Sasha
Proud Parent
Hi coaches/parents,
Well, my L3 gymmie had a high-scoring, high-placing season, and she loved every moment of competing. First season under her belt and she owned the high podium. And I loved watching her (except beam, that is heart-pounding to watch - lol). She is 8. Super proud parent, as all of you understand well!
Before competing L3, I posted some questions and some frustrations, as she was sort-of training for L4 back then, but only part-time, and wasn't ultimately invited to compete L4 despite having acquired the skills (but didn't polish them all, since she was only training L4 half time for a few months). She (and I) was disappointed, but she went on to rock L3. No uptraining for 6 months of pre and during season. OK. Moving on...
Now season is over, and supposedly everyone is uptraining now. She is in a training group with her L3 team-mates (training L4), a couple of whom have now come closer to catching up in skills to her, but more of them don't have any/many L4 skills. And there are now some new L3s in her group that didn't do so awesome at L3 (can you say headspring?), but will train L4 anyway. There are about 12 girls total targeting L4.
So the last few weeks, they've been training L4 skills, and, though of course skills always can use some polishing, she is essentially doing a zillion pretty-darn-good-already repetitions of skills she already has, while the rest of the group is actually 'uptraining' and working on what is, for them, 'new'. My DD is learning zero new skills. The one possible exception is vault, as she never got to polish that (since she only trained L4 half time, and then was cut off from training L4 skills last May/June for season), and now it's been 7 months since she's even gone over the table. So that's not going to be pretty, and so those progressions are very appropriate. She is the only one in her group that ever got over the table at all back last Jan-April, btw. It was bendy-armed, but honestly half the girls who competed L4 weren't any better at that point in time.
So I don't watch much anymore, but when I am there, I look over at the girls who just finished L4, some who rocked, and some who were upper-mid-pack, and see them training flyaways, clear-hips, bwo's on beam, tucks, etc, and my gut just tells me that's the group she should be in. That's the group she was in half-time last uptraining season, but those girls had all competed L3, and she hadn't, and I'm sure that played into the coaches' decision to compete her L3 (along with the fact that they 'needed' her scores for the team in L3, whereas the L4 team was already huge and top-heavy with repeaters. No more room.). She has the ability to be working on those skills, and so in my gut I feel she is not optimally training for her. Every day someone in L3 'gets' something new (there are shades of 'new', as in 'gets in on tumble-trak' first), and she just keeps repeating what she has. I realize gymnastics IS repetition, but also, I feel time is being wasted in compulsories not training anything new with a kid who is able and willing.
My question, therefore, is: Is it reasonable to think that in "Uptraining" season, my daughter should actually be trained to do some additional skills? Or do I honestly have unrealistic expectations here? I'm not naive any longer. I can see when a girl has poor form, or is timid, or inconsistent, etc. I know the difference between chucking and actually having the right technique, consistently. I know what scores well. I am not overestimating what my daughter can do. I did that for a long time, thinking maybe it was mommy goggles, but I am highly confident at this point that she could easily be training higher than where she is.
Please no simple "sit back and enjoy" sentiment. While I appreciate that, I will sit back and enjoy when I feel she's on the path that is right for her. She loves this too much for me not to do my homework and make sure I support her opportunities. Thanks for any replies, even ones that are critical. I need honesty here. Thanks for reading.
Well, my L3 gymmie had a high-scoring, high-placing season, and she loved every moment of competing. First season under her belt and she owned the high podium. And I loved watching her (except beam, that is heart-pounding to watch - lol). She is 8. Super proud parent, as all of you understand well!
Before competing L3, I posted some questions and some frustrations, as she was sort-of training for L4 back then, but only part-time, and wasn't ultimately invited to compete L4 despite having acquired the skills (but didn't polish them all, since she was only training L4 half time for a few months). She (and I) was disappointed, but she went on to rock L3. No uptraining for 6 months of pre and during season. OK. Moving on...
Now season is over, and supposedly everyone is uptraining now. She is in a training group with her L3 team-mates (training L4), a couple of whom have now come closer to catching up in skills to her, but more of them don't have any/many L4 skills. And there are now some new L3s in her group that didn't do so awesome at L3 (can you say headspring?), but will train L4 anyway. There are about 12 girls total targeting L4.
So the last few weeks, they've been training L4 skills, and, though of course skills always can use some polishing, she is essentially doing a zillion pretty-darn-good-already repetitions of skills she already has, while the rest of the group is actually 'uptraining' and working on what is, for them, 'new'. My DD is learning zero new skills. The one possible exception is vault, as she never got to polish that (since she only trained L4 half time, and then was cut off from training L4 skills last May/June for season), and now it's been 7 months since she's even gone over the table. So that's not going to be pretty, and so those progressions are very appropriate. She is the only one in her group that ever got over the table at all back last Jan-April, btw. It was bendy-armed, but honestly half the girls who competed L4 weren't any better at that point in time.
So I don't watch much anymore, but when I am there, I look over at the girls who just finished L4, some who rocked, and some who were upper-mid-pack, and see them training flyaways, clear-hips, bwo's on beam, tucks, etc, and my gut just tells me that's the group she should be in. That's the group she was in half-time last uptraining season, but those girls had all competed L3, and she hadn't, and I'm sure that played into the coaches' decision to compete her L3 (along with the fact that they 'needed' her scores for the team in L3, whereas the L4 team was already huge and top-heavy with repeaters. No more room.). She has the ability to be working on those skills, and so in my gut I feel she is not optimally training for her. Every day someone in L3 'gets' something new (there are shades of 'new', as in 'gets in on tumble-trak' first), and she just keeps repeating what she has. I realize gymnastics IS repetition, but also, I feel time is being wasted in compulsories not training anything new with a kid who is able and willing.
My question, therefore, is: Is it reasonable to think that in "Uptraining" season, my daughter should actually be trained to do some additional skills? Or do I honestly have unrealistic expectations here? I'm not naive any longer. I can see when a girl has poor form, or is timid, or inconsistent, etc. I know the difference between chucking and actually having the right technique, consistently. I know what scores well. I am not overestimating what my daughter can do. I did that for a long time, thinking maybe it was mommy goggles, but I am highly confident at this point that she could easily be training higher than where she is.
Please no simple "sit back and enjoy" sentiment. While I appreciate that, I will sit back and enjoy when I feel she's on the path that is right for her. She loves this too much for me not to do my homework and make sure I support her opportunities. Thanks for any replies, even ones that are critical. I need honesty here. Thanks for reading.