Parents Age/Level and Path they took to get there

[WV Gym Mom]

Seems to be quite a few posts recently about fast tracking, skipping levels, switching gyms, pushing for advancements...
I think some (especially new) gym parents may assume this the norm.
But I think most gymnasts follow a pretty "boring" path.

What was the path of your child?

My daughter is a 9yr old Gold

2 yrs baby class (1-2yrs)
1 year toddler class (3yrs)
1 year advanced toddler class (4yrs)
1 year pre-team (5yrs)
1 year Bronze (6yrs)
1 year Silver (covid year) (7yrs)
1 year Level 3 (8yrs)
This year Gold/Level 4 (9yrs) (our first year golds also work to score out of 4)
Goals? Totally up in the air. After this year, she could stay gold, or go platinum or 5/JD Path. Really is going to depend on how she does, how she feels, and what she's ready for. For me, I'm just here to pay lol.

 

[MuggleMom]

Rec: 1 year (5yo)
Pre Team: 1 Year (6yo)
Level 3: 2 Years (7 & 8yo)
Level 4: 1 Year (9yo)
Tested out of 5
Level 6: 1 year (10yo)
Level 7: 1 Year (11yo)
Level 8: 1 Year (12yo)
This Year: 13 yo Level 8 or 9 because shes been injured probably 8 again but she had a lot of her Level 9 skills before injury.

Goals: Who knows I think she'd like to stick with it to Level 10/Graduation and see if she has the option to do it in college but if I am being honest I don't think she actually wants to do it in college. Maybe at the local college that doesnt have the best team (seems like her idea of a low pressure college experience since the local college team is not the most competitive probably feels like an achievable goal kind of thing)

 

[mom2newgymnast]

My daughter has been on the slow and steady path since the beginning. I don't think it could have worked out any better for her, so I'm a fan.

preschool classes
training group - Kindergarten
level 2 - 1st grade
level 3 - 2nd grade
level 4 - 3rd grade
level 5 - 4th grade
level 7 - 5th grade
level 8 - 6th grade
level 9 - 7th grade
level 10 - 8th grade
level 10 - 9th grade (14)

Goals: Level 10 this season. Time will tell if she will stick with it and try for college or not. Her gym definitely has college gymnasts. I'm just not sure if that is still her goal or not. One year at a time.

 

[rlm's mom]

DD1: Got into gymnastics at 5, did basically one level a year and reached level 10 at age 13. Had an outstanding season last year and has committed to a ‘top’ college team.
DD2: Got into gymnastics age 3.5, did 2 years of level 7 (injury) and then skipped level 8. Reached level 10 at age 12, did 2 years of level 10 and then cut back and went into climbing a few months ago. She thinks she’ll be back full time into gymnastics soon and I don’t want to speculate her goals because that changes from week to week!
DD3: Began gym at age 5, skipped from 4 to level 7 last year (8 y.o.) and then got injured. Will be repeating 7 this year. Goals: to be happy with wherever gym takes her.

Phew!!

 

[CuriousCate]

Older DD
preteam - preschool
XB - kindergarten
XS - 1st grade
Level 4 - 2nd grade
Level 5 and 6 - 3rd grade
Level 7 - 4th grade, but only did two meets because of broken shoulder to start and cut short by COVID
Level 7 repeated - 5th grade
Level 8 - 6th grade, tested out with plan to try and do level 9, but instead she retired!
ETA Goals! She wanted to be a D1 gymnast, hopefully in the southest. She has kept the collegiate drive in her sports, which is cool. To be a D1 diver (or volleyball player, but she's pretty short, so maybe as a libero or DS!)

