Parents "ELITE TRACK"---IS THIS NORMAL?

[gopuckgo]

Missing the " r" in productive. I hate spell prediction! Sorry!

 

[cbifoja]

I am absolutely ENVIOUS of your schedule GoPuckGo!

 

[2G1B]

I am absolutely ENVIOUS of your schedule GoPuckGo!

I agree! I wish that my kids could manage to get school AND gym done all by 6:00!!! I'd totally go for that! (though I'd still want them to be able to do sleep overs. )

 

[JBS]

Is this normal for such a young girl, even if she is on an "elite track"?

No...it's not the norm.

 

[gymmom8772]

She is 9 and trains 48 hours a week? That is crazy! I didn't think even elite gymnasts train that much! It all seems way too extreme and especially for a kid that young and to keep her in the sport long term without risk of injury and burnout. She only has one childhood and is not a machine!

 

[CoachTodd]

My answer to the number of hours question is always the same. NCAA athletes aren't allowed to work more than 20hrs a week.

 

[shelovestoflip]

I'd be curious as to the 'success' of this gym.

Do they have many Level 10/Elite/Nat'l team/Tops team members?

Or do they just hope this will be the case with their rigidity?!

48 hours just gym can't be possible as stated in the original post.
8 hours 6 days a week only gymnastics?

No way possible unless they want to ruin a child's body and spirit.
Perhaps the 8 hours includes the schooling at the gym??

Are these parents doing this because the coach tells them to?

As in "you MUST homeschool your child, NO sleepovers/bday parties and you CAN'T schedule doctor's appts"

WHAT? Who is paying whom?!\

Crazy.

 

[gymdog]

Could she be doing 42 hours there total like 20 hours of school and then 22 hours of gym time? That might make more sense to me. I've never heard of a kid practicing a sport that many hours a day at that age.

Oh, that's a good point...hopefully this is true.

 

[MD/DDS]

she goes in mid to late morning and trains 3 hours takes a 1 1/2 hour lunch and school break, then goes back to gym for another 3 hours. She is done with gym and some school work by mid to late afternoon.

It is a common schedule for TOPS, HOPES and ELITES.
.

I think OP did clarify that homeschooling hours were included in that 8 hrs/day.
For the above poster, I guess maybe 6hrs/day for a 9yo may be commonplace for an elite track gymnast but that still seems excessive to me! Several posters are in favor of that schedule, so maybe our 20hrs at Level 8 is out of the norm. My DD isn't quite there yet but if the coach asked for our DD to workout those hours, we would leave.
Gymnastics is not a sport that you make a living out of.
My DH and I are both professionals and academics are a higher priority to us than sports . I just can't see the average parent educating their children on calculus, Latin, and Shakespeare through homeschooling, once their children are older. Most of the parents (not necessarily gym parents) can't spell well or speak/write English using correct grammar.

 

[gasrgoose]

I think OP did clarify that homeschooling hours were included in that 8 hrs/day.
For the above poster, I guess maybe 6hrs/day for a 9yo may be commonplace for an elite track gymnast but that still seems excessive to me! Several posters are in favor of that schedule, so maybe our 20hrs at Level 8 is out of the norm. My DD isn't quite there yet but if the coach asked for our DD to workout those hours, we would leave.
Gymnastics is not a sport that you make a living out of.
My DH and I are both professionals and academics are a higher priority to us than sports . I just can't see the average parent educating their children on calculus, Latin, and Shakespeare through homeschooling, once their children are older. Most of the parents (not necessarily gym parents) can't spell well or speak/write English using correct grammar.

That's a nice shot at homeschooling. If you get your head far enough out of your "professional" shell and take a look around you will find many of the brightest and most accomplished young students are home school children. Also some very high achieving athletes also happen to be very high achieving students. My daughter is in an elite program. She also is home schooled through a hybrid school program. She also is excelling in classes that are grades above her age level. And guess what she excels at EVERY thing she does. I have other children who are not home schooled and they are bright and successful in their own sports but they couldn't do what my gymnast does. She is just special when it comes to athletics and academics. She is focused and committed beyond her years.

You use the word "average". There is nothing average about a kid, their family or the coaches that are selected for the elite track.

Don't assume because it doesn't work for you or you are not able to make it work, that it can't work for others!

I'm now stepping off my soap box

 

[Deleted member D3987]

My DD used to do rec with a friend when they were young. Her friend progressed in gymnastics while my DD decided to pursue dance instead. Nonetheless, DD and friend went to school together until this year when friend was put on an "elite track" and was told she needed to homeschool instead. She is 9yo and has gone from Level 4 three yrs ago to either Level 8 or 9 this year. No doubt that friend has a lot of talent but her mother told me this weekend that her daughter couldn't come to my DD's sleepover this weekend because her coach stated earlier this month that the girls are not allowed to go to sleepovers, outside activities, doctor's appts; essentially no missing gym or anything that could interfere with their performance at practice for any reason whatsoever (not during competition season or even in the summer)! This seemed a little extreme to me for a 9yo. She is at the gym 8hrs/day six days a week. Is this normal for such a young girl, even if she is on an "elite track"? When my DS was in the 10/elite group, she would train 30-35 hrs/week.

are you sure your friend is not talking about prison?

and your darling son is a she?

