Skills that come and go?

[LizzieLac]

I am going to throw a question out there to see what some of the more experienced folks in the gym world think.

I am sure you have all seen this with your own kids as well as others. Child has skill, seems pretty solid, for let's say two weeks or maybe more. Then, all of a sudden can't do it. Possibly several weeks go by where they can't do. Then just as suddenly is seems to come back.

Why do you suppose that happens? Is there something the gymnast could/should be doing to prevent that bizarre lapse (since it has to be pretty frustrating)?

Thoughts?

 

[bogwoppit]

I think this is a very common issue, I know in the kids I have seen it has happened to most of them. They eventually get the skills back, but it can be frustrating to them, and seomtimes even to their parents!

My youngest has had kip woes forever, she has been working on it for a long time, though not very often. Right now it is here weekly, she has had it for stretches of time in the past and then it has gone, much to her frustration.

Growth spurts can really knock skills on the head and also sometimes tgymmies get a skill without really understanding how they got the skill. That may also come from different learning and teaching techniques.

I think they can only continue to work the skill with good form and a supportive coach and it should come back.

But also remebering that skills in the lower levels (excuse me as I can't remember what Prep op level your dd is, are often learned way faster than the harder skills that can take literally years from beggining prep to an actual competition ready skill. Think yurchenko vaults for one.

It is totally normal and I can guarantee she is not alone!

 

[LizzieLac]

DD is training to compete level 5 this coming year (starts in the fall for us).

She is actually doing just fine, IMO but she gets wigged out a little when things she was good at go bad. The one weird thing was 3 weeks ago she had her squat on low bar/jump to high bar and now she keeps falling backwards.

Proabably a simple fix and I have seen this happen plenty but wanted to see what others thought. And we also needed a light "drama free" topic!!

 

[bogwoppit]

My oldest went through that one for a while too, the squat on looks so simple, yet I think it requires a lot of bravery and sometimes just seeing it go wrong for someone else can get them a bit jittery. They really have to commit to the skill to make it, hence the falling backwards.

Lovely thread dear!!!

 

[Ingwe]

she had her squat on low bar/jump to high bar and now she keeps falling backwards.

My DD competed her entire L5 season and the one score out meet at L6 without ever mssing her squat on. Then last year as a L7 she missed that darn squat on for about 3 straight meets. It was in her head so bad and I felt terrible that she going through it. She just didn't get why she kept on missing (falling backwards) Long story short, she finally started making them by the last few meets becuase she finally stopped stressing over them.

A funny story, she was competing in the L7 regionals and about 3 days before we left for Mississippi she had a nasty fall on beam. She had a slight concussion (whatever that means) was brusied from the top of her head down her entire back. While were at the meet all I could think of was I hope she doesn't miss her SQUAT ON! Not, I hope she is okay on beam. LOL!! I guess all those squat on misses were in my head as well. So she goes on the make the squat on but fell on beam.

Tell your DD not to stree too much and that it will all come together

 

[Mack_the_Ripper]

I think especially the squat on and those sort of beginning level 5 skills are the period of make-and-miss. It was only training level 6 that I learned how to "self-correct" and understand what was going wrong with my body that had been right before. I'm learning to fully understand the skills that are newer - back flips, clear hips and giants, front walkovers and flight skills on beam, tsuk timers - and the timing and body positions that make them work. When I was learning L5 it was all guesswork - will I make the kip this time? Will my feet hit the beam on this cartwheel? - but I think I'm developing a sort of involvement with the technique of the skill. That doesn't mean I make it all the time! But it means I hopefully know what went wrong and how to fix it. I guess L5 is sort of a gate between the not-quite "real" skills (shoot thru, L4 vault) and the progressions to higher-level skills.

 

[10.0]

I have to add from being a gymnast and a coach myself a lot of times when you do the skill with really tight correct form is when it happens and frankly it feels weird, almost scarier that doing it sloppy for some reason. So quite ofen a coach will drill and drill "squeeze your butt" "tighten your tummy" "spot" and kids will continue doing it their way either because it is more comfortable or they just don't understand, then they finally get it but as soon as one element of the skill gets off again it goes away and it will contiune to come and go until the gymnast figures out what the "it" factor is for the skill.

 

[mumoftwogymnasts]

My two both do this, lots of different skills that come and go, and sometimes they are skills they have had for months. DD in particular gets really frustrated when this happens. I actually asked the coach about it and she said it happens at all levels all the time. I tell my kids to try not to stress and keep working hard, but it must be so frustrating for them at times.

