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Flippin'A

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My DD is 6 and currently on preteam. Right now she practices 6 hours a week, but in May that'll go up to 9 when she joins level 3 (not technically a given, but she has all the skill they say are required and then some, so it's safe to say it's a strong possibility.)
My issue is that two of her best friends in her preteam group take an extra tumbling class two hours a week and she's begging me to sign her up too. I just feel like she's already spending plenty of hours in the gym and she'll be basically living there soon enough, and while we have the ability to spend time doing other things I'd like to take advantage of that. I also want to spare her body all that extra stress as long as possible. Two more hours of just tumbling feels like I would be setting her up for an overuse injury at a young age. Last night I told her I'd think about it and I'd love some opinions.
So my first question is: am I being mean and paranoid if I tell her no? Does my reasoning sound right to you?
And if I do tell her no, I want to offer her a couple of alternative activities she could try instead. She's not a ball sport kid (says they're boring, which I think is code for them not coming easily to her lol) and she already sings in her school's choir. So apart from those things, what types of activities did your kids do along with gymnastics? I figure I'll give her a couple options and if she really wants another activity the she can pick whatever sounds good. Once the hours go up she can we'll reevaluate if she wants to stick with it.
Thanks for helping!
 
Dance, martial arts both would help gymnastics but not “be gymnastics”

Music, as in an instrument or art, coding........

And yes she is young now is the time for her not to live in the gym.

Seriously those tumbling kids might look like shining stars in the moment. It’s no predictor in longevity in the sport.

I have a low hours kid. If she was higher she would of been done at L4

She is currently a L7 and boggling on.
 
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My DD has asked to take an art class, dance class, girl scouts, running club and martial arts. I'd also love for her to have the chance to learn an instrument at some point.
 
Art classes or workshops, dance classes, piano lessons, running, science club (or similar), girl scouts, 4-H, Lego Club, running, martial arts, cooking classes, girl empowerment classes. If you have a local YMCA, see what they offer. And see what your library offers. There are a lot more activities out there now than there used to be. :)
Good luck.
 
Most kids that age are very active. They do like to jump around a lot. When my children have expressed interest in an activity, I do try to give it to them. They sometimes like it and sometimes they don't. She may think the 2 hours of tumbling is too much. Perhaps offer her just one hour of tumbling if that is what she really wants. Another hour should not hurt her and may even allow her body to easily adjust to the increased hours. Throw in an hour dance class. Ask her what she might want to try outside of gymnastics instead of wracking your brain to find what you think she may enjoy. Then just let her be a kid. Plan play dates.
 
Another note about the tumbling class - there is a lot of variation in how tumbling is taught from gym to gym. In some gyms, tumbling classes are tailored to rec kids, and may be missing the proper form enforcement suitable for an artistic team-track athlete. So if you do choose the tumbling class, make sure your pre-team/L3 coach approves of the instruction.

Apart from tumbling, many great suggestions already. You might consider, rather than committing to another single weekly activity, to mix it up every week for now while she still has time! I wish I'd done that more with my kiddos. It seemed to be more about 'choosing' another something to sign up for (in addition to gym which they picked as their primary activity), rather than intentionally avoiding commitment and holding a day or two open to keep as flexible. Soon those flexible "what shall we do today?" days are very rare! :(o_O;)
 
Thinking back, my oldest is graduating from college this year, I also have a sophomore in college, my gymnast is a junior in high school and I have a 7th grader. I enrolled my two older ones in every activity out there. I cannot think of a recreational sport I did not register them for. From my experience, they were really a waste of time and money but not really. Does that make sense? Waste of time and money because they did not learn any measurable skill except perhaps some social skills. They were not a gateway to excelling at any sport. At the same time, it was not really a waste of time and money because it gave them something to do with their energy and it gave me a bit of a break so I did not have to play soldiers/trucks or barbie or have a play date that took me hours to clean up all the while being pregnant or hauling a newborn around! But in hindsight, if you have only 1 child or even two (or however many) and have the time to devote to them, I would take them to a playground, park, museum, and just be with them. That is what I would do. They grow up way too fast!
 
I kept my girls in Girl Scouts and recreational soccer(the most popular sport in my neck of the woods) as long as possible. They were the two activities most of the other kids in the school and neighborhood did, so helped to keep them connected to those friends.

