Parents Are many hours really necessary at a young age?

[Ex member]

Reading many posts on here about the amount of hours 4-7 year olds are doing has shicked me a little and has made me question my dd(7) hours. My dd currently only trains once a week for 2 1/2 hours , while I am not too happy with that I have realised that I wouldn't be happy with dd training several days a week at her age, I guess 7 is the upper age of what you call young but I am going by dd's stature and I doubt she could cope with school and gymnastics several days a week for 2-3 hours each time.

At my dd's stage of her gymnastics I would be ok with 2 evenings after school and maybe some time over the weekend. Do they really need a lot of hours to train skills appropriate for 4-7 year olds? I guess I am questioning things after seeing the thread where a 5 (nearly 6) year old who is newish to gymnastics trains Round Off Back Handspring Back Tuck, I know every county and gym is different and this is not an attack on the person who created the thread just a question about how things are trained in gymnastics.

My dd has been improving in her Flexibility and Strength and a couple of skills here and there - nothing ground breaking just what a lot of you would call basics skills like

Leaps on the beam
Forward roll on the beam
Cartwheel on the beam

Circle up (pullover) on bars
Front support on bars
Casts on bars
Forwards roll on bars
Fish swings (dish and arch)
Swings where you let go and regrasp the bar as you swing

Dd has finally done some floor work

Forwards Rolls
Cartwheels
Round off's
Round off's off a large block landing on the floor and falling back with arms in a certain shape and body in a hollow (i think)
Back bends down a wedge or on a crash mat if using a wedge is too easy
Bridge Kickovers down a wedge

Dd told me that they would be learning flips soon so I guess the floor work involving Round off's, back bends and bridge kickovers are the beginings of flips.

Looking at the above is once a week enough to learn the above skills, Is slow progression better? My dd is very happy with her class but has told me she would like an extra day and I feel the same way, I am happy as long as she is happy and progressing.

 

[emorymom]

Most kids that age on team track are doing 2-3 days/week. There will always be the odd high hours program or the very gifted 7 year old who is competing L4 in a gym where the L4s go 16 hours/week. Much rarer are kids who are pre-elite tracked at that age. VERY VERY RARE.

 

[2gymkids]

My DD is 6 and goes 3 hours a week (2 X 1.5 hours)- I'd say she's got the skills you listed for your daughter plus a few more. Right now, it's perfect for her and our family. There is another gym locally that starts the kids very early onto pre-team and ups the hours much quicker but I know a few parents in that program who at 6/7 yo are already burnt out on it (parents and/or kids) and have quit, so for us I think the slower road is working well (even thought it's tempting to want more). My DD just started full day school this year, too, so it's been an adjustment, I think adding in any more gym would have been a disaster, but every kid and family situation is different (and gym!) is different!

 

[LJL07]

This is something I have been wondering about as well. My 6 yr old goes 6 hrs/week, and I'm concerned it's too much. I know there are some mature 6 yr olds who do fine though with more hours.

 

[gracyomalley]

At 7DD moved to team, initially doing 2 days of 4 hours, then after 6 months moved up to 12 total hours a week. Stayed there though old L5, only increasing when she was 9 and moved to old 6. Prior to that (and when working the skills you describe) she did between 3 and 4.5 hours a week...obviously started at 3 and then added a day. Honestly, I think it depends on the kid, but wouldn't have wanted my DD to do any more than she did for sure! And we homeschool, so can do school in the summer, leaving less pressure if they get tired, etc. DS the younger competed Level 4 at age 6 - doing 7 hours of practice a week...I wouldn't have done it if he wasn't in the car driving the other 2 to practice anyway!

 

[Sasha]

I think at this age range, it so much depends on the individual kid. My DD (7.5) is now training 9 hours per week (3d x 3h) and will up to 12 soon (3d x 4 h) for USA L3. There are 2 young 6 year olds in her squad that are keeping up just fine. However, only 2 out of the 20+ 'younger' girls in the developmental track moved up to this current squad. The 2 that were chosen show great focus and maturity compared to most, in my observation. They are also quite physically developed in musculature compared to the others that will remain on the 'pre-team' squad.