Younger DD
preteam - preschool
XB - kindergarten
XS - 1st grade
XS - 2nd grade (only two meets bc COVID and then gym didn't bring the littles back when they re-opened forever!
XG - 3rd grade
Level 4 - tested out 3rd grade
XG - 4th grade
Level 5 - tested out 4th grade
Level 6/7 - 5th grade (this season...will do at least 1-2 meets as an L6, and then may finish as an L7 based on how she is registered. I'm hoping she just does the whole season as a 6.)
Goals: She says college gym and names D1 programs she would want, but she does not actually show a lot of interest in watching college or elite gym at all, so who knows! She is a happy pretty free-spirited kid, so she'll go where the wind blows and always find a happy place to land.

 

[moogacat]

Rec gymnastics at rec only gym- age 4-9
XB (moved gyms)- age 10
XS- age 11
XP (scored out of XG)- age 12
XD- age 13
L9- age 14
XD- age 15 (DD wanted to scale back)
L9- current, age 16/junior

She's also starting the recruiting process for college A&T and is getting calls from coaches. All this is to say she's had an unconventional track and started late by some measures, but she's still loving gymnastics and may even have a college path, if she wants it.

 

[JBS]

I gotta ask my wife... I'll get back to you all on this one though...

 

[Amumcalledove]

We’re relative newbies and happily on a no rush route

Kiddo 1
Started at 18 months
preschool rec classes (with most of a year out with pandemic)
Advanced preschool - age 4
Rec - age 5

Kiddo 2
Started at 2
Preschool rec classes - age 2 & 3
We declined advanced preschool class age 3

Neither have long term goals or any understanding of pathways - they enjoy gym. If I ask would you like to do more - yes. But they enjoy dancing, swimming, playing.

I’m passionate about valuing all levels of gymnastics.

 

[gym_dad32608]

I gotta ask my wife... I'll get back to you all on this one though...

Haha, I was thinking the same thing.

 

[CuriousCate]

We’re relative newbies and happily on a no rush route

I really just wanted to comment on your screen name! A Man Called Ove is one of my favorite books of all time, so I was so tickled to see your name!

 

[SSGymMom]

DD 1
Park and Rec gymnastics from toddler-age 8
Rec class at a club - age 8
Level 2 - age 9
Level 3 - age 10
Level 4 (2 years) - age 11-12
Level 5 - tested out at age 12
Level 6 - age 13
Switched to Xcel due to not being able to get a giant on bars
Xcel Platinum - age 14
Xcel Diamond -- going into 4th and final year at Diamond, ages 15-18

She plans to do club gymnastics in college, and she finally has a giant! We never expected this to become her passion and be at it this long.

DD 2
Park and Rec gymnastics from toddler-age 7
Rec class at a club - age 7
Level 2, partial season - age 8
Level 3 (2 years) - age 8-9
Level 4 - age 10
Switched to Xcel due to conflicts with coach and not wanting to repeat level 4 when many of her teammates with similar (and lower) skills and scores were moving up
Xcel Gold - age 12
Xcel Platinum - age 13
She quit when everything shut down with Covid due to aches/pains, being more interested in other activities, and her previous (Level 4) coach ruined her love of the sport. Coaching can make a huge difference. She has said several times that if she hadn't had that particular coach, she would probably have continued in gymnastics.

 

[gymgal]

Mommy&me classes, preschool/hotshot classes, preteam, competed at age 8 in the prep op/xcel programs. Competed L7 at age 11/12? Then went one level per year, 4 years of L10, now a senior in college getting ready for her last D3 season

 

[Chocolate_Chip]

My daughter started dance when she was three, and got asked to sit out so many times for doing cartwheels instead of following the instructor, lol. When she was four she started playing t-ball along with swim lessons and some tumbling classes at a local cheer gym. By the time she got to first grade, the cheer gym had extensive renovations, expanded to offering a DP gymnastics program, and she was asked to join their pre-team.

1st grade - Pre-team
2nd grade - Level 3
3rd grade - Level 4

When I ask her what her goals are she just says "to tumble like Simone Biles and meet Simone Biles". She's still so young to think about college or even anything beyond this year. I think she'll keep going as long as she's having fun and stays healthy. She loves her coaches and it's a really fun and supportive environment.

