Parents Is this normal? Really? :)

[dani4]

"beware of all enterprises that require new clothes, and not rather a new wearer of clothes"

 

[Pea'sMom]

I'll just say the same as everyone else...matching, yes! Our team does not go as far as hair or shoes. But HC has very specific, 'classic' ideas about how they should look. Warm up on AND zippered during awards. Hair high, tight and sparkled. NO tee shirts. And so forth...

 

[Gymmonkeymomma]

Matching hair scrunchies, t-shirts, "travel clothes" (different warmup/capris), sandals, backpacks.
During awards, sandals, zipped up jacket, absolutely no Leo's pulled down with sleeves hanging, no t-shirts!!

 

[momto8in10]

We had a couple of moms that would do the hair for all the girls, so the moms that couldn't didn't have to worry. We did have one mom that always brought her daughter, late, and with hair not even brushed. If you want me to get your daughter competition ready, maybe at least have her ready for us to work on.
We did two French braids, joined into a pony at the neck, with a ribbon woven through. It was cute, but my DD has hair she can sit on, so having that much hanging down her back in a pony wasn't an option. We found creative ways to braid, the best we could, so that it was not in her way, but she still looked like the team...even though her hair was slightly different.

 

[htimcj]

We have the same leos and warm ups but after that we can do our hair however we want as long as it is neat and out of the way, doesn't matter what is on the feet. Most go barefoot.

 

[raenndrops]

Matching leo and warm ups and bags... warmups on and zipped for awards OR leo and warmup pants OR just leo. Only time we did matching footwear was Championships one year "Follow the road to your dreams" Wizard of Oz theme... all the girls wore big red striped slipper socks - provided by HC.

HC also tries to keep costs in check (last year, $200 got us new leo, warm ups with bling on the back of the jacket, matching blinged out bag, and our first 2-3 meet fees... of course, x2 for me, but still not bad when I hear about $400 leotards!)
You CAN buy a t-shirt (and they prefer all girls going to Y Nationals to purchase the Nationals Shirt). The shirt of choice for parents is one that I had made... I own 4 of them (but I provide my own shirt for the shirt place to screen it onto so I KNOW it fits and I won't have to cut off the sleeves and neckline). When we order shirts for different meets (Championships and Nationals), I try to see if I can provide my own shirt - it works IF we are hosting... if another gym is hosting, I find out the largest possible size, get it, and take my scissors with me so I can alter it - I am horrible - no sleeves for me and no bound crew neck.

 

[Seeker]

Thanks for the replies! It's good to hear that it's pretty standard. It's true that as a "newbie" I have/had no idea what to expect and I have been surprised quite a bit already. But I'm not complaining, it's just interesting hearing other's experiences. Also, I am a bit nervous about the hairstyle. I'm not the best at styling dd's hair as it is and anything that requires gel, hairspray, pins, curlers, perm paper, etc. Well I'll hope for the best!

Perm paper???

 

[COz]

... no sleeves for me and no bound crew neck.

Ever? Or just in gym t-shirts?
I now have a very different mental picture of you than previously. There may or may not be chains and piercings involved in my mental image. There also may be stripy slipper socks

 

[profmom]

Yeah, thank goodness we decided not to go for the matching nose piercings and the gym logo tat on the thigh! But each year, the coaches run a bun clinic for new parents so that the buns can be done in the only acceptable way.

 

[momto8in10]

I also hate a crew neck and sleeves on a shirt

 

[Gymmonkeymomma]

Perm paper???

We used them to help roll the curls. Thank goodness I have not had to do curls in years!

 

[lovemygymnast]

Our gym has the girls match Leo's, warm ups, shoes and backpacks but hair is up to the parent/gymnast as long as there's no flyaway hair and it's pulled back away from the face, they don't mind.

I have seen gyms at meets with matching hair and one that stands out in my mind was a gym team with a giant cheerleading bow in a super bright color. I couldn't look at the gymnast, just the bow. I just wouldn't think that it would work well and might actually be distracting for the gymnast (and the judge).

Anyway, I like the uniformity of all the girls doing one hairstyle but our gym doesn't care about that. It's actually good they don't. We had one girl last year with very long hair and it didn't matter what the mom did, she couldn't find a style that kept it up through out an entire meet.

 

[gymbeam]

lovemygymnast- my friend and i refer to those as BABS. "Big *** Bows!"

i will be so disappointed if they start becoming a gym thing.

now, i like a typical-sized bow just fine, but the cheer-sized bows with big bumped hair in the front…please let that not trickle over into gymnastics!

anyway, we switched gyms this summer and its their year for new leos so i can't wait to see what my daughter's new stuff looks like and how much uniformity they require of hair, etc. ironically, the gym colors are the same as our last gym. kind of a bummer. i was hoping for something different, but black, red & white are pretty classy looking so i'm good with that, i guess.

