Parents Not allowed to move to team...

[Jazzjerz]

I just discovered this site yesterday, so I hope I am posting in the correct place...My daughter turned 6 in June, and has been doing gymnastics at her gym since she was 4. She was in the Advanced Preschool class for a year, and then was moved to a Level 2 rec class when she turned 5. I didn't love the class for her - the girls were all 4 years older, the class was huge, and they were not very focused. After two weeks of that class, I asked about other options, and she did a trial for the "mini developmental" team and was moved there. This February, after 5 months in that class, she was moved to the most advanced developmental class / pre-team.

I have just found out that a group of girls in her class are moving to team this week, but she is staying behind. Her coach wants her to try out for team in January. The only reason I even have any pause about this, is because my daughter has all the skills these other girls have, and in come cases, more. She loves gymnastics, listens well in class, and works hard. I asked her coach what she needed to work on in order to be ready to try out for team, and she told me my daughter needed to be a better runner. She said she was very strong, but she didn't like to run, and that running was a very important part of gymnastics.

I know next to nothing about gymnastics, and so I am glad to have her tell me that. I just wish she had told me months ago, and more importantly, told my daughter, that running was more than just for warming up, but was important to her sport. I have always felt that she was biased against my daughter due to the fact that she is a bigger girl than some. She is very proportional and strong, but she is tall for her age. She alone runs this developmental program, and I have seen very little input from any other coaches. My concern comes in, because they are moving other girls in from the other developmental class, and they don't have the skills she has. I don't want her to spend the next 5 months going backwards. Is this a valid concern? Is running that important to gymnastics to keep her off the team?

 

[sglemon]

My first advice is not to compare your child to others. You will never be happy with anything she does. There are many different reasons why some girls get moved and others don't, a lot of times, it has nothing to do with skills.

What level does you gym start competing? If it is level 4, your is too young, because they need to be 7 yrs old. Level 3 and below can compete at 6.

Is running important, it is, but I can't imagine that is the reason they didn't move your dd up. It probably has more to do with listening to the coach. When they tell her to run and she doesn't, it show a lack of coach-ability. If she doesn't follow directions there, I am sure there are other places she isn't following directions, no matter how she looks from where you are watching. If she doesn't learn to run, how will she safely vault?

She is young and learning gymnastics is a marathon, not a sprint. This is a wonderful learning opportunity for your dd. Gymnastics requires hard work over years. It can take a long time learning big skills. There is no instant gratification. The sooner she learns this, the further she can go in this sport.

 

[Jazzjerz]

My first advice is not to compare your child to others. You will never be happy with anything she does. There are many different reasons why some girls get moved and others don't, a lot of times, it has nothing to do with skills.

What level does you gym start competing? If it is level 4, your is too young, because they need to be 7 yrs old. Level 3 and below can compete at 6.

Is running important, it is, but I can't imagine that is the reason they didn't move your dd up. It probably has more to do with listening to the coach. When they tell her to run and she doesn't, it show a lack of coach-ability. If she doesn't follow directions there, I am sure there are other places she isn't following directions, no matter how she looks from where you are watching. If she doesn't learn to run, how will she safely vault?

She is young and learning gymnastics is a marathon, not a sprint. This is a wonderful learning opportunity for your dd. Gymnastics requires hard work over years. It can take a long time learning big skills. There is no instant gratification. The sooner she learns this, the further she can go in this sport.

Thanks for your response! I generally try not to compare her with others, it is just that with knowing so little about gymnastics (coupled with the lack of communication from her coach), it is the only way I know to see how she is improving and doing.

Our gym begins "team" and competing at Level 4 (although from what I have gathered, that is now Level 3). Does that mean she is too young anyway?

I know that she does listen in class - that is one of the things the coach has complimented her on. She says she is smart, and listens and corrects what she is told. Believe me - if she had a problem with following directions, I would have been told. That is one thing that definitely gets communicated to the parents. Now at home sometimes, that is a different story

My daughter loves gym, and loves to practice until she gets something. She is definitely not looking for instant gratification. I just want to be sure she is getting a fair shot, and I don't love the coach anyway, so I could be reading into it all.

 

[vagymmomma]

Gymnastics is a long term process that will be filled with peaks and valleys, so don't worry too much about the timing. I think it's good that you had a conversation with the coaches and hopefully they gave you some specific areas for your daughter to work on -- goals of sort.

My DD had a similar experience when she was on pre-team (the old L2). After 4 months, all but two girls (including DD) were moved to L3. My daughter was very upset because she thought she was better than some of the other girls. I spoke with the coach and she told me that they debated whether DD was ready. They thought she was close and that she may be ready in a couple months if she had a few privates. True to their word, they moved her up after a couple months to old L3 (which was a competition level at that gym). Fast forward to today, DD is at least 2 levels ahead of every one of those girls who moved up "early". Many of those girls aren't even in the sport any more. That incident was a motivator in many ways and made DD want to work harder to prove them wrong.

