For Parents Featured Too many hours (gymnastics) / switch sports

[Gaby]

How many hours hopes, tops or Elites usually do? I am told 35 hours/week from somewhere. Are they overtrained kids? Why They are so many elites doing great with more hours?

Does Over trained practice harm to their health in the long term? How long those trained elites gymnasts live usually in history ? Do they have better life in terms of physical health after retiring from gymnastics ?

 

[JPC13]

Gyms have all different methods for practice and coaching, so gymnasts can do better with less hours depending on how they practice. They may have less waiting around between turns for example. Also, some gymnasts pick up skills a lot faster than others so they may not need as many hours.

More practice does not necessarily mean better results. These kids bodies need to rest so that they can perform at their best. So those with overworked and tired bodies could be performing worse.

Not to mention injuries.

How many hours hopes, tops or Elites usually do? I am told 35 hours/week from somewhere. Are they overtrained kids? Why They are so many elites doing great with more hours?

Does Over trained practice harm to their health in the long term? How long those trained elites gymnasts live usually in history ? Do they have better life in terms of physical health after retiring from gymnastics ?

I’m not accusing any particular person, but “how do elite athletes deal with overtraining?” The answer is, “steroids”. That is the primary reason why steroids are helpful, not the strength or muscle gain.

Yes, overtraining harms your long term health and you can see this with some former elites who basically couldn’t even compete at the NCAA level and retired in college. Not to mention the ones who competed junior elite and then just… poof… disappeared.

 

[Gaby]

How to identify if your dd gymnasts might get overtrained? It is hard to know how many hours is the right hours for your kids. I don’t think it is based on level? . It should be based on the age ? Or something else?

 

[JPC13]

How to identify if your dd gymnasts might get overtrained? It is hard to know how many hours is the right hours for your kids. I don’t think it is based on level? . It should be based on the age ? Or something else?

I always watch out for excess pain at the muscle heads and the various tendons (elbow, knee, etc)

That’s just based on my own body, so I’m sure the coaches on here would have some valuable input.

 

[mom2newgymnast]

Why Some gymnasts can do much better with less hours ?

Why Elite program training takes way a lot more hours than regular JO program, like 35 hours/ week.

And It also seems just conflict with general concepts: more practice better results

I am sure elite programs do need more hours in general because they have to learn so many more skills and really perfect them. But I do think that a lot comes down to how the hours are being used and how many are in the training group, etc.

My daughter is in a non elite gym that is very much focused on college level gymnastics. She's a second year level 10 and trains ~20-22 hours a week (4 days at 5 hours and then 1 day at ~2 hours although some don't go to it). She's in an evening group, although there is a day group at her gym also. I think her coaches and her teammates all don't want to go any more hours than they do because they want to have a life outside of gymnastics. And it works for them. Could they possibly have higher scores if they went more hours? Maybe. But I think a lot of them (and definitely including my daughter) would probably quit or be very unhappy. And I think there is a very real chance of increased injuries if they trained more hours. As a gym, we are quite competitive with other gyms that train more and our gymnasts are making it to nationals and getting scholarships. We have over 25 level 10s this year, split over a couple of different groups.

Also, I do think a lot of the girls that start with 30+ hour weeks when they are quite young don't stay in the sport. Many end up injured or burned out before they ever make it to level 10 or elite.

 

[Lucia]

It is doable. It takes some flexibility and creativity. My son did public school, gym, and is now a D1 gymnast. He worked with the school and vice versa to figure out how to best make it work. He developed some amazing skills that are really paying off for him in college.

My son did football games, dances, parties, etc.

Please know I didn’t mean to imply traditionally-schooled kids don’t have free time etc…my inability to imagine how kids get it all done probably speaks more to my (lack of) organizational skills and also living in a small town where we have to commute an hour to gym. Congrats to your son!

