Parents Too many hours (gymnastics) / switch sports

[Gaby]

My 11 year dd complaints about the too many hours gym practice, and even she consider switch sports with less hours. Right now 25 hours / week level 6. Is it too much? And Her school has lots of homework.

 

[Gaby]

My 11 year old dd complaints about the too many hours gym practice, and even she consider switch sports with less hours.
She loves gymnastics. Right Now she has 25 hours practice level 6. Should I switch less hour gym or switch a different sport? I took her for a dance tryout . She does not like it . She hates diving because of height . I am confused. I just wants my dd can find a thing she has passion and really enjoy it. So far I only see she enjoyed gymnastics. Gymnastics has so much risk related to injury. Should I push her to other sports at the right moment ? I am a little worried about what if she has no so much passion for that sport and her life becomes a little dull. I pulled her out from gymnastics to do swimming,she seemed not like a happy girl. With gymnastics, she has more excitements and see her passion. Will I find the other sport inspiring her passion? What all the options for other sports?

 

[JBS]

I have merged two threads into on so all the advice for @Gaby is in one place.

 

[JPC13]

While 25 hours at L6 isn't astronomical, it's still a lot of time to spend on any single activity. My gym has a 12 year old L10 who trains around 20 hours. I presume that she trained 17 hours as an L6, as do the current fast track 6s. A lower hour gym is probably a feasible option if she wants to stick with gym and if it's a good gym with smart training the loss of hours probably won't matter in her long term development.

More broadly, there are a lot of sports in the world, and almost all of them benefit from the fitness and coordination that gymnastics provides, even seemingly unrelated ones. My daughter does Olympic archery recreationally as a break from gym. She's not competing at the national level, but she's pretty competitive at what we would call the "regional level" in gymnastics and she practices probably 1/10th as much as her competitors.

It's all about what your kid want to do. Maybe she love theater, or music, or choir. You just have to keep trying stuff but ultimately, it's your kid's choice about what she wants to do -- stand back and give her the space to make it.

 

[NutterButter]

That saying about leading a horse to water is coming to mind right now...you've given your DD lots of nice opportunities but you are frustrated that she lacks a certain degree of passion.

Regarding gymnastics - if the problem is hours move her to a gym with less hours or switch her to Xcel (25 is a lot for L6! Lots of L10s don't even train that many!). You say she has passion for gymnastics so this seems like an easy change up.

Regarding every other activity - I think you are trying too hard. Maybe back off for a bit and let her interests guide what you do. Art? Music? Theater? Volunteering? Maybe a trip to a museum once a month? The zoo? Also, it just occurred to me that all of the activities you mentioned trying are all individual sports. Have you tried a team sport? Lots of options there - soccer, lacrosse, basketball, hockey, softball, ultimate frisbee. My gymnast loved the camaraderie of her teammates but she was NOT a team sport kind of kid. My son is the opposite - he gravitated to any team sport and resisted all individual sports as a young kid.

 

[gymgal]

I woud try to get to the bottom of whether she still wants to compete but at lower hours or if she wants to quit. If she wants lower hours, I would look for other options - xcel, different gym. I think you have two daughters at different levels, right? That makes it a little more complicated if you are considering switching gyms but you have to find what is best for each of them, similar to if they were in separate sports

 

[Gaby]

Yes. My old one does not want her sister switch the gym. And I think younger one also like to be in the same team . She thinks it is like betraying her team. It is complicated. Some teams take it very personally about switching gym . I think 25 hours is too much for younger one. And her school also gives her too much assignments. Sometimes she do assignments until 12:00 , even more time than her sister .

 

[skschlag]

I think talking to her about what is going on is the best idea.

However, I do think 25 hours a week is way too many for a L6. (I think 25 hours a week is too much for any kid)

 

[JBS]

Right now 25 hours / week level 6. Is it too much?

The thing that is hard about hours is that they don't really correspond to levels that well. When an athlete is progressing and "riding the wave"... they can seemingly take high hours no problem. When they are not riding the progress wave (or highly motivated to make use of the hours)... then many of the hours tend to be wasted.

In my state... 25 hours / week for a Level 6 would be considered high (very high).

 

[Aussie_coach]

Most kids will resist change because they want to stick with what is familiar.

25 hours is excessive at level 6, and unnecessary. If she is complaining it’s too many hours now, it’s unlikely she will want to do Elite. And it’s rare fir a gym to ask for so many hours at this level unless Elite is the goal.

BUT the school thing is also a major issues. Of course the hours in the gym would burn her out if she is doing assignments until midnight. If she was getting enough sleep and recreation time then she might feel differently.

People are often quick to say “cut back in gym” but why not cut back on school work?

I would absolutely not allow my child to be staying up until midnight doing assignments. I would tell the school it’s not happening, I would allow for a reasonable amount of homework and then the books would go away.