Coaches are human and I understand why they made the decision they did way back then. Just make sure your daughter understands what she needs to do and tell her to take it as a goal to achieve rather than an obstacle to overcome. Oh, and running is pretty important -- especially for vault. They judge the run in new L3 and the power and timing are important for higher level vaults.

 

[GymBee97]

sglemon gave great advice!! Can't stress enough don't compare to what the others are or are not doing. Every child is different and will move up when their coach feels they are ready. What level are they moving up to? There are just so many reasons why a gymnast will or won't move up and your coaches really do want the best for the girls they coach. You said she just turned 6yo so the highest level team she could compete is Level 3. I know around where I live most gyms start their comp teams at Level 4 or 5. So she wouldn't be old enough until next year.

The best advice I could give is Breath In, Breath Out! It's just gymnastics and the most important thing - Is your DD having FUN!! In the end it doesn't matter the level, ribbons or trophies your DD gets but did she have fun doing it without the added pressure of mom and dad. Be her cheerleader and let the coaches determine what's best for her. If you don't like what the coaches are saying then look for a gym that is more in line with what you were expecting in a gym program for your DD.

So as a parent just enjoy the joy you see in your daughter and support her when she needs that extra hug.

 

[Jazzjerz]

Gymnastics is a long term process that will be filled with peaks and valleys, so don't worry too much about the timing. I think it's good that you had a conversation with the coaches and hopefully they gave you some specific areas for your daughter to work on -- goals of sort.

My DD had a similar experience when she was on pre-team (the old L2). After 4 months, all but two girls (including DD) were moved to L3. My daughter was very upset because she thought she was better than some of the other girls. I spoke with the coach and she told me that they debated whether DD was ready. They thought she was close and that she may be ready in a couple months if she had a few privates. True to their word, they moved her up after a couple months to old L3 (which was a competition level at that gym). Fast forward to today, DD is at least 2 levels ahead of every one of those girls who moved up "early". Many of those girls aren't even in the sport any more. That incident was a motivator in many ways and made DD want to work harder to prove them wrong.

Coaches are human and I understand why they made the decision they did way back then. Just make sure your daughter understands what she needs to do and tell her to take it as a goal to achieve rather than an obstacle to overcome. Oh, and running is pretty important -- especially for vault. They judge the run in new L3 and the power and timing are important for higher level vaults.

Thanks! When I asked her coach what she needed to work on, the only thing she told me was running. When I told daughter that coach had told me running was an important part of gymnastics, she told me she hadn't realized that either, but that she would start trying harder at it. She wants to go run with my husband, so that is great (since I know where she gets her lack of running skill from...me!)

 

[MeetDirector]

I am going to go out on a limb here and say that the running her coach was talking about is not distance running or road racing. While distance running and running on the roads can certainly help with stamina, endurance and overall fitness, the kind of running the coach was most likely referring to was the sprints that are required for vault and to a lesser amount on floor. The young ones need to learn early how to accelerate and run down the vault runway toward an unmoving object without fear and then to eventually convert all of that forward energy into energy off the spring board and onto the vault table. Wathc some elite or college vaulters to get an idea of the kind of running she is most likely talking about.

 

[Jazzjerz]

I am going to go out on a limb here and say that the running her coach was talking about is not distance running or road racing. While distance running and running on the roads can certainly help with stamina, endurance and overall fitness, the kind of running the coach was most likely referring to was the sprints that are required for vault and to a lesser amount on floor. The young ones need to learn early how to accelerate and run down the vault runway toward an unmoving object without fear and then to eventually convert all of that forward energy into energy off the spring board and onto the vault table. Wathc some elite or college vaulters to get an idea of the kind of running she is most likely talking about.

That is what I thought at first, but she actually mentioned the warm up running laps, which is where she definitely falls behind. She said the smaller girls can just keep running forever cause they are lighter, but the bigger girls have more stress on their heart and breathing, so it is harder for them to push and keep going (my daughter being a bigger one). She also said, "if they don't run they get plump and loose."

 

[mommyof1]

That is what I thought at first, but she actually mentioned the warm up running laps, which is where she definitely falls behind. She said the smaller girls can just keep running forever cause they are lighter, but the bigger girls have more stress on their heart and breathing, so it is harder for them to push and keep going (my daughter being a bigger one). She also said, "if they don't run they get plump and loose."

