Parents What type of gym parent are you?

[xxStumpyxx]

what type of gym parent are you? be completely honest....

I am am not one thing or the other and I guess I skate asking the thin line between crazy gym parent and sane gym parent. I have two children in the sport, both competitive and we have seen our fair share of drama (not as much as some I doubt), one of my children's groups have less drama than the other as it is more transparent and information is easy to come by. To me the lack of communication leads to the path of craziness and I have learnt (more then in the last few months) to speak to the coach with any concerns and not guess or rely on other parents for info and to be honest it has lead to be clearer understanding even if I wasn't completely happy with their reply. I am very passionate about both of my daughters gymnastics, but I try to be respectful and try to keep the craziness at bay, sometimes it seeps out a little. I am experiencing a little issue with one of my daughters group but is hasn't got to me, I just chatted to the coach about it and now going to see what happens next (as far as I am concerned that matter is closed)I am also a parent who worries a lot but this I am trying to improve, I am still kind of a new team parent with my daughters being in team for around 2 years in one form or another so still lots to learn. I also like to watch my daughters at practice, I cannot sit there and watch every minute (even in viewing week) as it gets boring, but I like to peak from time to time. I like it that I am there and see new skills and like to see the spring in their step and smile on their faces, I also see the other side when things are not so good and it is hard to see them looking down and dejected when things are a struggle, but that is all part of the roller coaster ride that is gymnastics and I wouldn't have it any other way

Other to you guys....

 

[Taurus]

Drop & Go! I may stop by 10 mins early to watch end of practice, but for the most part, I just trust that the coaches do their job/ the more time I'm there in the gym might mean more time I have to turn into a CGM!

 

[Aussiemum75]

Drop and go! I sometimes come back little bit earlier to watch last 15-30min.

 

[Alie21]

I also like to watch my daughters at practice, I cannot sit there and watch every minute (even in viewing week) as it gets boring, but I like to peak from time to time. I like it that I am there and see new skills and like to see the spring in their step and smile on their faces, I also see the other side when things are not so good and it is hard to see them looking down and dejected when things are a struggle, but that is all part of the roller coaster ride that is gymnastics and I wouldn't have it any other way

This is me. We have a family membership so when I have both kids in gym at the same time (2 hours - once a week) I work out downstairs. I pop up for a few mins every half hour or so (or when exhausted ) I love watching them do gymnastics and I love watching my DDs teammates get new skills and improve. We have one girls who is such an amazing tumbler! Streets ahead of the others.

I find there is no point turning up 30 mins before my DDs practise ends if you want to see much - all you get is conditioning and although they are amazing it is rather repetitive! I do turn up early the chat to the other Mums & Dads tho - have met some great new friends waiting for the girls to finish We sit together at comps and cheer and oooo and ahhh together!

No too much crazy at our gym. We are in Australia and National Level so not elite, the girls are there for fun and fitness and this probably makes a difference

 

[bookworm]

An almost done one

 

[cbifoja]

I'm all over the map. I am sometimes a drop and go mom but that depends on the work I have to do at the gym as well as my DD's anxiety level. When she's feeling confident and I don't have work to do, then it's ME time!!!!!

When she's feeling confident and I do have work to do, I might see a turn here or there, but I'm mostly in the gym office and out of sight of the gym. She'll come and say hi during break time then go with her teammates. If she gets a new skill, she'll come out and ask me to come watch/video it.

When she's anxious, I sit in the viewing area with the rec parents. She will come to me if she has a real reason but her coach and I are on the same page as far as what is true anxiety and what she needs to learn to work through. I appreciate that HC cares enough to differentiate between the two.

When I'm anxious, I sit in the viewing area with the rec parents and watch body language. This is fairly rare at this point but last season saw me watching a lot due to DD being coached by someone who had a coaching philosophy that I found very distasteful. When I saw something that was too far over the line, I spoke up first to the coach and then if that didn't resolve the problem, I would talk to the HC. Now that that coach is no longer working with my DD, my gym anxiety has lessened quite a bit.

At meets, I'm really into what DD's team is doing but not really paying attention to the other teams. I keep all of our scores using an app on my cell and if there is live scoring, I do keep track of where our girls our placing in their age groups. We usually sit in a group so it's easy to socialize during downtime.

 

[munchkin3]

Drop and go, come back about 1hr before the end.....4 hr practice.......sometimes just at the end because I got out to dinner with hubby......
I don't yell at competitions.....my kids have asked me not to. So I am quiet, but I cheer for the team, and for awards.

I have my gym mom friends, and do enjoy the gym more for what it provides a busy Gym mom, other gym moms who have become very good friends.

