Any gymnasts?

[Mere2]

My DD 6 1/2yrs loves gymnastics, has talent and is currently attends with her local group (area) in a recreational group. Today I have just found out that she has been bypassed for the developmental track as the owners of the local group think she is to tall (although she has the talent). DD is on the 50% line on height charts and is extremely skinny (you can count her ribs). She has the build, flexibility and strength (can climb the rope to the ceiling).

 

Her teacher (not the owner) is not impressed with DD being classified as too tall and therefor missing out on the developmental track. Her teacher recommend to see if I can have her assessed (privately) through the state/national body.

 

My quandries are....DD is extremely shy - will she be devastated if she doesn't get in? Do I really want to go down the competition route....its very harsh on their bodies and so *****y, let alone consuming family times....

 

Its important for me that DD has something that is just 'hers' and she can escape from the family. (DS has a muscle disease and the psychs are pushing that DD goes to school, so she has a chance to escape from the situation. I'm pushing for sport instead of school). So I need something for her....

 

However if she can't pursue gymnastics am I better to start her in a sport that she might be able to....eg ballet? (Dont think she will have the talent although she has the body)

 

If I leave her in the recreational class, she will get bored as she can't advance and learn new things............

 

Any ideas, anyone BTDT? Part of me thinks this is ridiculous as she is ONLY six!!! but thats reality.

 

TIA

Fi

[hsmamainva]

It depends on how much she likes gymnastics. If it's something she likes just for pleasure, then allow her to just take classes for the sheer enjoyment of it, without worrying about what track to put her in.

 

My youngest son did gymnastics for awhile, but stopped when it became very intense. He enjoyed it, but he just wanted to have fun with it. Once he reached the age of 6 or 7, it was as if they wanted him to make a career out of it, so maybe it's something gymnastics schools do at that age??

 

He switched to Tae Kwon Do two years ago and LOVES it. So that's become "his sport". He's just a few months shy of his Red belt (which is the last belt before Black). TKD has numerous "forms", which is sort of ... choreographed martial arts techniques and he loves that part of it the best and it appeals to his artistic / gymnastic side.

[Carrie12345]

My personal opinion- find a new gym.

 

My 5 and 6yos go to a *very reputable gym. Many of the coaches have been/coached olympic and national athletes. Many actors and actresses in cheer/gymnastics movies have trained there before filming. The summer camps have US Olympic team members come to meet and work with the kids.

 

They're a good, competitive gym, but I've seen no signs of squashing kids' fun based on size.

 

My 6yo really is tall for her age, and I'm sure that will hold her back if she were to want to compete, but she can train for as long as she wants. There are no qualifications to meet for regular sessions at any age, let alone at 6.

 

Our gym's comp teams are by invitation only, but regular classes go right up to age 18 without any discrimination.

 

I don't know whether or not either of my girls will ever want to compete, or whether or not I'll give the green light for them to so, but I do know I don't want them in an environment where 6 year olds are literally weighed and measured for worthiness.

[bettyandbob]

Pursue the activity your dd loves. If that activity is gymnastics, find a new gym now.

 

I don't know where you live. I live in a very populated area so there are many options for most sports, unless you are interested in fencing--only 2 facilities for that. Anyhow, find a gym which has upper level girls who are well trained and coaches who are interested in promoting love of sport. I was able to find just this combination for ballet for my dd and I know if she decided to drop ballet and swim I could find the same thing. Sometimes it takes effort to find them, but there are excellent coaches who are also devoted to the growth of the child as a person out there. If you are planning on getting really into a sport your are going to pay some hefty fees no matter what and you should be picky about the people who are going to have a strong influence on your child.

 

One thing you said was that you were pushing sport as opposed to public school. Does your dd have to be intensely involved in a sport/activity to make up for not going to school? My dd is not so intense about Ballet. She is taking more classes this year than last. She is also in scouts and has multiple things associated with church (choir, sunday school, acolyte, musical). What is your goal? I know you said you need something that is away from issues at home, but you certainly don't want to buy a whole new set of issues in a gym where people in charge want to do nothing for your dds development. Are you trying to find an activity where your dd will have a constant group of friends? Would it be appropriate to keep up gymnastics and try a few new things?

[jenn-]

DD just started gymnastics at the beginning of September. She is very tall for her age. Her coach just told us they are eyeing her for a team invitation in March and she wanted to know if we were interested. I told her to push her to the point she thinks she needs to be and in March we could decide. She would be going onto the team as a beginning level. She will never be Olympic material (started to late, gonna be to tall), but she should be able to compete through high school and maybe into college at various levels. Don't let your daughter be passed by just because the owner does not think she will be a top competitor. You need to either approach the owner and demand a better reason than her size, or find another gym.