 

[Faith]

Gymnastics is not a sport that you make a living out of.
My DH and I are both professionals and academics are a higher priority to us than sports .

This was my mums attitude as well. So I gave up elite track gymnastics aged 11- well I was going through the usual growth/plateau issues, and had a bully of a coach I hated, so I caved in to parental pressure. I've said before here I used to train with a 2x Olympian, who is now a successful teacher and public speaker- my mum calls her "that girl who used to skip school to train, she never did anything with her life".

I now have a phd in pharmacology and honestly I'd have earned more as an acrobat. I had a couple of jobs but I wasn't a good enough gymnast any more after 10 years out. I had two offers to work in Europe when I was 18, one of which my mum didn't even tell me about until a year later. I'd have loved, loved, loved to earn a living flipping about, I'd have learned new languages, instead I'm earning less than my dh, who didn't even graduate high school.

If my child wants to do elite, she only really has the next 10 years to do it in. She can go back to school at 20, or 25 and get her degree. That will wait, her body won't.

 

[Becauseisaid]

are you sure your friend is not talking about prison?

Wait. They offer gymnastics in prison? Think it's cheaper?

 

[AYC]

are you sure your friend is not talking about prison?

and your darling son is a she?

Sorry...meant to stand for sister

 

[GymBeeMom]

I think OP did clarify that homeschooling hours were included in that 8 hrs/day.
For the above poster, I guess maybe 6hrs/day for a 9yo may be commonplace for an elite track gymnast but that still seems excessive to me! Several posters are in favor of that schedule, so maybe our 20hrs at Level 8 is out of the norm. My DD isn't quite there yet but if the coach asked for our DD to workout those hours, we would leave.
Gymnastics is not a sport that you make a living out of.
My DH and I are both professionals and academics are a higher priority to us than sports . I just can't see the average parent educating their children on calculus, Latin, and Shakespeare through homeschooling, once their children are older. Most of the parents (not necessarily gym parents) can't spell well or speak/write English using correct grammar.

WOW. I guess your education has left you narrow-minded. To even say that you put a higher priority on education than on sports shows that you don't understand the homeschool mentality, particularly when it comes to elite athletes (THAT ARE WORKING FOR COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIPS). It may behoove you to research recent statistics on homeschool, college, and athletics. There are also many well-educated home schoolers who know how to get their HIGHLY ACADEMIC home schoolers the individualized help needed when they get to advanced material. I am so glad traditional education works for your family and that you would not allow your child to train beyond a level you are comfortable with. PLease allow others to make choices for their families with an open mind.
Sincerely,
The Surgeon and the College Professor, with one home schooler and one public schooler.

 

[Amusibus]

ok homeschool folks... MDDDS I think was trying to say that the odds of getting a job related to gymnastics are far lower than the odds of getting a job in MOST other fields, including various academic fields especially when pooled together. ie, percent chance of employment related to gymnastics versus percent chance of job in all other fields put together (child has ability to choose area based upon interests/abilities that emerge with the mature mind of a young adult vs. choice made in childhood with child's maturity level).
I am not trying to make a judgement. I have no problems whatsoever with homeschooling or with elite children. Just trying to say odds are better in most other fields career-wise.

 

[Seeker]

I respectfully disagree. My DD is able to do far more advanced work as a homeschool student than she was at either public or private school (we tried both). It is naive to think that I teach her every subject...I don't. She has amazing teachers for specialized and/or advanced subjects and I teach her the other subjects with the help of a textbook and curriculum guide....we don't "wing-it".

She is gifted and was still bored out of her mind in the advanced learners program at the school she was attending, so we made a change. There are some very rigorous and respected virtual options for MS and HS that she will eventually enroll in so that there are no issues with college admittance and so she can be pushed and challenged by REAL teachers. The fact that a more flexible schedule has a positive affect on her gymnastics is a bonus....one that we are very grateful for, but it was not the original driver.

 

[Amusibus]

I never said you did it all. I never said homeschooling was inferior in any way. I never said they are getting a bad education or a bad shot at a job afterwards. I said the chance of getting a job related to gymnastics was lower than that for other fields. There was a comment above somewhere about gymnastics doesn't lead to a career - I guess I assumed that meant a job in gymnastics. that is what I meant, not that you are giving them a bad education or anything. I get that there is a lot of bias and oppression about homeschooling - believe me, I belong to a LOT of categories that people have negative views on myself, so I do understand where you're coming from.

 

[Seeker]

My comment wasn't directed at you...I didn't quote anyone in particular. It was just general disagreement with the sentiment across several posts that homeschool was somehow inferior and was a road to nowhere. I don't think my DD will want a job in gymnastics in the future...she may, but my guess at this point would be no. Gymnastics and/or training schedule really didn't have anything to do with our decision. I know for some, it may (and that's okay). I was just saying that for us, gymnastics didn't have anything to do with our choice to homeschool nor does that choice offer her anything "less" in terms of the quality of her education.

 

[GymBeeMom]

I guess I got the vibe that MDDDS was saying as a "professional" she was putting academics before sports. I felt she was isinuating some negative ideas regarding the motives and ability of success through alternative education. Perhaps I mis-interpreted the intention of the post.