WAG New Member with a question about body type

[Half-Pint]

Hello! I'm a new member and the parent of a 7yo level 3 gymnast. She's in the middle of her first competitive season and I have a few questions.

I've been reading posts on the different body types and I'm not sure what type she would be categorized as. She is small for her age and has the bone structure of a bird. Tiny hands and feet. Not an ounce of fat anywhere on her to pinch. She is very slender but all muscle, with a long v-shaped torso. She actually looks tall and stretched out, until she's standing next to average height kids her age. She is very flexible.

I have observed her during practice and noticed a couple things. She is one of the first in her group to get new skills, but the other girls in her group are more controlled. She is a very fast tumbler and can really whip around on bars - sometimes too fast to completely handle. She has a difficult time on beam - she can get through her whole routine without a fall but she looks like a noodle up there. When she vaults she has decent form, but it looks like her torso is made of jello - she is wobbly in the middle.

A previous coach told me that because she's so flexible she will have to be even stronger than the average gymnast to control her flexibility. Another told me that she is very powerful but doesn't yet have the physical or mental control over her own power.

What I'm wondering is..... is this something she will grow out of as she gets stronger? Or will this always be a struggle for her? What sort of training philosophy is best for a gymnast like this: repeat levels until she can do the skills with great control, or move up and not worry about it, and assume her control will improve on its own as she goes? If you know a gymnast like this, what was their experience? She loves practicing but sometimes gets frustrated with herself over this issue; her teammates all seem much more "solid." I'm not sure what to tell her other than encourage her not to compare herself too much and just keep trying her best.

Thanks!!

 

[3gymgirls]

Your last sentence is all you really need to worry about - keep doing her best and don't compare herself to others. Every gymnastics journey is unique, and in a healthy coaching environment, none of them are wrong. Continue to be her cheerleader, and let the coach worry about the rest. As long as there are no red flags, she will be fine.

 

[Redford]

Hello and welcome!
First of all congrats to you and your daughter for enjoying the gymnastics expirience. To keep it that way lean back and stop worrying No one here can tell how she'll develope or what difficulties she will face, only time can.
I could name several skills she'll probably have a hard time with and several she'll get easier than the more compact kid, but I won't. What would be the point for you or your DD to know, she will figure it out once she gets there.
Both coaches are right, so trust them! I am sure they know what they're doing.
To me your gymmie sounds just like the average great, dedicated gymnast with her very unique strengths and weaknesses and that's how it's supposed to be!
Just be her mom, who loves her no matter what and she'll be fine.

 

[mouey77]

Except for mine being short, this sounds exactly my DD. She is a noodle as well. She is constantly being told to get tighter. We have had the same dilemma with moving up bc she has higher skills but they won't move her up due to the form/"looseness." I think my DD needs to gain more strength as well. Glad we aren't the only ones, but that flexibility must be some kind of advantage!

 

[krisnkids]

My daughter worried about this years ago, then I showed her a picture of Shawn Johnson and Nastia Liukin next to each other. One is short and powerful, one is tall and graceful, both are Olympic champions. While yes, certain body types may be more conducive to certain sports, it is not something to worry about for a little 7yo. Keep cheering her on and encouraging her. The conditioning and strength will come with time, all the girls will do the pushups, crunches, leg lifts, killers, etc. Encourage her to do her best, each day her goal should be to do something a little better/stronger/surer, not to worry about what others are doing.

 

[Midwestmommy]

If she is already getting ready to compete Level 3, then I could tell you what gym she is not at if she lived in our area. The only hurdle to realizing her gymnastics potential would be if she was at one of the gyms that screens tiny girls for body type and only want very short very strong kids. If you were at "that" gym in our state she probably would not be on the JO team, and you might need to check around for a more open minded gym that looks at other factors as well. Sounds like you are already there! My daughter has gained a lot of strength in the last few years from hours spent in the gym. Yours will too. We have a girl on our team that sounds just like your daughter. I love watching all these kids develop and learn in this sport. So fun, especially at meet time! Enjoy!

 

[billise]

Our gym seems to be more willing to move up the little ones (ages 6 - 8) even if the form isn't all that great yet. My DD (age 6, level 3) is like yours. She has all the skills but just looks somewhat sloppy doing them. Our gym's philosophy with the little ones seems to be "they will get it". That being said, we have wonderful coaches that seem to do a great job picking girls out of pre-team whom they "know" will eventually get it. I suppose that knowledge is based experience and on observations of other traits/characteristics.

