Women Awful training session!

[gymgurl]

Okay, the last few training sessions have been awful for me. The problem with this time of year is that its the time of year where groups switch around and everything is a bit uncertain.

A bit of background information:
There are 3 different tiers of gymnastics competition - IDP (elite path) NDP (general path) and SS (less hours, less competitive).

Okay so recently our coach has needed us to 'lock in' for next year and Its a bit more complicated for me as i am currently in year 12 and will no longer be at school next year. I said yes assuming uni schedule allows it. However after the past few training sessions i'm not so sure.

So it is new skills time and i am getting no where at the moment. Before comp season i could BHS on high beam with a light spot now i won't go on floor beam without a spot. I am scared of everything on beam. I just wouldn't go for anything today and for me that is rare. I've never been scared of anything before and i just wouldn't go for anything. Then came tumble time. I have been learning to twist and i did one awesome one and then they were just plain awful and just very interesting to say the least. I am not progressing and its frustrating.

Secondly, I am the oldest on my team and am older than the next oldest by 2 years which is fine as i get along better with younger people than older people anyway. But it also puts a whole lot of pressure on me and i feel like i should advance quicker and be a better gymnast than those who are younger. I know it doesn't work like that in gymnastics but it is really hard to watch 12 year olds over take you or come close to your ability anyway. I guess i can't expect it considering that i have made it to training level 7 in less than 3 years and it has been rushed when a lot of these girls have been doing gym for a lot longer.

Thirdly, at the moment we have 2 coaches and coach 1 is great she is a fantastic coach who came last year and has done a world of change for our squad. She is fantastic. coach 2 is a little more frustrating she doesn't really give any constructive criticism but 'that was disgusting do it again!' and has massive mood swings as well so its really difficult to pick what mood she is in. Coach 1 who i love is moving to NDP because the current NDP head coach is moving to IDP and so i am not sure who we are going to be left over with and if we are only having coach 2 i don't really want to continue next year. I am sick of having so many coaching swaps and its driving me insane. I just wish we could have one coach that stuck around for a bit. Also, now that coach 1 is moving to NDP she has also offered some SS girls to move across to NDP and lets be honest they are the only people who she really helps at the moment.

Basically its times like this that make me feel like i should just quit next year. The other option is i just go to tumbling and do that for a year instead. I really want to compete but i feel like i've hit a brick wall and just am not progressing any further. Honestly at the end of gym today i just wanted to quit but i could never make a rash decision like that so won't be quitting at the moment.

If you read all that congratulations and sorry for boring you

 

[rd7]

I don't think you want to quit, you love gymnastics, and believe me, when you get to my age the muscles just don't stretch like they used to - make the most of it whilst you can!

Learning twisting takes time for most, be patient and keep working.

Beam fears? You might be putting yourself under too much pressure, you've got new, harder, skills to get, you're finishing school, I guess you've got exams at the end of the school year? Take yourself back a few steps and work back to where you want to be.

The coach thing - you're virtually adult, maybe be you could work on your relationship with this coach if it turns out that they will be your main coach in the future.

And, if it all gets too much, or your Uni schedule doesn't allow then yes, keep on with the tumbling.

But you don't need to make that decision yet.

And who cares if a 12 year old gets a skill before you do, be happy for them, be the big sister, you can't always be the best in skills but you can be the best in other ways

 

[gymgurl]

Sorry somethings might not have been clear but coach 2 i get along with fine as a person i just find as a coach she doesn't offer constructive criticism. As for the 12 year olds getting skills before i am entirely 100% happy for them and i do look at the younger girls like younger sisters it is still hard to watch them advance quicker.

 

[rd7]

Ok then, am I right in thinking that you've progressed very quickly so far and now you've reached the level when it takes a bit longer to get the skills? Because you're older you can almost see the end of the road?

Why not set yourself some small goals and see how you go. For example 90% consistent flic on floor beam in 3months? Half twisting layout in 6 months.

And you could set some goals for what you would like to achieve before you finish competitive gymnastics?

Does coach 2 have a lot of experience at this level? Could be they are frustrated at not being able to help, in which case encourage them to find the answers you want. If coach 2 is just moody or quiet then ask lots of questions to get the help you need. Sometimes you have to work with what you've got.

Anyway, good luck, you've made the right decision in not making a decision yet, set yourself some realistic goals and enjoy your time as a gymnast.

 

[gymgurl]

Thanks you are 100% right when saying i have progressed very quickly and now the natural talent that got me here is not enough to get the new skills that are starting to pop up for level seven. As for setting small goals it kills me to not see instant progress but i guess its just because I haven't ever had to, i have always started a skill one day and had it within a week.

as for coach 2 i don't really know what experience coaching she has as she came to our gym about 6 months ago from another gym. She did compete level 10 and seems to know what she's talking about she just isn't constructive in her criticism. I don't think she has a lot of experience at coaching this level as i think she coached level 4 - 6 at her old gym as well and now that i am going to be level 7 or 8 (coach 1 told me she wanted me to do 8 or 9 but 9 is definitely unattainable) I think its new territory for her as well.

In addition, apparently a new coach is coming to take over coach 1 on our squad but rumours have it that he is quite the abusive coach and really quite scary - according to girls that have changed gyms. But we will just have to wait and see.

 

[Aussie_coach]

In many ways you are very lucky, I am guess you are around 18 years old. This gives you an advantage to be able to see things in a different way to the younger team members.

Not everyone has great people skills, it doesn't sound like this coach 2 does. She may have a lot of other gifts and knowledge but knowing how to get the best out of the gymnasts may not be one of them. But at 18 you can know how to get the best out of yourself.

The same with abusive coaches as you put it. My guess is that he is not abusive or they would not allow him to coach but that he is strict, the younger kids may struggle to deal with it but as an adult you will be able to see past it and get the most from your training anyway.

With new coaches the best advice I can give is give them a little time. I remember when I was young a new coach came and everyone hated him from the start he had far less knowledge than any other coach we had had. A lot of people felt he was a step down and left, but I gave him time. His lack of knowledge made him determined, and he went and learnt all he could and within a few years he was one of the best and most revered coaches around. Sometimes they just need time to find their feet with a group just like a new gymnast would.

As for the fear issue, the fact is that fear is a good thing, not a bad thing. Fear keeps us safe, it's what stops you from coming in the gym and breaking your neck. If you just wouldn't go on the beam, it could mean that your mind was distracted by something else, your mind then gave you fear because it knew that on that day it was not ready to do those skills.

 

[kgymn]

My suggestion? Talk to coach 2. You're not a child, so you coach should be willing to take your own observations about yourself into consideration. Tell your coach that you have found you progress better when you get more constructive comments, and are helped more by knowing what you SHOULD do than by just being old you didn't do it right. Honestly, this is true for everyone (if all you are told is how not to do it, how do you know what TO do?) but being older, your coach is likely to take it more to heart especially if you just make it about you and what you need from a coach, so it doesn't feel like a criticism on their coaching in general.

~Katy