WAG How long in gymnastics before a team invite

[Committed]

My DD just started in Mommy and Me classes and started team when she hit minimum age requirements

 

[triplethreat+1]

I have three DD in gym. The two older girls started at ages 4 & 6 in the winter in rec classes. In the spring ODD was offered team but we moved so I did not accept. The next fall started rec at a new gym. ODD moved to advanced rec in the winter (sort of pre-team at our gym, by not by invitation only) she went once weekly for 2 hrs. She was invited to team that spring, her first year was in a 6hr/wk ODP class that is more of a preteam (compete skills/flex/strength, ribbons based on score but no placements). MDD did advanced rec that fall and moved to precomp in the winter (trained with ODD but only 3hr, no comp). Both have been on regular team since the following spring (so at ages 7&9) and competed lvl 2.
YDD did preschool gym, at age 4 was asked to skip to advanced rec, but we didn't send her for a year (two in competitive was enough!). She is now in the advanced rec, just turned six. I'm expecting an invite to precomp or even team this fall but I don't know if I can handle all three (both time and money!)

 

[gymnastmom05]

DD took her first preschool class on the day she turned 3. Participated in that small program at a small gym until she was 5 and we moved to a new state. Started at a gym with the new move (rec only) and didn't really like how the gym functioned after 5 months so we moved to a gym where my DD's new found friends were taking classes. She went once and was instantly invited to join their pre-team. Started in that program a few months before she turned 6 and has continued moving up a level each year ever since and will compete as a Level 7 this season. None of her friends that attracted us to this gym are still there and she's the last of the remaining girls from her developmental group (pre-team) still there. I would have never thought she would be "the last one standing".

 

[ayyyrial]

I did pre-pre-team for very little kids when I was 4 or 5. I remember starting to learn back handsprings on trampoline and working a lot on conditioning. But it was too intense for me and I decided I just wanted to play with my friends instead. Came back to gymnastics and did some rec classes when I was 7 or 8, but I was frustrated because I wanted to progress but didn't really understand how. My body awareness was not very good, and rec classes aren't always great at teaching that kind of thing with limited time and sometimes not very good teachers. I spent about a year or two in intermediate rec classes (working on L2ish skills), then switched over to ice skating and dance.

I came back to rec gymnastics when I was 11 or 12, and this time I had a much better understanding of how to get where I wanted to be. My skating experience helped a lot; my dance experience helped a little. I also was much more driven by that age to progress - my goal was to eventually be on team and I really wanted to work hard to get there. I moved up to pre-team at age 12 and spent a couple months there before moving up to the L3 (old L4) team around the time I turned 13.

My gym's move-up policy was that once you completed all the skills on the "advanced" rec class, you went to pre-team, which was mostly focused on improving conditioning and form and working towards L3 skills. Once you got most of your L3 skills, you went to team if it was an appropriate time of year relative to the competition season. This was before Xcel, so I was really lucky that their policy was an automatic move up from the last rec class. At any gym with other criteria for moving into the JO track, I would never have been selected on the basis of talent or age.

 

[CLgym]

My DD was about 5.5 years old when she started a one-hour per week recreational class. About 6 months later (around age 6) she was plucked from rec and put into a 6/hr week developmental team/program with 8 other girls age 4-6. Selection had absolutely nothing to do with skills -- but was based on body type, age, natural strength/flexibility, and personality/motivation. After 9 months, girls from developmental team were moved into Level 3 or Xcel Bronze. DD competed Bronze at age 7, moved gyms and finally started JO (Level 4) at age 8.

 

[Gymmom0403]

My dd started in a rec class 1x week when she was 7. Did one session and moved to pre-team. Was on pre-team less than a year and moved to a new gym and joined old lvl 4 team.
She is now training level 10

 

[sce]

I have three DD in gym. The two older girls started at ages 4 & 6 in the winter in rec classes. In the spring ODD was offered team but we moved so I did not accept. The next fall started rec at a new gym. ODD moved to advanced rec in the winter (sort of pre-team at our gym, by not by invitation only) she went once weekly for 2 hrs. She was invited to team that spring, her first year was in a 6hr/wk ODP class that is more of a preteam (compete skills/flex/strength, ribbons based on score but no placements). MDD did advanced rec that fall and moved to precomp in the winter (trained with ODD but only 3hr, no comp). Both have been on regular team since the following spring (so at ages 7&9) and competed lvl 2.
YDD did preschool gym, at age 4 was asked to skip to advanced rec, but we didn't send her for a year (two in competitive was enough!). She is now in the advanced rec, just turned six. I'm expecting an invite to precomp or even team this fall but I don't know if I can handle all three (both time and money!)

I hope you can figure it out. Seems unfair to not let the youngest just because the other two are already on team.

 

[Vivianflips]

I started rec gymnastics at the age of 12.5 with little gymnastics experience and was invited to team almost 2 years later at 14.5. I competed as an xcel silver at the age of 15 before retiring last year.