 

[lovemygymnast]

lovemygymnast- my friend and i refer to those as BABS. "Big *** Bows!"

i will be so disappointed if they start becoming a gym thing.

now, i like a typical-sized bow just fine, but the cheer-sized bows with big bumped hair in the front…please let that not trickle over into gymnastics!

anyway, we switched gyms this summer and its their year for new leos so i can't wait to see what my daughter's new stuff looks like and how much uniformity they require of hair, etc. ironically, the gym colors are the same as our last gym. kind of a bummer. i was hoping for something different, but black, red & white are pretty classy looking so i'm good with that, i guess.

Let's hope those BABS don't trickle over! My DD's so small, it might make her top heavy! Lol

And great colors for Leo's. So much better than an eye popping flourescent.

 

[mom2newgymnast]

We used them to help roll the curls. Thank goodness I have not had to do curls in years!

Yes it's for curls. The hairstyle is a high slicked back pony tail with very tight curls. Fortunately my dd has fairly long and slightly curly hair anyway, so I think it won't be too hard to get it to curl. But I've never tried using any kind of hair products in her hair, so it'll be a learning experience for me. Most everyone on her team has longish hair luckily. I have no idea what would happen if someone had hair too short for a ponytail.

 

[mom2newgymnast]

I definitely think the gyms that stress the "team" mentality tend to require dressing alike. And that's okay. Especially with younger girls, it's important that the girls get in the habit of supporting each other - that they are NOT each other's competition. Gymnastics is hard enough mentally, they need each other as a good support system. If it takes me spending a couple extra bucks to get them along that road, so be it.

I really like this response and I think (hope) that this is the case at her gym. Her group is so new (they've only been together since May) and they actually meet at 2 different times so she only knows half her team. I agree that if dressing alike and doing the little things like matching flip-flops helps them bond as a team then it's a good thing and worth it. I have no idea what's going to happen once the meets start, because I think that all the girls are pretty competitive with each other already. But I really hope they can think of each other more as friends and a support system rather than competition. I guess time will tell..

 

[raenndrops]

Ever? Or just in gym t-shirts?
I now have a very different mental picture of you than previously. There may or may not be chains and piercings involved in my mental image. There also may be stripy slipper socks

No piercings (well, TECHNICALLY, my left ear is still pierced, but since my right ear is allergic to earrings, I don't wear them)... no tats... no chains. It is ALL t-shirts. I do own tops with short sleeves, but t-shirt sleeves are too long (picture down to my elbows)... and the only t-shirts I own are gym related, lol, so I guess it is just gym t-shirts When I provide my own, they are MY short sleeve shirts - in the same color as the gym shirts (the last 2 were royal blue... I happened to own 8 plain royal blue v-neck tops... I am set for black shirts too ). In a couple months when I decide I need a new gym top, I am going to take up a sleeveless version of the same top... because I discovered them this summer and i LOVE them. No matter that our meets are November - March in Ohio.

 

[twinmomma]

Personally I think the BABS and the matchy matchy flip flops and the fake hair is way too Toddlers and Tiaras for me. They're gymnasts. Not pageant contestants.

Our compulsory team wears the same leo, warm ups, and they all have a bag. They are expected to have their hair in a bun or bunish type style off their faces with the scrunchy that matches their leo. That's it. Seems fairly standard around here, although there are a FEW teams we've seen with the bows and all the stuff.

 

[rosettasmom]

Lord help me if we have a bow. It's taken me a year to accept scrunchies as part of life again ;-) I mean, I wear one to sleep in, but good heavens, not ever in public!

 

[mom2newgymnast]

Personally I think the BABS and the matchy matchy flip flops and the fake hair is way too Toddlers and Tiaras for me. They're gymnasts. Not pageant contestants.

I tend to agree with you about it being a bit too much for me which is why I asked. I am definitely not the Toddlers and Tiaras type and do not like the BABS ( ) or that kind of stuff (fortunately they don't have to wear any kind of bow at least!). But my dd is excited about the shoes and hair and all, so I'll try to keep an open mind.

I'll have to see what other gyms in our general area do once meets start. There are quite a few in my area and, from what I've read and heard, the one my dd goes to does very well in general and is considered a "serious" gym. So, despite their matching outfits/hair/shoes, I don't think they are considered frivolous or whatever. But who knows really? lol