Parents Too young or not?

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SurpriseGymMom

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Several threads lately have me wondering about how young is too young for serious training..? There was one today, but that isn't the only one and I am in no way suggesting that something is negative about letting your kids try more serious training at a very young age if they are ready. It just has me very curious about how it works in gyms across the country (world?)...
For instance, at my gym the philosophy is that when they are little, they should have fun and gym classes reflect that. I teach 18mo-6yrs, so I feel qualified to speak about how their "training" goes. Our preschool classes are coed up until age 4. The classes are focused on introducing basic gymnastics skills and positions but at the same time playing and having fun with games etc. my classes are very structured and I would say most parents sign their kids up as a way to work on gross motor skills, get energy out and learn to listen and take turns. In no way, shape or form am I creating world class athletes in my toddler classes! I have had a couple (read 2 or 3) girls in the years I have been coaching that at close to age 4, I would give more difficult assignments to because they had the raw potential, strength and focus to want a tiny bit more than what I do with all the other kids. Even then I am talking such things as starting to work on pullovers with a girl that could do a perfect pike hang and cast, working on better form during forward rolls and cartwheels etc.
At 4, they go to the "big floor" instead of the smaller apparatus and start more actual gymnastics with more stretches and bridges/tabletops. If they do really well in the regular class, they may be asked to do an advanced class. At 5, the rec classes start getting divided into skill levels and they progress through those only based on skills and focus. At 5 they can also be asked or ask about doing a tryout for our TOPs program, it is usually only girls from the highest rec level that try out and not everyone makes it.
Our Team girls get drafted to L3 either from the older highest level rec classes (7-10yos) or from the TOPs groups. The girls doing at least some time in TOPs all fare better than the ones coming straight from the rec classes. I think the youngest one in our L3 team is 7yo. We also have a couple of girls on the L4/5 team that are 7 and 8, those came from higher level TOPs groups and have had infinitely more training than the average 7yo in rec, obviously.
We do have some younger girls that are incredibly talented and are competing optionals at very young (to me) ages, but they have all gone the way of TOPs and in fact are all in the national TOPs group as well, so it is definitely possible for kids in our program to progress fast for thos few that have that wonderful talent.
On average, I would say the journey to go to team looks like this:
18mo-4yrs really doesn't matter. Most team members didn't do gym at this point.
Starting rec somewhere between 4-7. Moving on through the rec levels is individual, my dd took a year to make it to the highest level and then she did that level for a year before I would let her do TOPs. Some kids go through the rec levels a lot faster, the one with more raw talent or strength can zoom through them or be put in the highest level almost immediately.
5-8yo: if focused and talented, asked to do TOPs. We have had a few girls try at 4 who were just really naturally gifted, but none of them had the mental focus or maturity to do it quite yet. Lots of crying and just really not being able to handle the difference in coaching style from rec to more serious training.
Once the girls are in tops, they either move quickly up the ranks there and get selected for national tops OR they move through tops slower but steady, then generally (much depending on focus, age and skills vs strength ratio) they get asked to try out for team (L3) somewhere between 7-9yo. The girls on the national tops team get put into higher competition levels right away.

We do not have a "pre-team" or L1/2.


When parents of my students ask about more training, I am always honest with them and recommend letting their kids have fun. At the ages I'm teaching, it truly doesn't matter. Once the girls hit 4-6 if there are truly ready for more, then I talk about tops but I still recommend the parents take a long, hard look at the commitment it will be for the entire family and I let them know honestly whether I think their child is ready for it yet or not. Most are not ready mentally.

So, I'm not casting judgement in any way because I know there are lots of different ways of thinking and different training philosophies out there. Some think the younger the better, and those gyms may have tons more kids getting more advanced faster than our gym. Gymnastics is after all a sport where you peak very young, with not much hope of any career after college age. I'm just really curious as to how different views get different results, and it would be very interesting to see if one method brings more longevity in the sport than the other or not.... Thoughts?
 
Here's my thought as a mom of a four year old. My daughter at 3 was in the higher preschool rec class with a fairly structured teacher. Then her teacher got changed to an all fun and games. Which wasn't what I wanted to pay for, so we moved her to the pre pre team class. It's twice a week for an hour, but the key is its still a fun class. They'll do contests to see who can hang on the bar the longest, running and jumping into the pit, etc. and have fun kid music playing, but the coach also works on improving their form on things like handstands by saying things like let's try to get your feet to kiss, or doing them in Hulu hoops to help them with their lunge start and finish. If the class wasn't still fun I'd be mad but I didn't want to pay 55 a month to watch her throw foam for 30 min or run around without much listening/structure. So in conclusion I don't think hard core training is good for little kids but fun with structure seems like a good balance to me.
 
