Parents Sports after gymnastics

[mom2newgymnast]

I'm so impressed at how athletic everyone's kids are. I somewhat frequently ask my daughter (13, training level 10) if she still loves gymnastics or if she wants to try something else. She always insists that she only wants to do gymnastics. I still ask occasionally because I don't want her to feel like she has to stay in gymnastics because of an obligation. Here's about how our latest conversation went..

Me: I saw that xx from your gym is doing volleyball now. She looks like she really loves it. Have you thought about trying volleyball.

Her: I'm too short and besides I hate anything with a ball. I'm not coordinated enough.

Me: Ok. Well xx seems to be loving dance. That could be fun.

Her: Have you seen me dance??

Me: Well true. Diving? I know a lot of gymnasts do well at diving.

Her: Too scary. I don't like heights either.

Me: Good point. Track seems popular. And your brother really likes it.

Her: I hate running.

Me: Oooh, xxx just broke a record for pole vaulting. That would be cool.

Her: No. That involves running. And I don't really like vault as it is, so why would I want to do something similar to that?

Me: Umm.. cheerleading? Or T&T?

Her: Floor is my hardest event and besides xxx became a cheerleader and she's kind of obnoxious about it now. And too much makeup.

Me: Ok, I give up. If you ever stop gymnastics, what are you going to do? You can’t just watch Netflix all day.

Her: that’s why I’m not stopping gymnastics

this was all in good fun. She is happy in gymnastics and I think gets tired of me pointing out how many sports gymnasts are good at. I’m pretty sure that she would want to just stay in her room and talk to friends/listen to music/watch Netflix though if she wasn’t in gymnastics. She’s definitely embracing being a teenager.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

At our gym.….

We have had gymnasts transition to track, diving, volleyball and lacrosse.
Every parent I have spoken to credits gym to their success

And gone NCAA for diving and track. 1 Div1 gymnast as well.

My kid freshman in HS, L8(working some level 9 skills), has competed on her HS varsity gymnastics team, section champs. Started on the lacrosse team.

 

[mommyof1]

I am curious for those of you recommending diving and pole vaulting- would you think that a gymnast prone to mental blocks in gymnastics would transfer them to these sports? My daughter is afraid to try because she is SO tired of dealing with mental blocks.

Pole vault is scary but it’s a different kind of scary than gymnastics, if that makes sense. It doesn’t have the same feel as back tumbling even though there is maybe some similarity in part of the motion, and you can always see where you’re going. And it’s different because you are pulling on the pole. It’s more an intellectual fear because you know it’s dangerous and have seen people break poles and crash. It might be possible to get a block if you took off from the wrong spot, especially too far forward, and freaked yourself out, but it doesn’t seem prone to vestibular issues the way gymnastics is. At least that was my experience.

 

[mommyof1]

I'm so impressed at how athletic everyone's kids are. I somewhat frequently ask my daughter (13, training level 10) if she still loves gymnastics or if she wants to try something else. She always insists that she only wants to do gymnastics. I still ask occasionally because I don't want her to feel like she has to stay in gymnastics because of an obligation. Here's about how our latest conversation went..

Me: I saw that xx from your gym is doing volleyball now. She looks like she really loves it. Have you thought about trying volleyball.

Her: I'm too short and besides I hate anything with a ball. I'm not coordinated enough.

Me: Ok. Well xx seems to be loving dance. That could be fun.

Her: Have you seen me dance??

Me: Well true. Diving? I know a lot of gymnasts do well at diving.

Her: Too scary. I don't like heights either.

Me: Good point. Track seems popular. And your brother really likes it.

Her: I hate running.

Me: Oooh, xxx just broke a record for pole vaulting. That would be cool.

Her: No. That involves running. And I don't really like vault as it is, so why would I want to do something similar to that?

Me: Umm.. cheerleading? Or T&T?

Her: Floor is my hardest event and besides xxx became a cheerleader and she's kind of obnoxious about it now. And too much makeup.

Me: Ok, I give up. If you ever stop gymnastics, what are you going to do? You can’t just watch Netflix all day.

Her: that’s why I’m not stopping gymnastics

this was all in good fun. She is happy in gymnastics and I think gets tired of me pointing out how many sports gymnasts are good at. I’m pretty sure that she would want to just stay in her room and talk to friends/listen to music/watch Netflix though if she wasn’t in gymnastics. She’s definitely embracing being a teenager.

This is basically my kid except that she is about to return to the gym training L6 instead of L10. Hates vault and floor, despises running, totally contemptuous of cheer, refuses to try diving. Lives for bars, beam, and her iPad. Will not participate in any sport involving a ball. She has expressed an interest in ballet as something she can do after she is too old for gym, but Zoom ballet class was not a success.

 

[RTT2]

We've had very similar conversations to Mom2newgymast, but ours include, "I love gymnastics, why are you trying to make me do a different sport? Don't you believe in me?" So any attempt to suggest that there might be another sport that could be fun is met with extreme resistance.

 

[Mommysunshine]

I love all of this.
My xcel diamond DD is finishing up her freshman year. Did track and rocked the triple jump, hurdles 100 & 300, and discuss. Now we are doing a funny winter sports season in late spring. She decided to try wrestling and as of today is 13-0 and has won every match with a pin.

It seems true. Start with gymnastics, go anywhere.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

We've had very similar conversations to Mom2newgymast, but ours include, "I love gymnastics, why are you trying to make me do a different sport? Don't you believe in me?" So any attempt to suggest that there might be another sport that could be fun is met with extreme resistance.

All the gymnasts we know who left the sport made their own decisions about it. Both in choosing to be done and choosing their next or other sport(s)

** Some needed a nudge this year due to sheltering inertia. But it was more like pick something, you tubing at home not an option. They all got back in the groove quickly.

 

[mom2newgymnast]

All the gymnasts we know who left the sport made their own decisions about it. Both in choosing to be done and choosing their next or other sport(s)

** Some needed a nudge this year due to sheltering inertia. But it was more like pick something, you tubing at home not an option. They all got back in the groove quickly.

Oh I think we all know this. Like I said, it was more just a conversation that I thought was funny. I was just letting her know that she didn't have to feel obligated to stay in gymnastics just because she has been doing it for years and that there are a lot of different activities and sports out there. But I thought the way she shot down each of them was funny. And I love the sport and do not want her to leave it at all.. but if she choose to, I would 100% support whatever she wanted to do next.

And, fwiw, I do think it is impressive how many girls excel at different sports after leaving gymnastics. And I personally know ones that have gone on to do track, pole vaulting, diving, t&t, cheerleading, volleyball, soccer and lacrosse just to name a few.