I think I have the potential to be a CGM at times, or really just a CM because I can get nutty with school too......really I will kill for my kids.
But I think I have a pretty good balance now. My gymmies like me to leave so they can focus. But they always like me to come back to catch then end.

 

[gymgal]

drop and go. drive back 5 min before practice ends and wait in the car for her to come out. When she was younger, I watched her more because I thought the process of mastering the skills was so intriguing. I used to love watching the upper level girls master the big skills too but now that my dd is one of those girls, I can't bare to watch anymore.

Having said that, I would say I have a bit of CGM in me in terms of seeking info. I have educated myself on requirements, point values, deductions, etc. As she has gone up the ranks, it has become harder to get that info but I just feel better having a little knowledge of what she is doing and talking about.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Chauffeur, check writer, drop and go, with occasional stop bys mostly to to touch base with parents/friends. There when it's recommended. Honest cheerleader/support.

I tend to stress early, do my due diligence and then let go.

I'm pretty consistant like this. Took me a long time to leave her with someone, but when I did I trusted my choice and wasn't a call every minute mom. Same with her coaches, I trust them, I let them coach. And when I have questions I ask them.

I stressed her early development in a bunch of things but once she got going, I stopped stressing. So while I did get on the crazy bus I got off quick. I care that she follows her own growth curve, not everyone else's. Pretty much like this with gym. I stressed changing gyms, more because of her personal history. I stressed the "getting the kip" a bit early last winter. Once I saw she could, I was over it. I was actually surprised at how decent they were at her first meet a bit ago. So I have my crazy bus moments but I tend not to hang on long.

But I also know hanging around the gym with the parents analyzing everything is not good for my sanity, so I don't.

Totally enjoying this year because I know soon to come are the things that are going to cause me panic on the inside.

 

[skschlag]

crazy. totally crazy. lol

I love to watch, and he asks me to quite a bit. I don't stay, but I am totally crazy in that I cant seem to say no. "can you run the concession stand this weekend for the compulsary meet? " "why yes! I am crazy"

Can you book coaches' travel? YES I am crazy
Can you measure the boys for uniforms? YES I am crazy
Can you order backpacks for the team? YES I am crazy

sigh.. easy question.

 

[gwenmom]

Drop and go. Occasionally come early to Friday practice because DD wants me to watch a little

 

[Ausi_poppet]

I have to fit the taxi run around work, so often I get to the gym and feel like stopping for a while, rather than tackling the traffic home. Our gymnasts just do warm up and strength for the first hour, and that's the most I usually stay chatting with other parents. I like to spread myself thin and try and get on with everyone, because at some point, our kids will be on a team together and it's nice to have people you can sit with for the day.

All I ever seem to really see at training is the warm up/strength thing, or vault. I hate vault. There's only so many tsuks and yuchenkos you can watch. I've seen a bit of floor lately as they seem to be doing that as I wander in the door at the end of practice, but boy I'd like to catch beam. There's a new routine that I haven't seen yet, and watching it a few times in practice helps with the nerves come comp time, particularly now we are talking about five flight elements!

My poppet's only been doing gym for 4 years, so it's been a fast learning curve for me. I've had to learn a lot about the program and the scoring. Lots of people tell me what we should do for our daughter and I'm getting better at filtering that out and just making sure that she, the couch and us as parents are all following the same game plan.

But in a sign I really am going crazy, I've decided not to invite the grandparents to the big gym comps next year. I find the whole experience very stressful - chew every fingernail off and do serious damage to my heart. Having them talk to me throughout the process doesn't help, so I'm going to invite them to the competitions that don't matter and then just send updates for the ones that do.

 

[xxStumpyxx]

Thanks for the replies.
My youngest trains 2 1/2 hours at a time, it seem that the first 45 mins and the last 30-40 mins in conditioning so that inky leaves just over an hour for skills and routines when they are doing them. My oldest only trains 2 hours at a time, they both train 3 times a week and one of those days they both train at the same time. ( one finishes 30 mins before the other )
I don't not drive and live around 30 mins walk from the gym, there are no facilities nearby except one large store nearby and 1 Chinese takeaway / pub a couple of mins away. I occupy my time doing paper work if I have any that needs doing, I have even taken an online course and exam whilst sitting in the gym and there is another I would like to do. I also chat to parents or use my tablet or phone , the only time I watch near enough the whole session is open viewing week that happens twice a year. The gym has a cafe area and viewing area but there are cloned up the window and the view is obstructed but you can still see enough. During open viewing the blinds see open and the upstairs viewing area is also open, this over looks the who gym, you are in the same room as them and see and hear near enough everything. I like open viewing time but as the week drew to a close a found myself chatting with parents more and watching less. I also saw things I didn't like on one occasion which had to be addressed, that matter is hopefully now closed.