 

[GymnastMomX2]

DD 1
Preschool gym - age 3-4
Old level 2 - age 5
Old level 3 - age 6
Old level 3 - age 7
Old level 4 - age 8
Old level 4 - age 9
Level 4 - age 10
Level 6 - age 11
Level 7 - age 12
Level 8 - age 13
Retired and started coaching - age 14+

DD2
Preschool gym - age 2-3
Pre-pre-team program - age 5-7
Pre-team - age 8
Level 4 - age 9
Level 4 - age 10
Level 7 - age 11
Level 8 - age 12 (current)
Goal: college gym for now, but who knows realistically.

So interesting to me how two totally different gyms/systems for each kid ended up with them only a year difference in level. (We moved from NY to TX when DD1 was 11)
I will say, what a waste of competing all those lower levels for DD1!!

 

[jillc]

Rec - Age 5
Pre-team 1 - Age 6
Pre-team 2 - Age 7
Level 3 - Age 8
Level 4 - Age 9
Level 5 - Age 10
Level 7 - Age 11
Level 8 - Age 12
Level 9* - Age 13 (*what she is registered for this up coming season).

She is at that age where she isn’t very chatty with her parents about her goals. It seems to be just to continue to work hard each season and see where things go (as long as she continues to enjoy it).

 

[DTAG]

DS
*December bday so in the middle of meet season
Rec- age 7 (2 months)
Pre-Team - age 7/8 (competed)
Level 4- age 8
Level 5 -age 9
Level 5 (levels changed and numbers moved down so would be old level 6) -age 10
Level 6 - he is currently 10

Goals? The plan is next year he will be level 8, then 2 years of 9, and then 10 for 3-4 years. This was told to us by his coaches. He hopes for a D1 school one day and wants to compete internationally.

 

[Tmacs]

Slow and steady here:
1st grade- pre-team for 1/2 year
2nd- L2
3rd- L3
4th- L4
5th- L5
6th- L6
Gym rarely lets anyone skip a level. Many repeat. She hasn't repeated so far and has been able to comfortably compete all her skills from the beginning of each season and have consistently high scores. At this rate, she'd be a L10 in 10th grade... borderline for college consideration. She says she wants to do college gym. However, I'm ready to see her to other sports in high school.

 

[DTAG]

Whoops, preteam and level 4 were the same thing, I forgot.

DS
*December bday so in the middle of meet season
Rec- age 7 (2 months)
Pre-Team/level 4 - age 7/8
Level 5 -age 9
Level 5 (levels changed and numbers moved down so would be old level 6) -age 10
Level 6 - he is currently 10

Goals? The plan is next year he will be level 8, then 2 years of 9, and then 10 for 3-4 years. This was told to us by his coaches. He hopes for a D1 school one day and wants to compete internationally.

 

[skschlag]

I have a boy in gymnastics:

16 mo-5 : Baby gym/preschool gym.
5- Preteam
6 - Level 4
7-9 - Level 5
10 - Level 6
11 - Level 7
12 - Level 8
13-14 - Level 9
15-18 - Level 10
19-20 - College

Forgot goals: Honestly he has reached many of them in competing for college! That is so cool. Other than that, graduating is his next goal!

 

[superNova08]

Age 14/Xcel Gold

Mom-Tot classes 18mo-2
Toddler classes 2-4
Preteam 5-7
Then I quit for other sports because the time gymnastics was taking up was ridiculous and I wasn't even competing.
Advanced Rec Class 10-11
Then I aged out and quit again for American Ninja Warrior training.
Xcel Silver 13-14
Xcel Gold 14-now

Goals: Honestly at this point I'm just having fun. This will be my last year as due to my chronic illnesses my body can't really handle it anymore. I'm hoping to inspire the other younger girls on my team to keep trying their best and to never give up. I'm trying to teach them that gymnastics is all about having fun and trying to get better, rather than about beating everyone else.