Doing that much homework is VERY damaging for a child health. Sleep deprivation is deadly and will impact her growth. But in Order To develop well children need time for socialisation, imagination, sports and play, down time etc.

I know things are different in the US because homework is part of their grades and schools can force them to repeat grades. Neither of these things is the case in Australia. But that’s just unhealthy and crazy.

 

[Whyhellothere]

Agree that 25 hours is too much!

My daughter is a level 9 and is at gym 22 hours a week.
I feel like she’s always there with 22 hours a week! That’s the highest our gym goes hour wise and I feel it is plenty.
Do the hours increase from 25? I wouldn’t think she could do school with more hours than that

 

[Ty’s Dad]

Yeah 25 hours for a level 6 is a lot, my daughters gym levels 6/7 train only 15 hours a week. Regular level 8-10 22 hours. Training Hopes (level 8 and 9) 26 hours. Elites 32 hours

 

[Madden3]

It is simply not healthy for any 11 year old to be staying up until midnight doing homework. Children that age need 10-11 hours of sleep per night. You have many options, including telling the gym your 11 year old cannot practice 25 hours a week, talking to the school about the homework amount, etc. But something has to give.

 

[Gaby]

I guess maybe because the gym is top 100 gym, close to elite gym. That is why they want lots of hours for gymnasts. They produce about 8-10 , level 10, and 80-100% all get college scholarships each year. That is their philosophy.

 

[Ty’s Dad]

I guess maybe because the gym is top 100 gym, close to elite gym. That is why they want lots of hours for gymnasts. They produce about 8-10 , level 10, and 80-100% all get college scholarships each year. That is their philosophy.

My daughters gym levels 3-10 all average mid 37 AA. Since 1997 they have a 100% full scholarship rate, we also produce elites and have National Team members. We’re the Top gym in Northern California and I’m saying those hours are high for a level 6

 

[mom2newgymnast]

I think if she is saying it's too much, than it is too much for her.

And I do think 25 hours for level 6 is a lot for everyone in my opinion. My daughters gym maxes out around 22-23 hours for level 10s and they’ve been quite successful.

Regardless, she sounds exhausted and something needs to change. I hope you are able to find a better balance for her so she can enjoy herself again. I personally think gymnastics, or any sport/activity should be fun and something they enjoy doing. Otherwise, why invest so much of your time and energy doing it?

 

[Coach Kate]

Most kids will resist change because they want to stick with what is familiar.

25 hours is excessive at level 6, and unnecessary. If she is complaining it’s too many hours now, it’s unlikely she will want to do Elite. And it’s rare fir a gym to ask for so many hours at this level unless Elite is the goal.

BUT the school thing is also a major issues. Of course the hours in the gym would burn her out if she is doing assignments until midnight. If she was getting enough sleep and recreation time then she might feel differently.

People are often quick to say “cut back in gym” but why not cut back on school work?

I would absolutely not allow my child to be staying up until midnight doing assignments. I would tell the school it’s not happening, I would allow for a reasonable amount of homework and then the books would go away.

Doing that much homework is VERY damaging for a child health. Sleep deprivation is deadly and will impact her growth. But in Order To develop well children need time for socialisation, imagination, sports and play, down time etc.

I know things are different in the US because homework is part of their grades and schools can force them to repeat grades. Neither of these things is the case in Australia. But that’s just unhealthy and crazy.

As a coach, I've had athletes in middle school tell me they're staying up until midnight doing homework. Why?! Middle school grades don't even count for anything! It is absolutely ridiculous. I'm currently pregnant with our first, but my husband and I are going to homeschool in part because of how troubled we are by the school system here.

 

[JPC13]

As a coach, I've had athletes in middle school tell me they're staying up until midnight doing homework. Why?! Middle school grades don't even count for anything! It is absolutely ridiculous. I'm currently pregnant with our first, but my husband and I are going to homeschool in part because of how troubled we are by the school system here.

My wife was adamant that our daughter wouldn't go to school from the very beginning and she got so much crap from her family and friends ("what about YOUR life/dreams?!"), but she stuck to it and it was 100% the right decision.

If you have any homeschooling questions, feel free to hit me up when you're ready.

 

[JPC13]

The thing that is hard about hours is that they don't really correspond to levels that well. When an athlete is progressing and "riding the wave"... they can seemingly take high hours no problem. When they are not riding the progress wave (or highly motivated to make use of the hours)... then many of the hours tend to be wasted.

In my state... 25 hours / week for a Level 6 would be considered high (very high).

This is an interesting perspective. Do you vary an athlete's hours depending where they are on the learning curve?

 

[Gaby]

Even the grades don’t account for anything , but my dd always has strong work ethic or making sure all assignments perfect , making grades perfect , and making gymnastics perfect. This type of kids easily get exhausted.