[Omma]

I thought Nastia was quite tall (especially compared to Shawn Johnson :D), and look at the medals she won in the Olympics!

 

Anyone know any official guidelines about height for gymnastics? My 7 dd (as of yesterday!!) was just recommended to be on a team, and she has just beat out her 8.5 brother in height. She is fairly tall (and my ds happens to be small for his age), but I haven't heard any concerns about height issues from anyone.

 

I agree, though, that I definitely wouldn't want my dd to be in a gym where one of the coaches clearly desired to bypass her. I second the idea of trying to find another gym!

 

Brenda

[snickelfritz]

Our gym is competitive, but not elite. They don't aim for the olympics. Their highest level gymnasts practice 3 days a week at 3 hours a pop. Still a lot, but more manageable for what we are interested in (if the girls want to keep going, that is.) I see all different body types on their competitive team. They let girls have a say in what/how they compete.

 

I would find a new gym, since I think it would be hard to ever get past that one coach's bias.

 

If there is not another choice, some dance companies have acrobatic dance classes. You might also look at cheer training centers. Many of them offer tumbling classes.

 

If your dd is good at gymnastics, she likely has good coordination and might enjoy the dance. My dd takes gymnastics and dance and really likes both.

[snickelfritz]

Shawn is 4 ft 9 inches and weighs 90 something pounds, which is a healthy BMI for her height.

 

I remember when I watched the olympics as a young girl, the announcers said that coaches routinely looked at a mom's body type before they took a girl on for intensive training.

 

So, your dd might be too tall for elite level.

 

So, what? Is that the kind of commitment level you want (nothing wrong if you do, but it's something to think about.)

 

Find a gym that is willing to compete at lower than elite.

[plansrme]

If your gym is looking only for potentially elite-level gymnstics, I agree with the others who say to find a new gym. Here's a primer on the levels before elite:

Compulsories go from levels 1-6. Many (possibly most) gyms don't have levels 1-3, on the theory that the routines are too simple to be worth the time and $$ it takes to field a team. Many gyms compete levels 4-6. All girls everywhere in the U.S. who compete at the same level do the exact same routines, hence the name "compulsories."

After level 6, there are levels 7-10. These are "optional" levels, and the girls have their own routines, including choreographed floor and beam routines. Most college gymnasts were level 10 gymnasts.

After level 10, there are various levels of elite competition. Many fine gyms do not offer elite-level training, but that's where Olympians and other inernational competitors come from. The governing body for USA gymnastics has a program called TOPS that seeks to identify potential future elite-level gymnasts. Is this possibly what the teacher means by an evaluation of a state/national body? If you're not interested in elite level gymnastics, TOPS probably won't be too useful.

Our gym in suburban Atlanta, as well as similar gyms we meet in competition, have a variety of body types on their compulsory and optional level teams. My daughter is in the 50th percentile for height, and she's right in the middle of her similarly-aged teammates as well.

If your daughter is interested in competitive gymnastics, have a long sit-down with the manager of any gym you're considering and have her lay out the path and the eventual training and financial requirement. It is a great sport, but it IS hard on their bodies and on the parents.

Terri

[camibami]

You've gotten lots of good advice already, on finding a new gym. But I wanted to throw out rhythmic gymnastics as an alternative- being tall is a *plus*. In fact, my DD is too short, not that we're aiming for the elite levels or anything, LOL. She has the perfect artistic gymnast body, but she didn't (and we didn't) care for AG that much. Rhythmic gymnastics involves hand apparatus- most people know the ribbon, but there is also ball, hoop, clubs and rope. It involves a great deal of flexibility and eye-hand coordination, and dance skills.

 

If you pm me your location, I can try to find you a gym with an RG program. If you are on the coasts, you will find it, but not so much in the mid section of the country.

 

And yes, 6 is the "magic age" we found in gymnastics. Thats when they can start competing. For us, DD got moved to the level 4 team at almost-6, and told she had to quit her recreational rhythmic class. Well, we were mostly just marking time in AG, her real love was rhythmic, so she quit. She would still like to tumble, but it is hard to find advanced recreational gymnastics- the classes here stop at back handsprings, which she already has. Its be on the team, or low level classes, it seems. NO happy medium as far as commitment time or money-wise!