Anyone have experience with...
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Anyone have experience with...
| Fri, 08-03-2007 - 2:06pm |
competitive gymnastics? When I went to "demo day" at Megan's gymnastics camp the head coach pulled me aside and invited her to be on the "pre-team". She's 7. It was totally unexpected! She LOVES gymnastics and does more cartwheels than walking I think. Is there anything I should know when considering going down this road? There would be travel involved later on. I'll deal with that when the time comes.
Just looking for advice from those who've BTDT...
Thanks!

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On the Raising a Girl board there are a couple of Mom's with kids in competitive and I think the Surviving Middle School as well. All I know is at the higher levels it is VERY intense, 3-4 hours of practice per day, gym and coaching fees are very expensive, lots of travel, injuries galore and depending on the coach, lots of tears. Some kids thrive in that and others hate it. But the only way to really know is to try it. I would want to know exactly what kind of committment they need from you. For some clubs it is mandatory for parents to be involved in extensive fundraising for others its optional. How much practice time would she have to put in? How much will this cost you? Even the fancy uniforms can be very expensive for competition. I don't want to scare you off but it CAN get quite involved. I'd say check the Middle school board and ask there if she doesn't answer you here.
http://messageboards.ivillage.com/iv-pssurvmiddle
My almost 11 year old DD just retired from competitive gymnastics. She loved it for the longest time and was really happy. All of a sudden, this summer she decided that she didn't want to compete anymore. It was taking all of her extra time away from friends, she hurt all the time, she didn't have time to pursue other interests, ect...honestly, I think the tricks got too scary for her comfort zone (along with all the other things mentioned).
If it is what she wants, then hold on for the ride! It is a wild one! I have to say though, if and when she ever decides to end, it will be harder on you than her.
Be prepared to sacrifice...time and money especially. My DD's gym was 45 minutes away (when the commute wasn't bad. Even worse when it was..which was usually). Because of gas prices, I would sit there for her whole 3 hour practices several times a week. My youngest DD would often have to come with me. On a positive note, she did know all the girls on DD's team AND could perform most of the dance elements of the floor routine..LOL
I easily spent several thousand a year in tuition, leos, private practices, gas money, meet fees to enter meets and again admittance to the meets. We also would frequently eat out a lot more because of the times practices were scheduled. We only traveled in state for meets. Usually no more than a couple of hours away. One meet her first season was 4 hours and that was the furthest we ever went. Serious travel doesn't usually happen until the optional levels (7,8,9,10 and Elite)
I had an awesome time with DD in gymn! I am sad that she decided it isn't for her anymore. It becomes almost like an addiction...
Good luck to you and your's! May all the 10.0's come her way!!
Renee'
Renee'
Mom to Kayti and Keeli and furbabies Meggie, Lucie and Pixie
I too have an 11 yo dd who just "retired" from gymnastics.
Thanks... I'm still trying to figure out how I feel about the idea. I just think about injuries, hours in the gym instead of outside, and body image issues down the road. This is the second summer she's been to gymnastics camp and both years she's done nothing but cartwheels, roundoffs, and now walkovers when she's not in the gym. When she stayed at my parents house after camp last year my father stopped counting after her 200th cartwheel in one day. She LOVES it and I have a hard time denying her her passion.
I'll check out the other boards you mentioned too. Thanks again!!!
Losing the fire in the belly is the perfect way to describe it! It just didn't seem to thrill her as much as it did when she was younger and lived to compete.
No, we don't pinch pennies here either, but because we didn't have a booster club or anything, those pennies did add up.
DD has decided to take up dance. She has a goal of competing on a dance team within a year. We will see how that goes. She isn't particularly dance inclined, but you never know..she also takes a very low key rec gym class that is in our hometown. That was part of the problem. She spent so much time at gym that she had gym friends from that town that she couldn't hang out with because we lived too far, and then her school friends that she never had time to hang out with because she was always at gym.
That chapter has ended, but sometimes I still feel the woe.
Renee'
Renee'
Mom to Kayti and Keeli and furbabies Meggie, Lucie and Pixie
Veronica started just doing floor tumbling when she was about 5 - just for an activity to do and get her dealing with other kids.
Thanks for the information. I can't help but feel this is one HUGE rollercoaster and I'm not sure I'm ready for the ride. The coach did say that at some point there will be a point where either she makes the team or doesn't. Maybe that will help make some of the scheduling and lifestyle decisions I'm wrestling with. I'm not sure how I feel about gymnastics long term. I worry about injury and body image among other things.
Thanks again for your help.
Thanks! I'm still a little shocked by the whole thing. The coach mentioned that his philosophy is to start them a little later and that makes me a little more comfortable. I'm not sure I'm ready for the ups and downs of all of this. She has a great time in the gym and spends more time doing cartwheels, round-offs, and walkovers than walking most days. I worry about the long term though - injury, body image, etc. I also wonder if I should be looking at other programs and gyms...
Thanks again for sharing your experience!
Thanks for your 2 cents. I'm still trying to figure out what I think about the whole thing. I guess it can't hurt to try it out. My big problem is once I've said yes I find it hard to say no down the road if/when things change and I don't think it's the right parental choice anymore...
The video is GREAT! The girls did a wonderful job!
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