We have also managed to keep up with Girl Scouts for close to seven years now, even though this may be the last depending on next year's practice schedule. It has been a great way for my daughter (and me) to stay connected to our neighborhood.
 
I think you're right to not enroll her in a tumbling class. It sounds like she's progressing just fine without it and like everyone always says, "keep her wanting more" as long as possible.
 
Honestly, I wish I let my now 12 year old gymnast have more playdates and neighborhood time before high gym hours started. Like others, I enrolled her in everything to see "what she liked" -- soccer, dance, volleyball, girl scouts, art classes, etc. And structured stuff is fun, but sometimes just hanging out is more fun. In hindsight I wish we did less.
 
Thank you all so much for the help. I loved the suggestions (I didn't even know they offered coding classes for kids.) I'm sure she would jump at the idea of a dance class, but I think I'm going to hold off for now. Reading what some of you wrote about wishing you'd done more neighborhood/playdate/family activities before the hours got crazy, I think I'm going to go more in that direction. It's only her and me in our family and instead of signing her up for anything structured on Saturday (when the tumbling class is) I'm going to try and make it a fun family adventure day where the two of us spend time together and try something new. As long as we both have the time, I think that sounds fun. Thanks again. So glad I found this place. Posting on here and getting feedback really helps me center my thoughts.
 
Thank you all so much for the help. I loved the suggestions (I didn't even know they offered coding classes for kids.) I'm sure she would jump at the idea of a dance class, but I think I'm going to hold off for now. Reading what some of you wrote about wishing you'd done more neighborhood/playdate/family activities before the hours got crazy, I think I'm going to go more in that direction. It's only her and me in our family and instead of signing her up for anything structured on Saturday (when the tumbling class is) I'm going to try and make it a fun family adventure day where the two of us spend time together and try something new. As long as we both have the time, I think that sounds fun. Thanks again. So glad I found this place. Posting on here and getting feedback really helps me center my thoughts.

I love this idea. There are so many fun things you guys can do together. You could bake together, make a photo book to be printed, go to a paint your own pottery place, go on an adventure drive (you drive, she tells you where to turn - this can be so fun because at 6 they have no idea where they're going and where you'll end up!), etc. The options are endless! Have fun!
 
Okay, I told her that she couldn't take the tumbling class, but after she got over the initial disappointment she was really excited to do some new activities with me on Saturdays. I told her we could do whatever she wants tomorrow and she wants to go to the zoo, so I'm excitedly looking forward to a damp, cold, awesome zoo trip with my little girl. Thanks again for all the input. I'm definitely going to save the paint-your-own pottery and adventure drive ideas for another week!
 
My DD is 6 and currently on preteam. Right now she practices 6 hours a week, but in May that'll go up to 9 when she joins level 3 (not technically a given, but she has all the skill they say are required and then some, so it's safe to say it's a strong possibility.)
My issue is that two of her best friends in her preteam group take an extra tumbling class two hours a week and she's begging me to sign her up too. I just feel like she's already spending plenty of hours in the gym and she'll be basically living there soon enough, and while we have the ability to spend time doing other things I'd like to take advantage of that. I also want to spare her body all that extra stress as long as possible. Two more hours of just tumbling feels like I would be setting her up for an overuse injury at a young age. Last night I told her I'd think about it and I'd love some opinions.
So my first question is: am I being mean and paranoid if I tell her no? Does my reasoning sound right to you?
And if I do tell her no, I want to offer her a couple of alternative activities she could try instead. She's not a ball sport kid (says they're boring, which I think is code for them not coming easily to her lol) and she already sings in her school's choir. So apart from those things, what types of activities did your kids do along with gymnastics? I figure I'll give her a couple options and if she really wants another activity the she can pick whatever sounds good. Once the hours go up she can we'll reevaluate if she wants to stick with it.
Thanks for helping!

If Aeriel silks are an option in your area, you might want to check it out. We find it to be a fun, low stress way to use (and probably build on) all that upper body and core strength + flexibility.
 
Many gymnasts naturally excel at track and running in general. My daughter is a teeny 7 year old JO2/3 and her favourite activity outside gym is racing boys and telling everyone how she’s faster than her whole grade. Not surprisingly, she has always been a good vaulter, and I expect she will do some kind of running when she’s older as well as likely high jump and long jump. I have heard it’s easy for gymnasts to get into javelin and diving as well.
 

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