Parents Little things help

[Kcanflip]

My daughter is a 10 year old level 3 competing gymnast. She started the sport late, and at a recreational gym that didnt stress form heavily. We had our first meet last weekend, and while she was solid (no falls...got all skills) she scored lower than I would have hoped and was in bottom third of her division. She struggles with toe point and straight legs...just not super graceful in general. We have another meet this weekend. I'm curious if there is any one thing she could do or focus on in her routines that would help compensate in her scores. Even if it is not form related! I've heard sometimes just keeping chin up and a smile on their face helps in judges scoring routine higher. Any tips on how to sell those less graceful gymnasts routines in compulsaries??

 

[Kcanflip]

Oh by the way...at a more competitive gym now and they do stress form and try to help her but the damage ftom the first gym experience is done I think. : (

 

[skschlag]

First, I would say to focus on the fun aspect. When I ask my ds how his meet was, frequently I hear about th conversations he had with his friends between events, the fun stuff they ate for snacks, the games they played waiting for awards. Very rarely do I hear about something he did right or wrong on an event unless it is a big thing!

Other than that, I really try to stay out of the stuff unless D says something. Here's why. If I tell him he needs to remember to point his toes, and he is so focused on that, it is very likely that he could mess up somewhere else, and on some of his skills, taht can be dangerous. So I leave that part up to the coach. I would maybe talk to the coach about it, but I really would try to focus on the fun parts of the meets and not so much on the scores/placements.

 

[cbifoja]

Definitely don't stress the score issues! One thing I love about my daughter's competition attitude is that she understands how much scores fluctuate and she does not see them as a personal judgment.

Low scores mean room to grow and improve. My DD went from L3 straight into L5. It was a slap in the face to go from top 3 every time to not contributing to team score until halfway through the season. But man did this create very positive effects. Her scores went up and your DD's will too...especially if it was the FIRST meet of the season!

Use this to set goals. You might talk to her and see how she feels about setting competition goals that aren't score based. For example, I'm going to keep a strong toe point on beam this meet. Or I'm going to keep my legs pencil tight on bars for this meet. Something along those lines.

And hug her and tell her how proud you are of her even if she scores a 2.3. Do NOT allow any disappointment to cross your face!

But whatever you do....don't work at home trying to help her.

 

[gymmiemom]

I agree with the other posts, keep it light and focused on the how fun a meet is. It's easier said than done as no matter how much we preach that, we all love to see our children succeed and do well! But gymnastics should be left to the coach. The only thing I tell me daughter before she gets ready to compete is good luck and have fun!

The season is just beginning and in many ways I think it is a blessing to start off in the lower end or middle of the pack. It gives them room to grow and improve and chances are things will only go up from here on out. That will be even more likely if you set personal goals instead of focusing on placements. Good luck to her at her next meet!

 

[MaryA]

Definitely don't think that the "damage has been done" by the rec gym. My DD switched from a Y gym to a private gym and good form came with time. Focus on the fun but also on her own personal improvement. "Wow! This time last year you never would have been able to (fill in the blank)!" "I'm so proud of how hard you are working at gymnastics!" or just "I love to watch you do your thing out there!" Then go out for ice cream and all will be well in the world. I agree that most of what I hear about after meets, even the really good ones, has more to do with the stuff that had nothing to do with the actual competition aspect and more to do with her teammates. Given the choice between going home with a big trophy or ending up at the same post-meet restaurant as all of her teammates... well, I can't honestly say I know which she would choose, but it would be a close thing.

 

[Kcanflip]

Thanks all! I am trying to not focus on those darn scores but it is soooo hard. She got a lot of form attention at practice last night thankfully. Meet #2 is today...MY goal is to just sit back and enjoy! She really has come a long way from old gym, and super proud of her!

 

[AlexsGymmyMom]

I think form is something that just clicks at some point. My DD was a hot mess when it came to form at the beginning of her gymnastics career. Then one day it all seemed to make sense to her...like the lightbulb went on. Don't get me wrong, she still sometimes has a bent knees and stuff like that but not like at the beginning. BTW, my DD was also a late starter, doing old L3 as a 9 year old. She did half a season of old L4 at 10 year old. She moved to old L5 but broke her foot so did another whole season as a L5 at 11.