My little one was doing splits from two, cartwheels from 3/4 press handstands at nearly 6. She didn't start gym til after her 6th birthday, all that was learned from copying her big brother.

She could not have coped with gym before 6, she was too insecure, also there were no classes for 4 year olds. She is now doing well at 9/10 working towards your level 6 and doing 9 hours a week. To me taking gym any earlier would have been a waste of time and money.
 
My dd started gym in a mommy and me class at 3. It was a nightmare. At that point she was already doing splits, cartwheels, round offs and pullovers. Her behavior in class was terrible because she was bored. Her sister took a tumbling class at the same gym on another day and dd would work with the owner on some floor stuff just for fun- she was great. At just 4 she was moved to pre-team, then to old level 3 at just 5. It just never made sense for her to go the rec route because it did not hold her attention.

I will say, we did run into some difficulty because of the age difference between dd and her teammates. She actually refused to return to her old gym after a break because she did not want to be known as the 'cute baby' of the group. She is still about 1-4 years younger than the other girls, but the coach dormant tolerate the other girls tearing her differently and she has been fine.
 
I personally think 3 is too young for any serious training. I have a 3 yr old who loves gym and seems to have better focus at times than her older sister, but 3 is still a baby in my book. Teaching level 1 skills is fine, but I think one hr once or twice a week is plenty.
 
I think the best programs are the ones that can adapt to a given gymnast. There are some 4 year olds that have the desire and drive to really "learn" form and strength ad want to go compete. There are some 8 year olds who would rather jump in the pit half the class. Some preteens and teens want to come learn tumbling for cheer. And every other kind of child in between. That is why there are different paths/levels/classes. I think as parents we need to be proactive in making informed decisions in what is best for our individual children. All the while remembering that they are just children and the childhood that we are trying to plan for them is their's, they only get one, so do your best.
 
I had 3 dd's in gymnastics who all started the same day. Oldest was 8, middle was 6, and youngest was 4. They all were successful gymnasts. All of them reached level 9 at the age of 11. It just took them different amounts of time because of developmental readiness. It's like potty training them. One can start super early, but it's just a waste of time to me.
 
My girls all started gymnastics on the same day as well....my oldest DD was 9, my middle DD was 6 (it was her 6th birthday week), and my youngest was 5. My oldest DD went to 2 rec classes per week for a year. Then sorta faded into other sports; soccer, basketball, school choir etc. She goes back to gym for 1 or 2 sessions a year between her other sports seasons. My youngest DD has quit gym and decided to dance. She likes gymnastics but LOVES to dance. She would live at the studio :)

Middle DD went to team after 3 short months. She came into the gym having both splits down could cartwheel, round off, do back and front walkovers and head and hand stands. She could literally do cartwheels (and good ones) at 3 years old. We used to joke about her being a gymnast when she was a toddler but never lived anywhere near a gym. So when our gym opened we jumped at the chance to get her in. Anways, her very first class the coach moved her to intermediate. They waited a few more weeks to watch and see if she could handle staying focused and on task since she was so young and moved her up to team.

In a way I'm glad she started as "old" as she did. She would have drove a coach crazy as a 3 or 4 year old. Trying to get her to stop moving was IMPOSSIBLE even for 3 or 4 minutes. So the fact that she was "just" old enough to focus helped her tremendously. She has trained 12 hours a week for the last year and a half and never once has it been too much for her. She still begs for more gym time!

So really, I think it just depends on the kid. I would not have been happy if her coach wouldn't have moved her up because of her age. She needed more than a rec class.
 
I agree depends on the kid AND if they have an older sibling in gymnastics. My older started at five, competed old level 4 at 6yo and it spiraled from there. Since I had a feeling of: how did all of this happened?! (mom a bit overwhelmed by hours and cost) I tried to channel my younger DD into other sports. Fat chance! She pretty much grew up at the gym and was a "coach buddy". This year I finally gave into formal training. She is 4 yo, trains with level 2's. Since we are there other days for my older DD she is allowed to do warm ups with level 4/5 girls. She loves it and at 4 yo she trains about 8 hrs (2 3hr practices and 2 1 hr warm ups) and often times its hell to get her to leave after that.
Interestingly she behaves different if surrounded with different kids. When she warms up with "older" kids (7 to 8 yo) she is asked to work in her lane on the exercises that the older girls do (to the best of her ability). Since these sessions are "icing on the cake" she knows she will be asked to leave if she is not doing EXACTLY what the coach is asking. Amazingly she does. In her level 2 practices she is more likely to goof off just like the other kids do in that group (mostly 6yo and some 5yo in that group). So I think grouping is important as well as coaches expectations.
 
