Parents DD going crazy over new grips

[lilgymmie7]

Hello again. I was just wondering if anybody has any 'magic' words to say to a little one who is struggling with the getting used to new grips. DD just completed her level 5 season. She has never used grips before because her previous coach said her hands were too small. Her hands must have grown some because her new coach is requiring her to use them. DD however is having quite a difficult time with them. I really think it's more of a 'head' issue.
What gets me is that she is really making leaps and bounds on floor, beam, and vault, but to her those darn grips are a pain in the butt! What can I say to her that will help with her self-esteem? I don't want her to get down on herself. I'm just trying to be proactive. I already know that grips do take a lot of time to wear-in. Older DD went through the same thing, but she was a few years older. Little DD is seven. She is a hard worker by nature and is also the type of child that hears, "You, won't be able to do that!" When she does hear those words, she quickly works/fights to prove you wrong. Eventually this grip thing will fall in line, but for now I thought to ask for any "magical" words. Thanks a bunch!!

 

[mariposa]

I don't think there are any magic words to say to them except maybe that most kids probably struggled to get used to their grips, too. Most little gymmies are so excited to get their grips (and be like the big girls)...until they actually get them. LOL.

My own DD was put in grips last year around this time, used them up until January I think and then decided she didn't like them and that her bars looked and felt better without them, coach agreed and let her stop using them. She did her first first 2 level 5 meets with grips and the rest without them. LOL. What really made her dislike them was that she peeled off the high bar when she jumped to the high bar 2 times and then she really didn't like them anymore.

Going into summer training/fall season (she will be doing level 5 again), she still is not really wanting to use her grips. Coach isn't pushing them yet as far as I know. She said she used them yesterday because she had a fresh rip, but that she just really doesn't like how they feel.

In your DDs situation, if she "must" wear them per her coach, then she will just have to keep using them until she gets used to them and figures them out. I am sure she will, she is a tough little girl. Maybe point out all her favorite YouTube gymmies that use them and she can find inspiration from them?

 

[MaryA]

Kathy got her grips about this time last year too. They were Pixie Grips and pretty narrow... I think they may have been easier to get used to than some, but still definitely a learning curve. Didn't help that she was learning all of those big new level 5 skills (jump to high bar, kip, etc.) while trying to get used to having new things on your hands! She just got new ones that are a little wider and now she's getting blisters on her index fingers where they rub against the side of the grips. Coach says "You'll get a blister, it will pop, you'll get a callous, and you'll be fine." In other words, "Toughen up! You'll endure worse in gymnastics than a few blisters!" But I was happy to see that she didn't have to re-learn everything with the new grips. I had heard about the "breaking in period" but breaking in a new pair, even one that fits differently than the old pair, doesn't seem to be nearly as hard as getting used to the first pair. Tell her that the People of the Chalk Bucket all know that she'll get used to them soon and will do awesome!

 

[AlexsGymmyMom]

At first Alex used the palm guards and I think it made the transition to dowel grips much easier. Is it possible that she could do that for a while? Now Alex doesn't like doing bars without grips. Her hands hurt more without them. She will get used to them especially if they are the thicker leather ones....they take longer to break in.

 

[2gymmies]

My older dd just started with grips last August for Level 7 and it took her until November to "want" to use them. She has tiny hands and our gym prefers the girls use Reisport from the beginning, nothing narrow, so it really took some time to get used to. Now she can't imagine not using grips, but she still thinks it feels slippery sometimes. If I had to do over again, I would really down play the grips and not ask about them for the most part. I feel like I enabled her frustration by asking how the grips were going too often! Good luck to you both - it is just as hard for you to see her frustrated as it is for her to get used to the grips. She will be just fine!

Jules

 

[Bella's Mom]

Most little gymmies are so excited to get their grips (and be like the big girls)...until they actually get them. LOL.

This is SO true!!!! LOL My daughter begged and begged for grips. She's 6 and just moved up to L4. So I bought her a cheap pair of those beginner grips and at first she loved loved loved them. Couldn't do bars without them. Had to fiddle with the velcro and put her wristbands on over and over again.

Then the novelty worn off and they've been in her grip bag for months! LOL

When she does move on to "real" grips, I preduct she'll struggle too. She's funny about tactile things in general (e.g. only wears velvet leos) and I imagine having something on her palms and fingers is going to really bother her.

 

[lilgymmie7]

Thank you Mariposa! I know there isn't anything I can really say to her to 'make it all better'. She is a little toughie though. I have to try the Youtuber angle. She really watches a group of girls on there and says, "Man they're really great!" Your little DD is certainly one of them!!
Thank you Mary A! She also has the Pixie grips from 10.0. I think they are a triple 0 too. Her hands are really small. Her previous coach thought the grips were too big for her so really did not want her using them. I asked one of the HC via email if she could check that they fit right. If the problem is partly because of the fit, we could find better ones, hopefully.
Thanks AlexsGymmyMom! The Pixie grips she has now do have the dowel. That darn dowel is what she says bothers her the most. Or as she says it, "This tube thing!"
2gymmies- Thank you too! I don't know anything about grips as a whole. I don't know how wide or thin they are, but I have asked her coach to look at them.

I just don't want her to get discouraged. She is very young, and if I have to measure her emotional growth I usually do so against her siblings. This little kid is such a hard worker and is very determined. Sometimes in light of doing her best she does 'hold' some things in. The fact that she is telling me about her struggle with these grips lets me know that it is big. I don't want her to ever get the impression that I am not here to help her. Part of me thinks that her older sister may have learned to also 'hold' things in because I wasn't so readily able to help her with her individual struggles. I always told her that her coaches would help her. I would never coach my kids in anything, but I do plan on giving them some sense of direction and not just pass the buck.