 

[skschlag]

Please know I didn’t mean to imply traditionally-schooled kids don’t have free time etc…my inability to imagine how kids get it all done probably speaks more to my (lack of) organizational skills and also living in a small town where we have to commute an hour to gym. Congrats to your son!

I get it! it is hard to think about. (he also had an hour commute to gym each day )

It was tough, but his high school, and his gym, were great to work with. and it paid off for him in the long run.

 

[ldw4mlo]

JMO, but 25 hours is too much for most kids.

Our girls max out at 12 hours. My daughters group is L8/L9. And you can get excellent training on those hours with good coaching.

Girls who are aspiring to L10 move on. Not because our coaches can’t get them to 10. It’s just they chose not to. Their business model is more focused on the lower levels.

If my daughter had to go that many hours she would of moved on long ago. Of all the girls mine has trained with over the years. there have been many that moved on for “more” hours, mostly because the parents thought more hours at the gym meant their kids could be L10s too. And they have come too find out there is so much more to it then “more” hours. They all have moved and all but one is either less further along then our 8/9 group or out of the sport. Only 2 kids who moved on from our gym are still going strong at the higher hour gyms. Because they are incredibly talented and have the mental fortitude for high level gymnastic. My daughters friend left our gym at L9. She is now a level 10

 

[ldw4mlo]

Why They are so many elites doing great with more hours?

Elites have a talent and ability both physically and mentally that most kids simply do not have.

It would be like saying if you put in enough hours you can be as good a quarterback as Tom Brady.

 

[ldw4mlo]

Interesting. My 9th grade daughter seems to be on track with this. Her motto is, "Work smarter, not harder" and she manages to get almost all of her homework assignments done during the school day. Straight As so she's doing something right but has figured out a way to cut to the heart of the work without overthinking it and then manage all the gym hours. I sometimes worry that she's cutting corners since she's not up late after practice struggling with homework as I hear a lot of other kids are doing, but maybe she's just efficient!

And maybe she has a natural talent for school and her courses.

 

[ldw4mlo]

. Homework which takes 20mins when rested can take hours when exhausted.

This a million times

 

[ldw4mlo]

Have you tried a team sport? Lots of options there - soccer, lacrosse, basketball, hockey, softball, ultimate frisbee. My gymnast loved the camaraderie of her teammates but she was NOT a team sport kind of kid. My son is the opposite - he gravitated to any team sport and resisted all individual sports as a young kid.

Mine is currently doing lacrosse and gymnastics. She actually enjoys the different aspects of a team sport vs an individual one. Because they reality gymnastics is an individual sport. And I think there is a lot to learned from doing a true team sport.

 

[ldw4mlo]

Even the grades don’t account for anything , but my dd always has strong work ethic or making sure all assignments perfect , making grades perfect , and making gymnastics perfect. This type of kids easily get exhausted.

Too much perfection is unhealthy. It’s mentally exhausting and puts them at high risk for even bigger mental health issues.

My kid is up late doing homework because she is a 16 year old night owl. And chooses to start her work later. And we shut her down because unfortunately school starts early. When she gets to college if she wants to stay up all night I’m sure she’ll pick afternoon classes. But now we cut her off. She’ll set her alarm and get things done then.

They need to be well rested more then they need to be perfect.

You all should have a do everything “wrong” less then perfect day or week. So she sees the world doesn’t stop turning. And show her that an occasional 85/B/C grade isn’t going to impact her overall grades that much.

 

[ReluctantGymMom]

on the topic of grades - I was reading a study about how girls are more prone to obsessing over getting a 100 on assignment where boys tend towards being told it’s “good enough” and they put in the effort to get to a 90. Both groups get an A, one suffers a lot more anxiety. It really changed my perspective on how we do homework because my kid is type A and not a good test taker so we focus on get the 100 on things that don’t stress you out, like in class work, get the 90 on homework you don’t have time for because sleep is more important, and occaisonally bomb a test. At most, do some kind of extra credit that can be done on a weekend - end up with As anyway with less stress. The class she has a 100 in and the class she has a 91 in are giving her the same grade at the end of the day. It’s a lot less stress this way.