I didn't read through the responses so forgive me if I'm repeating something as I share my opinion/observation.

The most fundamental physical needs of strength and flexibility can be developed to about 95% of max potential is a six month span. Kids with talent+character traits = potential, also known as "it" can learn quickly enough to have a great experience even if they graduate from rec or tops at age 9 or 10. So my attitude is to keep it fun until they, the kids, want more. For those who have it, the wait does no harm...... for those who don't have it, an early start won't make much of a difference.
 
Very well said iwannacoach! My experience exactly. Even though my 8 yr. old started "late" it didn't matter. She went from rec to hot shots to pre-team to team to winning level 8 regionals within a few years. The youngest was a 7 yr. old level 5, then did 6/7, then super 8. Middle daughter same as youngest. They were all training level 10 in 8th grade. My oldest starter was the least injured of all 3, but the one who had the hardest time mentally. They were all talented, but as with all gymnasts they had their assets and their liabilities. My experience as a former gymnast and mom of 3 gymnasts is the same as yours. Starting early, late, or in between doesn't make a difference if they have "it". All the years and all the privates in the world won't buy "it" and that's the truth in most sports. One has to work very, very hard to keep it and nurture it, though, or all the natural talent in the world won't get you anywhere eventually.
 
I agree that it really just depends on the gymnast. My 8 year old started when she was 3 in an advanced preschool class. She went through all the levels of pre-team and started level 4 when she was 7. I don't know that it was all necessary, but she enjoyed it and did well. There is a girl at her old gym who is 8 and a Level 7. She is just amazing and has "it". I don't really know that she could have gotten to where she is by the age of 8 if she was just starting now of course. There were some older girls at my daughter's last gym who were just starting at 10-13 and they really struggled with the flexibility and strength and often seemed frustrated that they didn't start sooner and didn't have enough time to go far in the levels. But on the other hand, there are two new girls on my daughter's team at her new gym (new level 4) who just came out of rec classes and weren't even in there for very long. One is 12 and the other is 9 and they are really great. But they also both came in really fit and flexible from doing other sports. Our younger daughter is five and was adopted from another country a little over a year ago. We could tell that she was talented, but we wanted to wait to put her into gymnastics until she had a good grasp of English and would feel comfortable being in a group setting like that. So she did gymnastics at home with our older daughter and when she ran out of things that she could do safely at home, I brought her in to be evaluated by my older daughter's coaches just recently and they recommended pre-team which is what she is doing now. She is doing really well. We have another daughter (see my username? ha!) who is 2 1/2 and I can just tell that she is going to be a gymnast, too. She can get her press handstands as high as her older sisters, do handstands against the wall, monkey bars, sit ups, etc. She CAN do bridges, but I stopped that really quickly once I caught her doing it! She is just really, really strong, flexible, and fearless. It amazes me and scares me all at the same time! She can hold on to two of my fingers, climb up my body to my chest, and flip herself over. She wants to do everything that her two gymnast sisters do, so that helps, I am sure. I am not sure when we will start her in gym, but I just have a feeling that she will do really well, really young. This is all to say that our girls are all so different. Our older daughter works really hard and does well and probably could have gone at a slower pace in the beginning, but it doesn't feel like we rushed things, either. She went from 1 to 3 to 6 to 9 to 15 hours over the course of 5 years. Our next gymnast is 5 1/2 and just started on pre-team and I don't think she will start competing Level 3 until she is 7, so that puts her a little behind where our older daughter was, but it's still plenty young enough to do well in the sport. And our little one may very well be a little super star, but we're not in a rush to write more checks (haha!) and I don't know that it will matter much if she starts at 3-4-5-6 because if you "have it", you "have it".
 