This new squad is a big jump in hours, though, from the hours this group was training for the skills you listed (sounds like what we would call L2, which in our gym is pre-team). Our pre-team girls train 4 hours the first half of the season (2d x 2h) then 6 hours the last half (2d x 3h). From the time they enter pre-team, to the time they move up to start competing (1 year, sometimes 2), these girls become muscle machines. Their bodies look totally different than where they started. The added strength is so necessary to get the next set of skills.

I mention this because I would be concerned most with your DD building enough strength for the next level of skills going only 1 day/week, especially if she is starting out on the less-muscley side. I think 2 days would help a lot. I would say 4-6 hours per week is probably the sweet spot from your description if she is on a team/competitive track. But ONLY if she is physically and emotionally up for it of course! If not yet, then by all means don't worry about what others are doing! If she is happy and making progress, and the lower hours are common where you are, then maybe you're already in your sweet spot.

 

[2gymkids]

I will add, group size might play into this as well. My DD's developmental group is only 4 girls (with a 5th girl there 1X a week who is really good and practices with the team her other day) so there is basically no down time during their 1.5 hours, no waiting for equipment, etc. Sometimes the coach will even pull in a 2nd coach for the last 1/2 hour (once her other class is over) if it's something that requires a lot of spotting so that they are still constantly going and only waiting for one other kids to go, essentially. I think I would feel different about the amount time if it was a big group, lots of waiting, etc.

 

[LJL07]

Sooo true. A large group with a lot of waiting around is hard for the young ones.

 

[Uglybetty]

Since you're in the Uk, I'd say a lot depends upon your DD's end goal (and I appreciate she might not know yet). If there is any chance....no matter how remote....that she may want to try for elite path gymnastics then you need to get her into the best possible gym for the maximum possible hours ASAP. Check the listings for the British Champ's and see if any of the gyms are close to you. 18-20 hours at her age for the most gifted kids is common at the best gyms. The UK system is very unforgiving about late starters and you don't want to be like me in 2 years....knowing in your heart of hearts that you most probably screwed up her chances by not switching gyms sooner.

 

[floppycat]

Elite UK just 7 year old doing 18+ hours a week, 25+ hours in the holidays, she is pulling away from her peers who are on 10 hours. Our gym 4 piece regional grades do 10 hours, F&V 1.5-5 hours although they do all 4 apparatus during practice they only compete F&V. Does you gym do team gym as that's another increasingly popular option. You are not going to see rapid progress doing once a week but at least she has time to do other activities. The US system appears much more gym for all and the UK gym for a few which is a shame but will not change for our kids. Different gyms look for different qualities my DD was rejected by one gym for their squad but another took her on and she is doing very well.

 

[Jenny]

Since you're in the Uk, I'd say a lot depends upon your DD's end goal (and I appreciate she might not know yet). If there is any chance....no matter how remote....that she may want to try for elite path gymnastics then you need to get her into the best possible gym for the maximum possible hours ASAP. Check the listings for the British Champ's and see if any of the gyms are close to you. 18-20 hours at her age for the most gifted kids is common at the best gyms. The UK system is very unforgiving about late starters and you don't want to be like me in 2 years....knowing in your heart of hearts that you most probably screwed up her chances by not switching gyms sooner.

With respect the UK system is not that unforgiving of late starters. There are plenty of tracks and options for children of all ages starting gymnastics. With good coaching in a good gym a child starting should reach pretty much their potential in 3 to 4 years. Less if they are younger. Late starters who are gifted pick it up incredibly fast. They will shine in almost any situation and should be spotted easily by coaches. Now you can take compulsory grades out of age it really shouldn't be an issue. And the benefit of starting late is less wear and tear on the body.

 

[Rapunzel]

I think the more they go, the quicker they learn more skills/gain more strength & body awareness. Whether its necessary depends on the child, some will enjoy doing an hour a week & leave it there others will crave more. I guess it's the accessibility if they want to go more thats the problem - also the opposite if they want to go less, then that's a problem too.
I know of one girl who started at 7.5yrs and passed her compulsory 2 in age.

 

[Ex member]

I am not sure what dd's goal is or even if she has one, I do know she would like to at least do one more night at gym and compete after watching her oldest sister take part in a competition 2 weeks ago. I am not sure what path the group is on but they have been given Silver Club Competitive membership (upgraded 2 weeks ago), they are not rec and they are not advanced rec.