 

[nettyinpa]

DD is guilty of this, too. She's back to balking on the back tuck. You can tell she's not going to do it by just watching her back handspring. I know she'll get it in time but sometimes I wonder!

 

[NotAMom]

Skills do come and go all the time. Here is my observation as a parent...

Like the gymnasts here already pointed out, at the lower level, it's mostly all guess work based on what the physical techniques taught, natural abilities and repetitions. Correction is hard to comprehend for them (especially for the younger kids). Growth has a lot to do with losing skills here, particular on bars and sometimes beam. It's extremely common for someone to lose skills such as kip, squat ons and (nice) handstands on beam.

During the mid/transitional part of career (say around L6 and early L7), skills are becoming more difficult and the kids are getting older. It's also more of a mental game for them. So, fear and nerves can kick in. That is when they realize what can "potentially" hurt even if they have not experienced the fall causing it. An innocent comment from a teammate is enough to set a whole skill back. Flyaway, FHS vault, BHS on beam/floor are some of the more common ones here.

When they get to the upper level (cannot speaking for the elites and the pros), the skills are just much harder. Plain and simple - even though fear still plays a part. Sometimes, when they learn something new, they may lose what they know previously in the progression. They may take a break and find that they have to "relearn" a skill or two. The good thing is at these levels they usually have more than enough skills under their belt to pick from in order to execute a good enough routine.

 

[nicci1999]

In my experience as a gymnast, skills come and go all the time. You will have something perfect one day, and the next you can't do it to save yourself. That unfortunately is the nature of the beast. Sometimes there isn't even a reason for it, it just happens. With time it will come back, it was there once before. The saying is three times lost(or at least, that is what I was told, don't know how many others say that lol), but each loss is a shorter period of time between

 

[cher062]

I am going to throw a question out there to see what some of the more experienced folks in the gym world think.

I am sure you have all seen this with your own kids as well as others. Child has skill, seems pretty solid, for let's say two weeks or maybe more. Then, all of a sudden can't do it. Possibly several weeks go by where they can't do. Then just as suddenly is seems to come back.

Why do you suppose that happens? Is there something the gymnast could/should be doing to prevent that bizarre lapse (since it has to be pretty frustrating)?

Thoughts?

Happens all the time. If I had a dollar for every time my DD went through this I'd be rich. I think there are a few reasons that this happens.

First is they are growing all the time. Their center of gravity gets thrown every time they have a growth spurt and they have to adjust again.

Next is their mental maturity is also growing and what they may have not even cared about before now becomes a fear issue and they have to get over it.

Another issue is pain. So many time my DD hurts some part of her body and is brusied which will effect what she does on other skills on any give night.

Now too with my DD getting her first period she didn't tumble well all week and was afraid of leaking or some other embarrasing moment.

Girls tend to get moody and sometimes its just the mood of the day.

 

[NGL780309]

DD hasn't really been doing gym long enough/advanced enough level to really lose anything, but she did stop doing her BHS without a spot for awhile after having done it fine for a few weeks. I asked her, not trying to pressure her, but just curious if maybe she was scared or something. She just said she couldn't do it anymore. It didn't make sense to me because she would do her ROBHS by herself no problem, she just didn't want to do a standing BHS. The ROBHS seems scarier to me, but what do I know.

One of DD's team friends has lost and gained her ROBHS so many times. It's a big frustration for her and her mom. She had it 2 years ago and gets it and then loses it. She's currently misplaced it again, though I'm hoping when we get back from vacation she'll have it back.

 

[FormFreak]

Coming from a former gymnast (still trying to regain skills) and a coach. I think a lot of the times the problem may be lack of body awareness. You'd be surprised how much that can help or hurt a gymnast. I know, because I have a lack of it. For something as simple as falling back on a squat on, it's probably because she's not keeping her shoulders over the bar (which her coach has probably told her). With better body awareness she may be able to realize when she falls off that she let her shoulders fall back. I'm still trying to figure out how to "learn" body awareness, if that's even possible.

Also, where her mind is during competition might also be a factor. She may be focused on what she has to do on a larger skill, that she forgets to keep proper form on her simple ones. Like she may be focused on hitting her long-hang kip when she does her squat on. Just a thought.

This is my opinion on the topic... others may disagree *shrugs*

 

[bogwoppit]

I totally agree formfreak. My youngest coach worked hard with her this year to focus on each move and not the next move. It was what really made her routines come together.

I think body awareness is HUGE in gymnastics.