I agree that it really just depends on the gymnast. My 8 year old started when she was 3 in an advanced preschool class. She went through all the levels of pre-team and started level 4 when she was 7. I don't know that it was all necessary, but she enjoyed it and did well. There is a girl at her old gym who is 8 and a Level 7. She is just amazing and has "it". I don't really know that she could have gotten to where she is by the age of 8 if she was just starting now of course. There were some older girls at my daughter's last gym who were just starting at 10-13 and they really struggled with the flexibility and strength and often seemed frustrated that they didn't start sooner and didn't have enough time to go far in the levels. But on the other hand, there are two new girls on my daughter's team at her new gym (new level 4) who just came out of rec classes and weren't even in there for very long. One is 12 and the other is 9 and they are really great. But they also both came in really fit and flexible from doing other sports. Our younger daughter is five and was adopted from another country a little over a year ago. We could tell that she was talented, but we wanted to wait to put her into gymnastics until she had a good grasp of English and would feel comfortable being in a group setting like that. So she did gymnastics at home with our older daughter and when she ran out of things that she could do safely at home, I brought her in to be evaluated by my older daughter's coaches just recently and they recommended pre-team which is what she is doing now. She is doing really well. We have another daughter (see my username? ha!) who is 2 1/2 and I can just tell that she is going to be a gymnast, too. She can get her press handstands as high as her older sisters, do handstands against the wall, monkey bars, sit ups, etc. She CAN do bridges, but I stopped that really quickly once I caught her doing it! She is just really, really strong, flexible, and fearless. It amazes me and scares me all at the same time! She can hold on to two of my fingers, climb up my body to my chest, and flip herself over. She wants to do everything that her two gymnast sisters do, so that helps, I am sure. I am not sure when we will start her in gym, but I just have a feeling that she will do really well, really young. This is all to say that our girls are all so different. Our older daughter works really hard and does well and probably could have gone at a slower pace in the beginning, but it doesn't feel like we rushed things, either. She went from 1 to 3 to 6 to 9 to 15 hours over the course of 5 years. Our next gymnast is 5 1/2 and just started on pre-team and I don't think she will start competing Level 3 until she is 7, so that puts her a little behind where our older daughter was, but it's still plenty young enough to do well in the sport. And our little one may very well be a little super star, but we're not in a rush to write more checks (haha!) and I don't know that it will matter much if she starts at 3-4-5-6 because if you "have it", you "have it".

Lol! We have 3 daughters. Got to love having all those girls! I can definitely see what you mean about the younger siblings seeming to pick it up. My youngest at 3 is doing more gymnastics skill-wise than her sister was at the same age. I think she's trying to "catch up" to her. I see nothing wrong with pre team or advanced developmental for a 3-ish or 4 yr old child where they are learning the skills and form. I see nothing wrong with team for a 4 yr old or 5 yr old who is ready, but there is a ton of development that goes in between just turned 3 and 4 yrs old. In another thread, the poster was talking about her just turned 3 yr old moving within the span of a couple of weeks onto competition team, and I would have second thoughts about that at that age.
 
I agree that there is a lot more that goes into the sport than "talent". I have seen a few team girls along the way who could have been levels ahead of where they were, but coaches had to hold them back due to their maturity level... and that was just sad to watch. They will get where they are meant to get eventually, but it would stink to be super talented physically and not be able to do the skills you're ready for because your brain isn't where your body is. I have also seen really talented young girls crack under the pressure because it IS a tremendous amount of pressure when you're really young and amazing and a lot is expected of you because coaches know what your body is capable of. It's a tough sport. On one hand, it demands you to be focused and responsible.. and those are all really good things. But there's a price that you have to pay, too.. missing other activities, not being "normal" amongst your peers who just go home and play after school, home schooling if necessary, hours and hours of training at a really young age, injuries, etc. Overall, our family loves the sport and what it gives to our kids who choose to participate in it. But at the same time, I am glad to have at least a few kids who don't want anything to do with it, too ;).
 
Generally little kids at our gym are in kindergym until they turn 6 - then they can go to rec. A very talented kid may get put into a pre-team-destined class rather than a regular rec class, and sometimes a mature and/or talented 5 year old is allowed to go to rec early (my DD started rec at 5 and 3/4). Kindergym is all about fun, so many kids don't really display their talent until they reach rec and are doing more "real" gymnastics. Of course there are exceptions, and our gym is small and personal enough to be able to cater to the individual child rather than always have hard and fast rules.
 