 

[GymBee97]

Body Type has no bearing here. Ive' seen tiny and slim, tiny and stocky, tall and lean, muscular. What looks overweight. Just about any body type has been in the gymnastics I've observed and I have to say all body types have succeeded!! The goal should be for DD to have FUN!! Anything beyond that is gravy. If she is enjoying the experience then it really doesn't matter what the scores are, what place she gets and all that. Just encourage her to do HER best not the best. Be her cheerleader and enjoy the experience with her.

 

[Half-Pint]

Thanks everyone. I'm not worried for her, just curious really. Gymnastics is in her blood and she's grown up in the gym. It centers her. Our gym isn't one that emphasizes high scores and placing at meets. Their focus is on the overall development of each individual gymnast. I think it is a good place for her.

I know that you can't plan ahead much for this sort of sport, but I'm a researcher at heart and naturally curious, so I find myself reading these forums and wondering what could come next. I don't ask her coaches too many questions because they have enough of "those moms" to deal with already and I don't want to get my name on that list. . So, it's good for me to hear from others who have been in this spot and are now on the other side of it. Thanks for the reassurances and the ideas! I'm going to re-read whenever I need a dose of perspective.

 

[sportsmommy]

All gymnasts have different strengths. My dd is super controlled but not flexible at all.

 

[GymMom67]

Your DD sounds kind of like mine. A few weeks ago her coach said to me, "She's going to be a great gymnast. Her flexibility is really going to work for her once she learns to get it under control." I guess getting extra strength so she's more solid is what she was talking about!

 

[billise]

Your gym sounds a lot like ours!

 

[onebrokegymmum]

My daughter is exactly like this, always the first to get new skills but takes a long time to polish them. Around 8 she started to gain a lot more control over her skills and beam went from being her worst to her best apparatus, although any time off and she goes back to being wobbly very quick and goes back to being archy in her skills.

 

[Geoffrey Taucer]

Athletes can be roughly split into three body-type categories: endomorphs, ectomorphs, and mesomorphs.

Endomorphs are the shorter, broader, more "tanky" gymnasts. Shawn Johnson is an excellent example. Endomorphs tend to be powerful, and tend to do best with a punchy, aggressive style, capitalizing on their strength and agility. Their more compact build tends to allow them to rotate very quickly and also allows them to handle hard landings with a slightly-lower risk of injury.

Ectomorphs are the longer and leaner gymnasts. Nastia Liukin is an excellent example. Ectomorphs tend to rely less on power and more on very precise technique. If they are good at dancing, their long body lines tend to make their floor and beam look much more dramatic. They also tend to do better on bars than endomorphs or mesomorphs. At the very top levels, ectomorphs tend to rely more on twisting and less on double-saltos to increase their difficulty on floor, and you will rarely see an ectomorph perform a double layout, either on floor or as a bars dismount.

And mesomorphs are in the middle. Simone Biles is the first example who jumps to mind. It's hard to identify any accross-the-board tendencies, but calling them an "average" between the other two doesn't really do them justice either.

Now, there are two things here that I think are very important to notice. First, all three body types can make it to the top levels of the sport; there will likely be some stylistic differences between them, but a good coach should be equally able to work with all three. Second, all of the above-mentioned characteristics are tendencies, not rules; in other words, there are plenty of exceptions.

 

[Uglybetty]

Athletes can be roughly split into three body-type categories: endomorphs, ectomorphs, and mesomorphs.

Endomorphs are the shorter, broader, more "tanky" gymnasts. Shawn Johnson is an excellent example. Endomorphs tend to be powerful, and tend to do best with a punchy, aggressive style, capitalizing on their strength and agility. Their more compact build tends to allow them to rotate very quickly and also allows them to handle hard landings with a slightly-lower risk of injury.

Ectomorphs are the longer and leaner gymnasts. Nastia Liukin is an excellent example. Ectomorphs tend to rely less on power and more on very precise technique. If they are good at dancing, their long body lines tend to make their floor and beam look much more dramatic. They also tend to do better on bars than endomorphs or mesomorphs. At the very top levels, ectomorphs tend to rely more on twisting and less on double-saltos to increase their difficulty on floor, and you will rarely see an ectomorph perform a double layout, either on floor or as a bars dismount.

I was sat in the waiting area chatting to two of our elite seniors yesterday and couldn't help but think of this. One is short and tanky, the other much taller and leaner. If you didn't know for a fact that they are both amazing elite level gymnasts there is no way you'd think they both compete in the same sport.

 

[seoulmama]

I think the flexibility issue might be more of a struggle than her body type. A girl at dd's gym is so flexible, she is really struggling now that she's a bit older and needs to have more control. The gym has actually had her parents take her to see someone to help her learn to control her flexibility because there was a fear she could hurt her back on bars.