Parents Gymnast Nutrition Courses - are they worth it?

[observantmom]

I have a Level 6 gymnast (age 10) and am interested in hearing from anyone that has taken either Christina Anderson's Balanced Gymnast Method Course OR The Fueled Gymnast Academy by Kerry Bair. Both of these courses seem to range in price from $500 - $700 for the group training and/or online course modules which would be our choice. I don't think that $1,000+ for one-on-one training is in the cards for us. Has anyone actually taken either of these courses? What was your experience - good/bad/indifferent? If not, has anyone worked with a nutritionist (that is not from the gymnast world) and had success?

Our goals would really to be developing eating habits with fueling and performance in mind - we aren't dealing with any problems or issues at this point, but I would like my daughter to develop a mindset that will help her grow and train properly so that she (and I) understands the right way to fuel her body and support the level of training she is doing.

Thanks in advance!

 

[JBS]

Christina Anderson is great... both of my daughters like her stuff.

Why not just start with something like her $24.99/month subscription?

The Balanced Gymnast® Meal Planning Subscription - Christina Anderson RDN | The Gymnast Nutritionist®

christinaandersonrdn.com

My daughters both like to make the food and eat it more than they like to hear about it. Being able to prepare food with health in mind is definitely a benefit for the future.

 

[observantmom]

Christina Anderson is great... both of my daughters like her stuff.

Why not just start with something like her $24.99/month subscription?

The Balanced Gymnast® Meal Planning Subscription - Christina Anderson RDN | The Gymnast Nutritionist®

christinaandersonrdn.com

My daughters both like to make the food and eat it more than they like to hear about it. Being able to prepare food with health in mind is definitely a benefit for the future.

Thanks for this! I have actually subscribed to this and have gotten some great recipes from it. But, I think we need more tailored information - i.e. how to work around her crazy schedule, fueling during practice, injury prevention, and suggestions for a picky eater in addition to maybe some inspiration for my daughter so that she is really bought into this. I guess I need some more handholding and right now, I feel like we are dipping our toes in the water but have a lot more to discover. I love your suggestion of having my daughter make the food though. She loves baking and cooking so maybe if she's the one making the food, she will be more engaged in the process.

 

[Tigtimes]

Nutrition really is important as we learned when my daughter was having issues with legs (no power) and energy issues as well. She went though many blood tests , autoimmune tests, athletic induced asthma tests, All clear. We had just about given up when it was suggested she had low glycogen levels - not enough good carbs for her glycogen levels to recover in time for next day workout. We adjusted her after practice nutrition and one week later no more issues. It’s kinda insane. Here are two things that explain it well. Think her older age of 16 and harder level 10 workouts she could no longer get by without really addressing the nutritional aspect.

https://www.teamusa.org/-/media/TeamUSA/Nutrition/Recovery-Fact-Sheet-2020.pdf

this site also explains the level teens should have. There is a section on athletes

How Many Carbs Does a 15 Year-Old Teen Need? Ask a Dietitian! | Fueling Teens -Nutrition and Wellness for Teens​

Carbs are not the enemy. Low-carb diets are popular, and many dieters do not fully understand why they are limiting carbs besides the fact that…

www.fuelingteens.com

 

[josie55]

My daughter did one on one coaching over zoom for maybe 3-4 weeks and found it beneficial. It was customized and long enough to be informative but not so long as to be overwhelming. I feel like she got some great info that was specific to high level gymnastics versus the nutrition info that I might have/know, which is more about what is good for an normal adult. This is the person she worked with and I think it was a couple hundred dollars.

About Nicole

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jontonyprofessionalcounseling.com

 

[catchingupmom]

Our club did a session with Christina Anderson, which was really great. One thing I did find which was a bit odd, was that my daughter actually started eating less afterwards which was not the outcome I'd hoped for, but most families commented that it really improved things for them. I haven't opted for the subscription or additional courses because a) not in the budget, and b) my child is often too picky to try new things and we'd never be able to stick to a meal plan. Plus frankly we don't always have access to some of the ingredients/suggested foods. I do follow both Christina and Kerry on social media though and have gained little bits of information on there that has been very valuable. The protein bites recipe that came from Christina is my daughter's favourite snack!

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Nutrition is important. And it doesn’t need to be that expensive

 

[evla]

I have a Level 6 gymnast (age 10) and am interested in hearing from anyone that has taken either Christina Anderson's Balanced Gymnast Method Course OR The Fueled Gymnast Academy by Kerry Bair. Both of these courses seem to range in price from $500 - $700 for the group training and/or online course modules which would be our choice. I don't think that $1,000+ for one-on-one training is in the cards for us. Has anyone actually taken either of these courses? What was your experience - good/bad/indifferent? If not, has anyone worked with a nutritionist (that is not from the gymnast world) and had success?

Our goals would really to be developing eating habits with fueling and performance in mind - we aren't dealing with any problems or issues at this point, but I would like my daughter to develop a mindset that will help her grow and train properly so that she (and I) understands the right way to fuel her body and support the level of training she is doing.

Thanks in advance!

My daughter's gym ran the Balanced Gymnast course with Christina during one of our lockdowns (we're in Australia) and it was really great to do it that way as we got an overview of all the things that are important to consider for fueling, preventing injury and helping with injuries, some meal ideas, snack ideas etc. It really helped us both, it gave me more ideas on how she should eat to have enough energy and also helped educate her on good food options. Because it was run through our gym and the cost was divided between all the parents, it was much more cost effective too.

I would love to do a more 1 on 1 course one day in the future as my daughter gets further along in levels, but the cost is alot so we'll see. I can't claim it on my health insurance because we're not in the US which is a shame.

Maybe see if other parents are interested at your gym and maybe you could approach the gym to see if they'd be able to run it so the cost can be divided among the families? Follow her instagram too as she posts lots of helpful information there too

 

[observantmom]

Our club did a session with Christina Anderson, which was really great. One thing I did find which was a bit odd, was that my daughter actually started eating less afterwards which was not the outcome I'd hoped for, but most families commented that it really improved things for them. I haven't opted for the subscription or additional courses because a) not in the budget, and b) my child is often too picky to try new things and we'd never be able to stick to a meal plan. Plus frankly we don't always have access to some of the ingredients/suggested foods. I do follow both Christina and Kerry on social media though and have gained little bits of information on there that has been very valuable. The protein bites recipe that came from Christina is my daughter's favourite snack!

I appreciate your feedback. My daughter is picky too and I also follow them both on social media so we are picking up things through osmosis. Thanks for your insight.