 

[exgymnastmomx3]

One that was a bit of all types of gym moms over the long haul of gymnastics with 3 team girls. I've gone through every stage and am so very glad to say it's over and my life is back to "normal". Now I can come and go into the gymnastics world when I want as a spectator

 

[cadybearsmommy]

I would say I'm a reformed semi "crazy" CGM...LOL.

I used to watch practice a lot more often...would give dd a hard time about rough meets etc, until one day I realized that she already puts more than enough pressure on herself (she' a little perfectionist.)

When I decided to 100% back off, she did so much better. So much less stressed before meets. She doesn't get as emotional over a bad day. I probably only watch practice now once every 2-3 months and only them b/c she asks me to. I'm very much a drop and go mom now! I'm glad I learned pretty early in the game to back off and just let things happen. The only thing I stress out about more than I should is the small little "injuries" they have even at this stage of competition. If she comes home with a tweaked ankle or knee I definitely hover over her with the ice and the Advil for several days lol. And I'll still be a nervous wreck at meets. But I won't let on to her that I am.

 

[profmom]

I tend to watch more when someone is recovering from an injury or otherwise having trouble, but I rarely have time or patience to sit through a whole practice. If someone really wants me to see something, I make the effort to be there during that rotation. I do a reasonable amount of service for the boys' team though.

I like to be knowledgeable about the sport, so I look at rules and codes and even USAG minutes when they are posted online, but I draw a hard line between interest/knowledge on the one hand and interference with the coaches on the other. As for meets, I like knowing enough that I can follow what they're saying their routines will be, figure out start values, and explain to DH why that TOTALLY AWESOME ROUTINE didn't get a better score. I am not looking forward to having to tell him what everyone else's SVs are for their routines on the boys' side this year though. I'm not that good yet, especially with distinguishing among all those turny things they do on the ends of the PH. If it's not a Russian or a flair, I'm useless!

 

[lovemygymnast]

Drop & go! She begs me to come watch but it's 4 hour practices and frankly, if I see her being too loose, it grates my nerves. Lol. I would never say anything to her but whew, it's hard watching her on one of her bad days. So, I stay away!!! I have 2 other children with activities and just try to stay too busy to watch. I will come back for pick up 20-30 minutes early on occasion though.

 

[Seeker]

Drop and go....I sometimes arrive about 30 mins before, but I generally lay see stretching at that point. It's usually because I don't have anything else to do! Meets are stressful for me...I want her to do her best and be happy with her performance, but mostly I'm just afraid she'll get hurt.

 

[Mish]

I have to fit the taxi run around work, so often I get to the gym and feel like stopping for a while, rather than tackling the traffic home. Our gymnasts just do warm up and strength for the first hour, and that's the most I usually stay chatting with other parents. I like to spread myself thin and try and get on with everyone, because at some point, our kids will be on a team together and it's nice to have people you can sit with for the day.

All I ever seem to really see at training is the warm up/strength thing, or vault. I hate vault. There's only so many tsuks and yuchenkos you can watch. I've seen a bit of floor lately as they seem to be doing that as I wander in the door at the end of practice, but boy I'd like to catch beam. There's a new routine that I haven't seen yet, and watching it a few times in practice helps with the nerves come comp time, particularly now we are talking about five flight elements!

My poppet's only been doing gym for 4 years, so it's been a fast learning curve for me. I've had to learn a lot about the program and the scoring. Lots of people tell me what we should do for our daughter and I'm getting better at filtering that out and just making sure that she, the couch and us as parents are all following the same game plan.

But in a sign I really am going crazy, I've decided not to invite the grandparents to the big gym comps next year. I find the whole experience very stressful - chew every fingernail off and do serious damage to my heart. Having them talk to me throughout the process doesn't help, so I'm going to invite them to the competitions that don't matter and then just send updates for the ones that do.

Yes this^^^^ I cannot talk to the grandparents at meets either. I feel like I may explode! You will generally find me pacing around the stands and hiding behind something peeping out during beam!

 

[gymmiemom]

I never watch practice. Sometimes the last 5 minutes or so. Watching practice makes me have anxiety. But when it comes to meets, I have a really hard time maintaining my cool. I get so nervous for her. This is her first year as an optional and beam and bars make me feel like I might literally want to throw up. I find myself willing her stay on the beam when she is tumbling and willing her over the high bar on her giants. I do much better when my husband is with me, which isn't often, he brings me back down to reality in the moment haha!

It's been really hard this year to not constantly be asking our coach a million questions. I am still trying to figure out how scoring works and what the requirements are and what A, B, C, etc skills are. I sorta feel like a brand new gym mom all over again.