 

[JBS]

on the topic of grades - I was reading a study about how girls are more prone to obsessing over getting a 100 on assignment where boys tend towards being told it’s “good enough” and they put in the effort to get to a 90. Both groups get an A, one suffers a lot more anxiety. It really changed my perspective on how we do homework because my kid is type A and not a good test taker so we focus on get the 100 on things that don’t stress you out, like in class work, get the 90 on homework you don’t have time for because sleep is more important, and occaisonally bomb a test. At most, do some kind of extra credit that can be done on a weekend - end up with As anyway with less stress. The class she has a 100 in and the class she has a 91 in are giving her the same grade at the end of the day. It’s a lot less stress this way.

I've been saying this for years... do you have a link to this study? I would love to see it.

We have girls doing 4 hours of extra credit to get the 102% when the kid next to them gets a 90% in 30 minutes... same grade... "A"... 4.0.

 

[ReluctantGymMom]

I've been saying this for years... do you have a link to this study? I would love to see it.

We have girls doing 4 hours of extra credit to get the 102% when the kid next to them gets a 90% in 30 minutes... same grade... "A"... 4.0.

I’ll see if I can find it, I read it a few years back and it completely changed my homework philosophy because I’m also a type A perfectionist and expected high As but then it’s like… but why? Some people are doing half the work, getting the same grade, why torture the kid for no extra benefit

 

[JPC13]

Also, nutrition matters very very much.

on the topic of grades - I was reading a study about how girls are more prone to obsessing over getting a 100 on assignment where boys tend towards being told it’s “good enough” and they put in the effort to get to a 90. Both groups get an A, one suffers a lot more anxiety. It really changed my perspective on how we do homework because my kid is type A and not a good test taker so we focus on get the 100 on things that don’t stress you out, like in class work, get the 90 on homework you don’t have time for because sleep is more important, and occaisonally bomb a test. At most, do some kind of extra credit that can be done on a weekend - end up with As anyway with less stress. The class she has a 100 in and the class she has a 91 in are giving her the same grade at the end of the day. It’s a lot less stress this way.

The A+/A/A- setup really screws with that. In my class a 100 is an A+ which is a 4.2 gpa. A 91 is an A- which is a 3.8.

That really makes the kids neurotic and I wish the university didn’t do that (in my undergrad A+ and A were both 4.0).

 

[ldw4mlo]

Also, nutrition matters very very much.

The A+/A/A- setup really screws with that. In my class a 100 is an A+ which is a 4.2 gpa. A 91 is an A- which is a 3.8.

That really makes the kids neurotic and I wish the university didn’t do that (in my undergrad A+ and A were both 4.0).

at the college level 100 should equal 4.0. Then +/- accordingly.

I actually get why higher than 100 is a thing at the high school level. As kids taking more challenging courses should be acknowledged and spiffed. And it levels the playing field of a kid capable of doing the more challenging class but opting not to to up their class tanking and GPA.

At the college level, the classes are what they are. Take them or don’t. And use the pass/fail option.

 

[kecks]

From personal experience: Gymnasts are usually great olympic weightlifters. Track is also great including Cross Country.

 

[ReluctantGymMom]

Also, nutrition matters very very much.

The A+/A/A- setup really screws with that. In my class a 100 is an A+ which is a 4.2 gpa. A 91 is an A- which is a 3.8.

That really makes the kids neurotic and I wish the university didn’t do that (in my undergrad A+ and A were both 4.0).

Nutrition is huge.

My kid is in elementary school so no -/+ system for her yet - I took many classes in college recently, some had a +/- system and some were straight letter grades. Not going to lie, I searched ratemyprofessor and picked certain classes based on the grading system if I wasn’t certain I was going to hit over 95% (looking at you research statistics). Definitely an unnecessary way to make kids neurotic especially in high pressure tracks where a 4.0 is the expected norm, like premed