 

[amiandjim]

DD did a year of rec at 3, invited to preteam at 4, and competed level 1 at 5. She then switched gyms and did level 2 at 6. Again, we switched gyms (I Know...crazy!) and because we switched late in the season and the new gym
was much more strict she repeated 2
(Ended up being great for her, won state 2 events and AA) and is set up for a nice level 3
year.

 

[Sarah_the_gymnast]

I did one session of classes (like 2 months?) and when I finished they invited me to team.

 

[FutureGirls]

Older daughter started preschool at 4.5, moved to pre-team track at 5. Level 2 at 6, then level
3 at 7. Younger daughter did preschool pre-team at 3. Moved to level 1 and level 2 through age 4. Turned 5 and competed level 2. Now at 5 is on level 3 and will compete at some point this season once she is 6.

 

[Dahlia]

Dd started gymnastics at 18 months in one of those parent/child classes at The Little Gym. Started then because she was climbing everything in the house and we wanted her to learn how to climb safely and in a safe environment. I really hated having to do the class with her, so she moved to a gymnastics preschool at 2 and did that for a year. Then she moved to the preschool rec classes for a year. At 4 she moved to a higher level rec class 2x/week and then to preteam a few months later. Preteam for 2 years (moving up 3 levels in preteam) and on to L2 team at age 6. This year a L3 8yo.

 

[vbdb]

My DD was a late starter. We put her in rec gym going into grade 2 after a friend's parent saw her keeping up with a bunch of new comp kids at a birthday party and suggested we give it a try. She spent 3 months in rec, was invited to precomp then on to the competitive team 3 months after that.
Her first year she did only one competition at old Level 1 then was moved up to a more intense group and did new level 4 that year. That was a big jump for her and she ended up repeating 4 the next year. She did 5 last year and will likely do 6 this year as her bars aren't ready for 7 yet. It's been a wild ride, I had no idea about the hours and intensity when we started this!

 

[SurpriseGymMom]

DD started rec gymnastics when she was almost 6. We have different rec levels (beginner, intermediate, advanced) and she took her time getting to intermediate (almost a year), went from intermediate to advanced in a few weeks, did advanced for almost a year then moved to preteam at age 8. Started competing at L4, is set to compete L8 this season at age 13.

 

[Mamabear123]

I put DD in rec gymnastics because her cousin was taking it and I thought it would be fun for her. Within 2 weeks I was approached asking if I would be willing to put her in the advanced preschool group. When she turned 5, they asked if DD would be on pre-team. I declined because she was about to start kindergarten and I felt it would be too much. They asked me to put her in 2 day a week rec. After kindergarten, she was invited to level 3. She competed level 3 as a 6 year old this past season. She is now 7.

 

[lovemygymnast]

Dd started with Mommy & me at 3. They asked her onto the youngest preteam for ages 3-5 at 3 1/2 within 6 months was moved to the preteam for ages 5-7 at age 4. By 4 1/2, she was training old L3 (new 2) & competed the week after turning 5. She's 9 now training 7.

 

[tdoesgymnastics]

13 year old Level 6 (April Birthday)

Tumbling/Cheerleading at 8
Level 1 at 8.5
Level 2 one month later.
Level 3 three months later.
Preteam a week after she turned 9.
Level 3 she was 10
Level 4 she was 11
Level 6 at 12
2nd year 6 at 13
Will skip 7 to 8 next year

She has always been the oldest on the team by 1-2 years.

 

[spider_monkey]

I put DD into tumbling when she was 7 as a way to keep her busy while her sister was in cheer/tumbling and I was trying to work. She was soon out tumbling her older (by 2.5 years) sister and most of the other kids in the class, so they recruited her for the gymnastics team (she wanted nothing to do with cheer). The coach placed her on Xcel silver, moved her up to gold after about 1 month, and she competed gold last season while she was learning bars/beam/vault and getting stronger. She will compete level 4 this fall (turns 9 a week before her first meet), and is so obsessed with gymnastics that I can't even. Next time I will do some more research on future costs of activities before I put her in something to "keep her busy."

 

[Along4theRide]

When my dad was 7, she took a 1-hour rec class for 1 month... Wanted more! Then took two 1-hour rec classes for a month and a half... Wanted more! Started looking around at other gyms, where she was invited to team after each evaluation. I had no idea what we were getting in to! She competed 2 years silver, 1 gold, 1 platinum, 1 diamond, and will move over to JO optionals this season.

 

[Along4theRide]

When my dad was 7, she took a 1-hour rec class for 1 month... Wanted more! Then took two 1-hour rec classes for a month and a half... Wanted more! Started looking around at other gyms, where she was invited to team after each evaluation. I had no idea what we were getting in to! She competed 2 years silver, 1 gold, 1 platinum, 1 diamond, and will move over to JO optionals this season.

Dd... Not dad. Silly autocorrect.