Not intending to start a discussion on a prohibited topic, but if I heard a coach talking this way about 6-year-olds, I would probably be looking for a new gym.

 

[emorymom]

That is what I thought at first, but she actually mentioned the warm up running laps, which is where she definitely falls behind. She said the smaller girls can just keep running forever cause they are lighter, but the bigger girls have more stress on their heart and breathing, so it is harder for them to push and keep going (my daughter being a bigger one). She also said, "if they don't run they get plump and loose."

Is there a head coach you can talk to about this?

If they are concerned about her fitness ... then a solution might be to move her up to more hours. Or, have her run with Dad. Or do CrossFit Kids. Or swim a couple of nights in a Y stroke clinic.

If she is discriminating against body type, and that's a gym wide issue, then you need to move to a gym that is more tolerant of various body types.

My daughter is 97th percentile for height and she has no trouble with racing up to 5K with no training besides her 1 mile jogs with her gym team and some shorter running at swim club. Some of that might be swimming, which develops exceptional lung capacity. But nobody has ever suggested she not run road races because she's tall.

 

[gymgal]

Exactly how much running are they doing? When dd was at that level, she would do running at the beginning of practice to get the heart pumping but we are talking about only a few laps around the floor, just a few minutes.

However, I have a Ds in swimming and they do a lot of running to build cardio/endurance. He hates it and lets his feelings be known. His coaches have mentioned several times that he won't move up the levels until he can tolerate the running because its important for his training. Now, I'm not sure if that translate well to gymnastics, especially at the age/level you are talking about but it may be the program the coaches run there - lots of cardio from the early levels.

 

[MaryA]

Yeah, the "plump and loose" thing rubs me the wrong way too... Look at the team. Are there different body types or is everybody teeny tiny? Unfortunately there are gyms who will select solely on which little girl fits their mold of what a gymnast should look like. If you start to feel like this is the issue, I'd look elsewhere.

 

[Jazzjerz]

This is part of why I'm conflicted. On the team, there are lots of different body types. I believe this particular coach is "prejudiced" against larger girls. She is small herself, and she is also from another country where the gymnasts are generally very tiny. This is one of the reasons I was hoping DD could move up sooner rather than later, as this coach only does the developmental program, and isn't involved once they move past that.

My daughter is 80th percentile for height, and 75th for weight, and is very healthy and strong. She is constantly active, and loves to work out with her dad. They only have to run 15-20 laps around the floor, and she does always go last and lags somewhat behind. However, when it comes to playing tag and jumping on trampolines and anything "fun" and active, her stamina and cardio are just fine. She just doesn't like to run, and it shows.

The coach has made various comments about her body type to me "she could never be a dancer as you have to be long and lean for that, and she is round body type, etc.". She has never said anything about that to my daughter, and she has no clue I am even conflicted about this at all. She generally loves her coach, although she has started to complain that "she is meaner to me than the other girls."

 

[GymnastMomX2]

Honestly I'd be looking for another gym, purely based on the comments that coach has made, not because she did or did not move up.

 

[txgymfan]

I would have a private conversation with the Head Coach and repeat the comments you told us. He/ She may not be aware of the bias of the one coach.

 

[Jazzjerz]

That is a good idea to talk to the head coach. Current coach is pretty autonomous with her developmental program, so that is likely that he has no clue.

I was already considering moving her to another area gym (due to current coach comments and other issues with her), but she would actually have to try out to get in there, and they won't have tryouts until December. I would hate to move gyms twice in such a short time, so that is why it would have been ideal if she could have moved up now.

 

[MaryA]

I would have a private conversation with the Head Coach and repeat the comments you told us. He/ She may not be aware of the bias of the one coach.

Yes, since this seems to be isolated to this one coach who your DD is unlikely to ever have again, I might have a conversation with the HC about what this coach had said.

 

[gymmomtotwo]

All it can take is one negative comment from this coach about her body, and your dd could develop serious issues. It could kill her confidence in gymnastics. It could damage her body image and lead to other problems. If she'll say it to you, she just might say it to dd. You can't risk it. My verdict is to find another gym if you make no progress with the head coach. Your healthy, happy, strong dd deserves better.

 

[gym monkeys mom]

I would give HC/Owner a chance to figure it out but chances are this coach has done this before and because she shows results in her coching of pre-teamers HC/Owner will unlikely do nothing.

I know this sounds jaded but chances are that you DD does not fit her criteria of a gymnast. I also think that chances are HC/Owner knows about it.

I suggest moving on before this club/coach does damage to your childs self image. there are many clubs out there and most do not mention a child's size or body type as a pre-requesite to team. gymnasts come in all shape and sizes these days!!

Hang in there

 

[emorymom]

I don't think your coach's perspective is reasonable.