Parents Back to basics

[Gigimom]

My daughter started competitive gymnastics in the USAIGC division as a Copper 2. She moved up to Bronze the next year and placed 1st AA at most of the meets, including Regionals.
She was asked by the gym owners to move to USAG Level 6 at the start of summer 2025 at 10 years old. I had some concerns that she would have a not so great season due to the switch from the USAIGC program to USAG, where girls who have started in USAG have had many more practice hours and more rigorous training on form, technique, etc.
My concerns were valid, as she has struggled so much this season at the meets. Her AA scores have ranged from 32.95 to mid 35s. Clearly, not enough to be placing aside from an occasional medal on one event or a a low placement AA.
Obviously, she will be repeating Level 6. But my concern is that her issues are all form-related. Her split jumps aren't 180; her BHS on beam has bent arms and knees; her tuck jump on floor is low on the landing, etc., etc.
Some of the Level 6 skills she had way before making the switch to USAG, which I am sure is part of the problem (muscle memory performing skills incorrectly.)
My question is,
Is it even possible for her to undo any of the muscle memory and bad habits she formed while in the USAIGC program? She practices 17.5 hours a week. She just went through a major growth spurt, growing about 4 inches and gaining 15 lbs since she started Level 6. (She is solid muscle and very strong) I have her in PT once a week with a physical therapist in the gym to work on building a better mind/body connection and to strengthen her core and her hip flexors.
I already pay a TON of money for gymnastics and don't want to pay for weekly private lessons on top of everything else, although I do have her do them here and there when she needs extra help getting a skill. I feel like the coaches should be focusing on form and technique, but I see a lot of repetitive skill training, routines, etc., and it concerns me that practicing the skill over and over with bent knees or arms is just reinforcing bad muscle memory.
My daughter is dedicated and hard-working and sacrifices a lot of social life and school events with friends for gymnastics, all at her own will. I always tell her she can skip a day, but she rarely will (only if it's a bestie's birthday during a non comp week once in a blue moon).
Last year, she would've been devastated with her scores and placements if she had results like she is getting now. She cried hysterically at home after missing 1st at States by a tenth of a point. This year, she says things like "at least I didn't come in last," when placing second to last, or "I did so good," when in reality she didn't do that great. I am glad that she has a good attitude and is loving gymnastics regardless of her scores. However, I don't want her to become okay with mediocre. She has always been a very competitive kid who wants to "be the best at being the best" (direct quote from her LOL). I don't want her settling for less than that, and quite frankly, I don't want her to have mediocre results either. She works too hard for that.
I have expressed my concern with her coaches on occasion, and I get told that she needs time and strength to perform her skills with correct form.
Am I expecting too much too soon? Can she actually fix her form over the next year?
Sorry for the long-winded post!

 

[NutterButter]

I can see why you are concerned. What experience does your gym have with L9/L10? How many? How do they do? What was the score range of the strongest L6’s?

 

[Gigimom]

I can see why you are concerned. What experience does your gym have with L9/L10? How many? How do they do? What was the score range of the strongest L6’s?

Currently, there are a handful of L9 and one L10. Our best L6's scored in the 36 range.
Back story: USAG head coach left gym 2 years ago and all the L4s and L5s (minus one or two) went with her. There were no L3s at the time. All the L6s and up stayed. We were at USAIGC when this happened. Immediately after this occurred, owners sold gym to new owners. I assume they wanted to build a younger DP program because the L4s and L5s left.
And here we are ...

 

[NutterButter]

Sorry for all the questions - did she score out of L4?

 

[Gigimom]

Don't be sorry! Thanks for taking time to reply.
Never had to score out of L4. From my understanding, you can petition to go from IGC to USAG under certain circumstances. Not sure of the specifics, but it happened!
That is also some of my concern. We were recently at a meet, and the prior session was competing. Young, like L2, I believe. And I could see the perfection in their technique. Then, during our session, L5 was competing. And again, you can see they are all doing same routines, and you can see which gymnasts have perfect form and which ones who don't. And that's where I am questioning how my daughter is going to be able to continue to compete against girls who have their technique perfected. I obviously see the difference during her meets, but now I got to witness the lower levels competing. Clearly, the girls that aren't executing each skill correctly won't score out to go to the next level and so on and so on. How can my daughter ever catch up? Even repeating L6, is it even possible?
Her form isn't terrible by any means. But it isn't where it needs to be in order to be an L6 had she been in Usag from the start. Am I making sense?

 

[NutterButter]

Huh...I learned something new! I didn't know you could switch like that between USIGC and USAG w/o scoring out of L4. It's harder to switch from Xcel to DP w/o competing L4.

Anyways, it is absolutely possible for your DD to catch up on form but the real question is can your current gym do it? You may want to have her evaluated at a few other gyms and see what they say. I usually don't think private lessons are necessary but in your DD's case it might be the most efficient way to correct technique/form depending on where her deficits are.

Also, that was a big jump going from USAIGC to L6! Do you know if her deductions were simply being 'tenthed to death' or did she have elements missing from her routines? Did her scores go up during the season? Do you know if she regularly received credit for her beam connections? Does she fall during routines? Is she weak on one event? I'm just trying to think of some different ways to explain her scores as that might make a difference in whether you should change gyms. If she started the season in the 32's AA then ended in the 35's - I'd say that is great improvement overall. It might suggest she wasn't truly ready for L6 but also that she's going in the right direction and just needs another year (and if you are otherwise happy with her gym, a change may not be needed).

