the coach, she's not ready for the handstand yet. Or at least not to do it properly.

And I sympathize, I also have a DD who falls off the low beam but not the high beam. For the same reason she can land a beautiful handstand and cartwheel on high beam, but falls off on her lever. I call it the "I don't want to die" complex. She does harder skills better than easier skills, because she knows there is a higher likelihood of injury on the harder skills, so she better pay attention and be tight. But that is her own maturity issue. It is not her coaches job to let her chuck harder skills or do skills on the high beam, just because my DD isn't mature enough to focus when it's "easy." That's my DD's job to work on. I keep saying one day it will click!!

 

[duyetanh]

eta: nwih would I do that for compulsories though. Just my two cents;, fwiw

 

[amiandjim]

eta: nwih would I do that for compulsories though. Just my two cents;, fwiw

We do it for compulsories...bc I want to give her the chance to be a strong, competitive optional. Which means, you have to go to a gym with strong basics, right?

 

[Bug's mom]

Sorry...not to be snarky....but the one hour drive comment is very funny for many of us here who drive more than that one way 5 days a week......blah.

Agreed! 1.25 hours from school to practice, 1 hour home, 4 days a week, 49 weeks a year. And worth every second of the drive for the right gym.

 

[profmom]

I don't think I'd take on a huge driving commitment for a 5 year old L2-L3. There's plenty of time. Give her a chance to do gym for a while and see if she really likes it and enjoys competing. You'll hear this a lot, but it's a marathon, not a sprint, and you're best off keeping your powder dry for the big sacrifices of time, opportunity cost, and money that will come later on if she continues. Our gym is something of a cachement in the area -- we pick up girls from other gyms in late compulsories/early optionals who have outgrown their gyms. They generally have no trouble catching up on the form/shaping things they need to address.

 

[Mamabear123]

I totally get the anxious feeling about them moving her slow, but as others have said it's part of the process. My DD was doing big fun skills in advanced rec; when they moved her to level 3, I was so confused and felt like they were holding her back. Conditioning and repetition is what they need to build muscle memory.

I dont like that "sweetheart" thing, but that might be a tough hill to climb to get that to change.