My daughter's gym likes to start them on pre-team (3.5 hours/week) as early as age 4.5, and it's often a disaster. At all ages, the gym just seems to be very bad at screening for readiness, personality type, and proper parental attitude. The attrition rate for all ages on Level 1 last year was somewhere around 90%. There was a talented 5-year-old with supportive parents who quit because she couldn't handle the pressure, two 8-year-olds who quit after one week because it was too much work, a 6-year-old whose parents pulled her because they thought she should be competing even though she could barely do a cartwheel, a 7-year-old whose mom pulled her because she was offended that the kid was conditioning instead of learning back handsprings right away, and lots of other similar examples. Meanwhile, if you have a committed kid in a rec class who would do anything to be on the competitive track, good luck getting an evaluation unless one certain rec coach happens to notice her.

This year's Level 1 group is made up of a batch of girls who are just barely 5 years old and cry during practice on a regular basis. The ones who survive and remain in the program tend to take three years to become competition-ready at new Level 3. The handful of girls who have progressed faster and become competition-ready in less than two years have started out slightly older, around age 6 or 7.
 
At age 6, DS said he wanted to be on team like his sister, but about 1/3 of the time would whine and drag his feet about going to a one-hour rec/preteam class. We told him, no rec, no team and he got through that year. When he started on team, he was really ready emotionally and developmentally as well as physically. If he'd started a year earlier, I'm sure he would have quit. Now, as a guy who just turned 10, gym is his life and he would gladly do more than the 16-18 hours he's doing every week.
 
I didn't read through the responses so forgive me if I'm repeating something as I share my opinion/observation.

The most fundamental physical needs of strength and flexibility can be developed to about 95% of max potential is a six month span. Kids with talent+character traits = potential, also known as "it" can learn quickly enough to have a great experience even if they graduate from rec or tops at age 9 or 10. So my attitude is to keep it fun until they, the kids, want more. For those who have it, the wait does no harm...... for those who don't have it, an early start won't make much of a difference.

This is exactly what I have always thought. My dd didn't start team until age 8 (and only 6 hours) and I really don't believe she would be any further along in her gymnastics had she started earlier. She is now an optional at the same level (or further) than all the girls that started at age 5 and 6.
 
I don't know if you can really call the pre-team for 3-5 year olds in our gym "getting serious"- they are taught by team coaches, and there is a focus on conditioning & flexibility, but they are still only 1 hour or less per week, they still use games as motivation, and they don't work much on skill development. In my DD's preteam class they haven't done skills they were doing in her preschool rec class- cartwheels, pullovers, etc. It is more serious than rec though and there is the expectation that these kids are going to develop into competitive gymnasts at some point.

They do have a track for kids to move into the "real" preteam (levels 1 & 2) from rec when they are older (I think up to 10 years old) but they need to have a coach's recommendation.

My 4.5 year old daughter is almost done with her first season in the preteam class, and she is going to move back to rec next season. She wants to be in the fun preschool class again. I'm following her lead on this, and we can always switch her back into preteam if she wants (I hope). She is doing OK in her class, but she's not really a natural fit for gymnastics. I don't think she'll become a competitive gymnast, but I'm willing to let her try whatever she wants at this point. She is really interested in ballet but I'm waiting for DD2 to turn 3 so they can take a class at the same place. DD2 is a natural athlete and I could see her doing competitive gymnastics or whatever else she decides to do. Hm, is there a sport that combines gymnastics, basketball, and martial arts? That's her personality right there. Older DD is probably going to be a performance artist/painter/poet, but for now I'm insisting on physical activities (not that she objects, she is strong & physical but she doesn't have a competitive bone in her body).
 
There was a talented 5-year-old with supportive parents who quit because she couldn't handle the pressure, two 8-year-olds who quit after one week because it was too much work, a 6-year-old whose parents pulled her because they thought she should be competing even though she could barely do a cartwheel, a 7-year-old whose mom pulled her because she was offended that the kid was conditioning instead of learning back handsprings right away, and lots of other similar examples.

To me, this is one of the biggest issues facing clubs and teams. Parents and kids love the idea team, but they don't really understand what it means to be a competitive gymnast. Our club has started using preteam as sort of a weeding out level. Find the few kids who really want to compete and the few parents who can offer the level of committment needed to train safe and competent gymnasts. My DD started young - rec at 3, preteam at 4 - but she didn't start competing level 4 until she was 8. She was not the fastest to learn the skills, but she had the dedication and determination. And as a family, we were committed to supporting her and the program.
 

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