 

[Gigimom]

It was a big jump, and I think she should've been placed in 4 or 5 and had to score out, but what's done is done. I just didn't know then what I know now.
So I just went and looked up all her scores. I had the 32.95 wrong. It was 33.95. Here is the order of scores: 35.40, 34.875, 33.95, 35.725. She scratched 2 meets for the first time ever, one for a blizzard and one for the flu.
I believe on all events except for bars, she is being one tenthed to death, which is what I have been saying all year. Beam is her best event, fell once on full turn this season. She competes a roundoff back tuck dismount beautifully. Her only issues are her form on her BHS and her split jumps. So split jumps not being 180 is more than 1/10 deduction.
She is still competing Tsuk timer vault, although she practices Yurchenko. She isn't ready to compete it, though. Last meet she placed 4th on Vault, which is usually not her best event. But I think her deductions come from lack of distance coming off the table and she also says that she pikes. Can't seem to fix the piking apparently.
Floor was always a strong even for her. Now her problem is the front tuck and her leaps. She has a terrible switch leap so it was replaced with a sissone and another leap. Her straddle jump has improved a lot. Her coach added a full and a half turn to get another B? skill in there in case she comes up short on her leap combo or straddle jump. Full and a half turn is good, but sometimes she wobbles at the end and drops her heel.
Beam and floor she looks polished and graceful and confident. It's the bent knees and lack of 180 leaps/jumps that are hurting her.
Bars is a hot mess, yet she has managed to medal on this event each meet. (5th, 4th, 7th, 6th). Her kip has bent knees, not fully extended. Clear hip is good. Cast looks to me like it's over the 45 above horizontal, but judges marked her as not having it at the first 2 meets so she tried hard for her handstand and now competes with a very messy looking, low, bent knees handstand. Last 2 meets she competed a layout dismount, with a slight bend in knees.
She absolutely loves her teammates and her coaches. I really like them too. I just want to make sure they can get her where she wants to be. I have looked at the higher levels girls' scores, and they aren't what I would want for her if/when she gets there. I will say for the record that the last couple of weeks, I have noticed her coaches doing more drills with her to get her legs straighter. I feel like it's so late in the season now, though, and wish this would've been the focus sooner. I couldn't care less about having the messy handstand on bars if she was executing a proper height cast and scoring higher.
My plan is to ask for a meeting with coaches and owner? possibly to discuss what I think she needs to be focused on for next year. Or is that overstepping as a parent?

 

[glitterrays]

It was a big jump, and I think she should've been placed in 4 or 5 and had to score out, but what's done is done. I just didn't know then what I know now.
So I just went and looked up all her scores. I had the 32.95 wrong. It was 33.95. Here is the order of scores: 35.40, 34.875, 33.95, 35.725. She scratched 2 meets for the first time ever, one for a blizzard and one for the flu.
I believe on all events except for bars, she is being one tenthed to death, which is what I have been saying all year. Beam is her best event, fell once on full turn this season. She competes a roundoff back tuck dismount beautifully. Her only issues are her form on her BHS and her split jumps. So split jumps not being 180 is more than 1/10 deduction.
She is still competing Tsuk timer vault, although she practices Yurchenko. She isn't ready to compete it, though. Last meet she placed 4th on Vault, which is usually not her best event. But I think her deductions come from lack of distance coming off the table and she also says that she pikes. Can't seem to fix the piking apparently.
Floor was always a strong even for her. Now her problem is the front tuck and her leaps. She has a terrible switch leap so it was replaced with a sissone and another leap. Her straddle jump has improved a lot. Her coach added a full and a half turn to get another B? skill in there in case she comes up short on her leap combo or straddle jump. Full and a half turn is good, but sometimes she wobbles at the end and drops her heel.
Beam and floor she looks polished and graceful and confident. It's the bent knees and lack of 180 leaps/jumps that are hurting her.
Bars is a hot mess, yet she has managed to medal on this event each meet. (5th, 4th, 7th, 6th). Her kip has bent knees, not fully extended. Clear hip is good. Cast looks to me like it's over the 45 above horizontal, but judges marked her as not having it at the first 2 meets so she tried hard for her handstand and now competes with a very messy looking, low, bent knees handstand. Last 2 meets she competed a layout dismount, with a slight bend in knees.
She absolutely loves her teammates and her coaches. I really like them too. I just want to make sure they can get her where she wants to be. I have looked at the higher levels girls' scores, and they aren't what I would want for her if/when she gets there. I will say for the record that the last couple of weeks, I have noticed her coaches doing more drills with her to get her legs straighter. I feel like it's so late in the season now, though, and wish this would've been the focus sooner. I couldn't care less about having the messy handstand on bars if she was executing a proper height cast and scoring higher.
My plan is to ask for a meeting with coaches and owner? possibly to discuss what I think she needs to be focused on for next year. Or is that overstepping as a parent?

Maybe you can video call or zoom, easier to arrange