Dd is what you could call a late side as she was in rec until she just turned 7 (she moved out of rec 3 months ago), dd has come on leaps and bounds and is keeping up with her older team mates (aged around 8-10), she has learned a few new skills, got much better with her form and improving in strength and flexibility. Her group has no more then 8 girls (dd included) to one coach sometimes 2 coaches.

I hope that dd will do some competitions and get a chance to do Grades in or out of age. I am also hoping that as dd as started late she would better able to cope with the conditioning (which she has) and more able to follow what the coach is wanting from the group.

 

[vbbf]

my dd who is 7 currently does 15 hours a wk ( extra during half term and school holidays ) and trains 5 days a week. She is elite track and her hours will increase after she has done her compulsory level 5. The gymnasts at my dds gym who are training for grade 14 ( similar skills to which you have listed ) do 6 hours a wk which then increses to 11.

 

[Jenny]

The danger with huge hours young is the the drop out rate is huge.


Btw I wouldn't call a 7 year old who is already doing rec a late starter. I would call a 9 year old a late starter.

 

[Uglybetty]

Jenny is correct - lots of high hours kids quit (or get pushed) out of the sport completely. It is also worth mentioning (to soften my earlier comment) that the changes to the compulsory levels system may (or may not) help those who start late (or increase their hours a bit later)....but that's a whole other debate!

Jenny I am interested in your view on something. You say it takes an average of 3-4 years to reach full potential....is that based on a minimum number of hours per week over that period? If you were only doing one session a week surely it would take longer?

 

[Faith]

I

I know of one girl who started at 7.5yrs and passed her compulsory 2 in age.

Georgia Mae Fenton started gym at 7.5 and it's not held her back any .

Our gym used to put "development" kids on 3 hours x1 a week. Basically like you say TD, strength, conditioning, basic shapes. It was more to get a feel for where a child would be best suited- after a few months they were either moved to F+V or WAG.

I don't think 7 is particularly old either. A talented child in the right environment could start at 7 and easily be ready for comp.5. I also think it's a fine balance between hours and burn out- there are kids out there who are successful at compulsories on 15 hours a week.

 

[Frase]

With respect the UK system is not that unforgiving of late starters. There are plenty of tracks and options for children of all ages starting gymnastics. With good coaching in a good gym a child starting should reach pretty much their potential in 3 to 4 years. Less if they are younger. Late starters who are gifted pick it up incredibly fast. They will shine in almost any situation and should be spotted easily by coaches. Now you can take compulsory grades out of age it really shouldn't be an issue. And the benefit of starting late is less wear and tear on the body.

I'd be interested to know how do the recent changes affect the in/out of age situation with compulsory grades? Was the previous option for a gymnast 'not quite ready' only to do national or regional grades but now they can grade at compulsory levels out of age the next year?

 

[Jenny]

A not quite ready gymnast could previously take compulsory 3 later in the year or the following year. It won't affect them at all. It will change things for the long way off but with obvious potential gymnasts. Maybe late starters or late bloomers or girls coming back from injury. They will be able to go 2 or more years out of age. I think it unlikely that we will see many British aa champions coming from this group but I think we will see some event specialists coming through this way.

Also I hope that it will increase the depth of good quality gymnastics at the British . Because coaches will be able to take more time to get things right. They won't need to push skills to make a deadline. However I think many still will push regardless so this will require a big change of approach with some coaches and clubs.

 

[Jenny]

Jenny is correct - lots of high hours kids quit (or get pushed) out of the sport completely. It is also worth mentioning (to soften my earlier comment) that the changes to the compulsory levels system may (or may not) help those who start late (or increase their hours a bit later)....but that's a whole other debate!

Jenny I am interested in your view on something. You say it takes an average of 3-4 years to reach full potential....is that based on a minimum number of hours per week over that period? If you were only doing one session a week surely it would take longer?

The older you start the more sessions you would need to catch up. 1 session a week isn't really enough to develop skills at any age past an introductory stage. You just wouldn't build the strength required. It would also depend on what level you were catching up to. Aiming for higher level would need more hours and input to catch up.