new to this site

[sara's mom]

Hi, I am from MN. I have a daughter in 8th grade who is on the HS gymnastics team. I am new to this site and would welcome any advice on where to go to get grips, practice leos, ect.

 

[Tumblequeensmom]

Welcome to the CB! I also have a 9th grade daughter who is competing her first year on her high school team. She competed USAG for three years prior to that and is now in the "prep optional" program at her gym, which also allows time for the girls to be on thier HS teams if they so choose.

This is a great place for advice!

Oh... I've gotten most of my DD leos from Ebay!! Also, GK Elite has an outlet shop in Pennsylvania called "Down East". If there's something you see in the catalog or online, you can call this place and they can usually find a "factory second" for you at about half the price!

 

[kristilyn73]

Welcome! I have an 8th Grader too.. she competes USAG L8.

I am sure you will find this site extremely helpful.

How long as your DD been doing gymnastics?

 

[sara's mom]

She has been doing gymnastics since she was 3yrs old. She competed in USAG levels 4, 5 and 6, and was ready to move to L7, but injured her ankle and has had to take time off. Since then, she decided to compete on the local HS team and likes it, but feels the coaches are holding her back on her skills. Any advice???

 

[Tumblequeensmom]

Very similar story to my DD... she was training for L7, but she developed some fears over her back tumbling, the coaches were not trying to work w/her through this, comparing her to other girls, etc. (you get the idea)... and all this after a year of injuries for Katy as well (broken collarbone at the beg. of the season, ankle injury in Dec. that didn't fully heal til April ), etc. It just became too much. I immediately switched her to a different gym once she expressed all her concerns (heck, it was a complete mental breakdown in the car after practice one day).

BUT back to my original point... the gym where I moved Katy to has a very large, successful prep optional program. The girls work out three days a week for only 2 1/2 hours each time. Will they ever develop Level 9/10 skills? No.... will they learn more advanced skills than what they're currently doing? Absolutely. Katy had been working on her giants... was so close to getting them... had her BHS on beam with a light spot and so on. I fully anticipate she will get these skills back over the spring and summer months and be able to possibly compete them in her high school routines next year.

She is absolutely loving gymnastics again..... so I guess my suggestion would be to find a gym that offers a less intense, less pressured environment than where you were. That way she will continue to get a higher level of coaching than what she gets in high school. In my experience, the high school coaches cannot possibly uptrain these girls, esp. in the facility where they do their workouts. And many of the gymnastics coaches really aren't skilled at spotting or coaching the higher level skills. I sure wouldn't want Katy working skills she wasn't already comfortable with in her high school gymnasium. Maybe things are different where you are?

 

[Optionals United]

i welcome to the CB! im in 7th grade and a level 7 gymnast! 8)