They're all leaving...

[tumblerK]

I things were going to change at my gym while I was away at college, but I still don't like it. I've been gone for about 6 months and been back to visit a couple of times, but since I've left 3 girls have decided they wanted to be more serious about gymnastics and move to a more competitive gym, and two have quit.

My team has always been small, ~15 girls when I left, so it's quite a blow to the team. One girl is in 8th grade and quit because of she's in cross country skiing, training for horse shows, and is going to run a half marathon this summer, and I haven't talked to the other one who quit. There was a third one that has been having a lot of trouble with a brain block on her RO BHS BT for well over a year now who has been talking about quitting for a while and was saying that she was only going to the end of the school year but then she had an amazing meet with a 34.9 AA (with doing a RO BHS standing back tuck) and is now saying she's excited for level 7 next year...

I donno. I don't like it. I feel like if I when I'm there I keep practice up beat, light, and fun while working hard and now the ones who are going through some tough spots with some skills have caught the quitting bug and it's rather contagious. I wish I could just freeze everything while I'm gone and comeback to find things just the way I left them. It's not like going back to my gym if none of my friends are there

 

[coachmolly]

I know the feeling. Change is always so hard. I left gymnastics as a competitor my sophomore year of high school so watched my teammates slowly disappear from my life even before the jump to college. Now I go to school 2,000 miles from home and only make it back a few times a year. It seems like every time something has changed, someone has moved on, and nothing is just the way it was when I left the last time. It's always hard to see how much everything has changed without you around.
Even f they leave the gym, they will still be around and you can keep in touch. And you'll still have your former coaches to come back to. As new girls move onto the team you can form relationships with them during the times you are at home and perhaps even have an influence on their lives and be familiar with a few more faces when you come home.
Best wishes with everything, it's hard, but life does have a way of going on.

 

[cher062]

I things were going to change at my gym while I was away at college, but I still don't like it. I've been gone for about 6 months and been back to visit a couple of times, but since I've left 3 girls have decided they wanted to be more serious about gymnastics and move to a more competitive gym, and two have quit.

My team has always been small, ~15 girls when I left, so it's quite a blow to the team. One girl is in 8th grade and quit because of she's in cross country skiing, training for horse shows, and is going to run a half marathon this summer, and I haven't talked to the other one who quit. There was a third one that has been having a lot of trouble with a brain block on her RO BHS BT for well over a year now who has been talking about quitting for a while and was saying that she was only going to the end of the school year but then she had an amazing meet with a 34.9 AA (with doing a RO BHS standing back tuck) and is now saying she's excited for level 7 next year...

I donno. I don't like it. I feel like if I when I'm there I keep practice up beat, light, and fun while working hard and now the ones who are going through some tough spots with some skills have caught the quitting bug and it's rather contagious. I wish I could just freeze everything while I'm gone and comeback to find things just the way I left them. It's not like going back to my gym if none of my friends are there

For the age range you are talking about it is very common from what I have seen for girls to get new interests and want to try something else. They also tend not to have the same drive to get skills that some of the younger kids have. Usually a good parent behind a gymnast to get them over this phase helps alot. It's hard to stay motivated when you get stuck on a move but it can be done with alot of positive reinforcement and encouragement.

My own kids hit this phase a little while back and I told them they made a commitment to a team and had to at least finish out the season before they could quit. When the season was over and I asked them if they wanted to quit they didn't even know what I was talking about and no quiting happened.

 

[ZJsMom]

I donno. I don't like it. I feel like if I when I'm there I keep practice up beat, light, and fun while working hard and now the ones who are going through some tough spots with some skills have caught the quitting bug and it's rather contagious. I wish I could just freeze everything while I'm gone and comeback to find things just the way I left them. It's not like going back to my gym if none of my friends are there

You can't stop people from quitting, but this did make me think. You're probably a role model for these younger girls. Maybe you could be available to them to talk even while you're away at college. Sometimes having a sympathetic ear and someone to give a pep talk is all people need when they're going through a rough spot. Make sure you give them your phone and email and encourage them to check in.

 

[tumblerK]

I would like to think of myself as a role model to the littleuns, and other comments from their parents makes me think so too. I happen to remember one of my friends telling me that her mom said I was a "smart cookie" after we had a conversation about where I was attending college and some scholarships I had gotten. I have given a bunch of them my email and my cell phone number and once in a while they'll text me. I hope it helps them!