For Parents "Progressing way to fast" .. ?

[Jenn's Jam]

My DD (Nearly 12) recently got her Roundoff back handspring Back Layout, and she has only been doing gym for exactly a year (Today marks the year mark!) and team for 6 months. She also get her giants on pit par- front handspring vault at 120 (She is only 4'10 so the vault is nearly taller then her) Backhandspring, Backhandspring on beam and also front layout on floor. Now her coach came up to me after practice and said to me that she think's my daughter is progressing to fast- as in he is worried she will get injured when nothing is wrong with her form. I do get where he is coming from as she is nearly a L7 so that's about 7 years of progression in a year. So what he wants her to do is not compete Xcel Platinum or diamond this near and basically screw over all her new skills and stick to front tuck, and RO BHS BT for floor pass, vault at 105 kip-cast Back Hip circle - squat on tap swings and flyaway and cartwheel backwalkover on beam. I mean she is capable of so much more.. I would be fine if she just was competing for that and training harder skills but what her coach is telling me is basically wanting to kill all our her new skills and not train them at all til meet season is over.

... That just seems like the coach isn't letting her excel...
Am I just being crazy? I need some opinions..

 

[raenndrops]

I wonder what kind of gym you are at? Xcel only, JO and Xcel, or another type?
That could affect the coach's plan for her.
Sometimes, older girls do progress faster and pick up skills quicker - especially if they come into it with core strength and excellent body awareness and limited fear.
If it was my child, I would want her to compete Platinum (assuming she has competed Gold already).
The height of the vault actually has nothing to do with level - it is more about power and angles. Now, at Platinum, a FHS vault does not have a 10.0 SV, so she would need a 1/2 on - 1/2 off or something like that. It might be better for her to vault on 105 at least at first for that.
She could, as Platinum, compete some of her harder skills and some of the easier skills she has (assuming she has all the needed skills on bars).
The coach may be trying to slow her down because they aren't equipped (coaching skillwise or training level wise) to go much higher and they hope to be able to later???

I would NOT push for Diamond since she only currently has a FHS vault.
The goal for a lot of gymnasts like your daughter, if she sticks with gymnastics, would be to compete Diamond by 13 or 14 and, if she and your family were on board, petition into L6/7 when she is a freshman.

 

[bogwoppit]

She may not be at the right gym.

 

[sevenatenine2]

She may not be at the right gym, but she also could be moving so quickly that sometimes there is not enough time for the muscle memory to jump in. I don't see anything wrong with slowing her down a little bit and letting all those skills become second nature before attempting the really hard stuff.

 

[tucktwisttumble]

I just have to say WOW! That is am impressive amount of skill to accumulate in a year - especially at her age. Way to go!

 

[sce]

I do see a reason to not push to compete the most difficult skills. But some of the other stuff makes me confused. Why was the coach teaching her all those skills if he was concerned about it being too much to soon? The vault height thing also makes no sense to me. Unless her technique is better at the lower setting? The goal is not just to do skills but to learn proper technique so future skills are able to build easily on that technique.

 

[NutterButter]

That's pretty awesome that she got all those skills in such a short time! Is/was the plan for your DD to compete JO? Or is she on an Xcel path with no plan to move to JO. I can see if there are problems with her form that slowing down progression may be best, especially if she might move to JO at some point. You said there is nothing wrong with her form...is that your observation or did that come from the coach? Doing a BHS-BHS on beam is one thing, doing it and not getting deducted on the connection is another thing. Some kids pick up skills pretty quickly but then need time to perfect the form. In Xcel, form doesn't need to be as perfect as it is in JO so if there are plans for your DD to move to JO anyways, then it could be why the coach wants to slow her progression.

 

[raenndrops]

I don't see anything wrong with slowing her down a little bit and letting all those skills become second nature before attempting the really hard stuff.

While I agree with this, OP said that they weren't even going to let her work on those skills again until AFTER competition season. You can't really develop the muscle memory if you stop doing the skills all together.

 

[Gymmommy71]

When you progress skills too fast, there's also a huge risk of mental blocks and fears.

There's a big difference between doing a higher skill in a gym and having to compete that skill - so if the skill is something that came quickly, and one practice she has a weird fall and suddenly becomes affriad of it, the fear becomes 100 times worse if it's a skill that needs to be done at a meet...

Her coach could also feel that the higher skills aren't ready technique-wise.

 

[ldw4mlo]

Has she even scored out of 4 & 5 yet???

 

[MILgymFAM]

Has she even scored out of 4 & 5 yet???

Or Gold, if she's Xcel?

 

[thefellowsmom]

I think how you respond to this situation is entirely dependent on what her goals are for gymnastics and whether this gym is willing, able and or on the same page about reaching these goals.

More info is definitely needed but jus based on what you said it seems to me that she may not be in a gym that matches her abilities.

 

[NutterButter]

Has she even scored out of 4 & 5 yet???

I was thinking with her skills and age, she may be able to petition out of 4/5 and go straight to optionals.

 

[MeetDirector]

I was thinking with her skills and age, she may be able to petition out of 4/5 and go straight to optionals.

No such thing ("petition out") for someone her age. She will have to do one sanctioned meet at each level to "score out".

 

[NutterButter]

No such thing ("petition out") for someone her age. She will have to do one sanctioned meet at each level to "score out".

I thought there was a pathway for older girls to go from Xcel to JO? The age might be 14? I could be totally wrong...just something I've read on here several times.

 

[raenndrops]

I thought there was a pathway for older girls to go from Xcel to JO? The age might be 14? I could be totally wrong...just something I've read on here several times.

Yes, 14 or a freshman or older. They have to demonstrate that they have the skills needed for L6 or L7, depending on which they are petitioning into.

 

[ldw4mlo]

Also doing a giant in any form is a big thing. But there is a huge difference between doing it alone on the pit bar. And getting it safely and cleanly into a bar routine.


A couple of the gymmies at our gym just including mine have started them in various states strap bar/pit/spotted. But they are no where ready to do them. Hopefully shortly before states they'll be ready.

I was thinking with her skills and age, she may be able to petition out of 4/5 and go straight to optionals.

Yes it doesn't seemed to have happened yet

 

[wallinbl]

Is it possible that her form isn't great, and the coach thinks it best to reset a bit and rebuild some of them from foundations? Sometimes, it's harder to undo bad habits than it is to take a break and not let them become muscle memory.

 

[Flyaway]

I am impressed that you know so many details about where your dd is at and what she needs after just a year. I am still clueless. By choice, mostly.

 

[IreneKa]

I am impressed that you know so many details about where your dd is at and what she needs after just a year. I am still clueless. By choice, mostly.

Well, in another thread OP said that she was a L9 gymnast herself, so not surprising that she knows more than a regular parent.