Parents Training Hours at 5 years old

[Deleted member 18037]

No, less. Let her burn off some of that energy at the playground. Or doing crafts. Or daydreaming while she runs around the backyard.

This a thousand times

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Really! If she isn't mature enough to listen she is in the wrong class.

If she can't do as she is told ie not jumping to the high bar (hello broken elbows) she is in the wrong class.

If she thinks it is ok to wander into the gym and do handsprings when she should be on break she is in the wrong class.

That is terrible behaviour. As a coach she would be sat right out of my class until she could listen, it is a safety hazard. The coaches should be coaching all the children gymnastics. Not babysitting a 5 year old who isn't mature enough to do as she is told yet and is pushing boundaries all the time. No wonder she couldn't cope with the 'intense team' at the other club. She needs a safe fun environment.

Personally I would take her out altogether and run her round the park every day instead to burn energy. Make it clear that listening, following instructions and rules and not pushing the boundaries with behaviour are non negotiable at gymnastics for safety reasons. Tell her she can go back in a year and try again. Make it clear it is not her fault, she just needs to be a little older. Believe me she will have missed nothing.

And this

 

[Jennifer Rainwaters]

My younger dd is 6 and is competing level 3 this year. She started training when she was still 5. She practices 6 and sometimes 9 hours a week. She never complains about going, she loves gymnastics. No privates for her though. Things get corrected during normal practices.

 

[Peachy88]

One month out from her private and no issues. Everything has stuck, her ROBH is beautiful, and she hasn't forgotten anything. I am now wondering what happens after competition season? How will practices change? What has been your experience at lower levels and mostly low hour gyms?

 

[amiandjim]

Typically, after state at our gym, they will start working upskills for a few weeks and there will be parent meetings to discuss level placement for the next year. Then, when school is over (usually first week of June here), they will begin summer training hours. Our level 4s train 12 hours a week, so those moving up to 4 will increase from 9-12. Some practices will be daytime, some afternoon/evening. Summer is a time of intense conditioning as well as working new skills.

ETA: I just realized yours won’t be old enough to compete level 4 next year, so she will still be a level 3. It will definitely vary by gym, but most gyms use summer as conditioning and trying some new skills, so they may start working some upper level skills. It’s very gym dependent though).

 

[Peachy88]

Typically, after state at our gym, they will start working upskills for a few weeks and there will be parent meetings to discuss level placement for the next year. Then, when school is over (usually first week of June here), they will begin summer training hours. Our level 4s train 12 hours a week, so those moving up to 4 will increase from 9-12. Some practices will be daytime, some afternoon/evening. Summer is a time of intense conditioning as well as working new skills.

ETA: I just realized yours won’t be old enough to compete level 4 next year, so she will still be a level 3. It will definitely vary by gym, but most gyms use summer as conditioning and trying some new skills, so they may start working some upper level skills. It’s very gym dependent though).

Yes she will be Level 3 next year.

 

[Sasha]

Yes she will be Level 3 next year.

For the rest of her group that will have just completed Level 3, usually 1 of 2 things might happen depending on your gym's preferences..

1) The whole L3 group 'moves up' to training Level 4, so essentially, this L3 group 'becomes' the Level 4 group. Girls who just finished Level 4 may or may not be part of this group, as it is common for a number of gymnasts to repeat L4 while others go to L5, and/or some gyms combine practice groups (e.g. L4-5 together, etc). Each gym is different. This group works on Level 4 skills (possibly beyond if your gym is one that trains ahead). The final decision whether or not a girl acquires the skills and polish in time to actually compete L4 will come sometime later.

2) Girls are assessed right after season and SOME are 'moved up' to L4 practice group, while others are targeted for repeating L3. Effectively, the group is 'broken up' and some move into a higher practice group based on what coach thinks is their potential to achieve L4 skills in time, while some stay in the current practice group targeting L3 again. The L4 group will work on L4 skills. The L3 group MAY work on L4 skills (with the hope that some may even move up to L4 if they advance more quickly than predicted), or the L3 group may be mostly focused on polishing L3 and other basics, depending on gym.

In either case, your daughter will be the odd duck out who is too young for L4, even is she is similarly 'ready' to her group-mates. Most gyms would probably put her in the new L3 group, which will be girls who are probably 'behind' in some skills as your daughter has already been practicing with a higher group than they have. Another scenario, if she is keeping up skill and focus-wise, is they might permit to her stay with her current group (which will be training L4), but move her back to the L3 group closer to season so she can bond with those girls in L3 once they are more caught up in skills.

Lots of scenarios, but whatever the coaches have planned, it is critically important that you don't show disappointment or discredit the coaching decisions in front of your DD. This should be a sweet and exciting time for both of you, and I can see a lot of parents wanting their DD to stay with their current group and learn bigger skills, when the best thing might be to have her get adjusted to the new L3s, even if they are behind at first. Every case is different, but as always, coach communication to understand expectations, along with helping your DD see that whatever group placement and focus she will receive is 'awesome' and exciting, is the best way for a parent to set the athlete up for success! That first competition season will be exciting times

 

[3rd_time_around]

One month out from her private and no issues. Everything has stuck, her ROBH is beautiful, and she hasn't forgotten anything. I am now wondering what happens after competition season? How will practices change? What has been your experience at lower levels and mostly low hour gyms?

She's doing BHS at age 5???? This concerns me. This whole thing concerns me. But I've only been around the gym for 15 years, had a level 10, level 5, and now a Level 2 gymnast. I've seen girls train with teams that weren't competing yet. They did not learn routines, they learned and perfected the skills. During routine times, they watched and cheered and sometimes were given conditioning or safe drills to do during the time the rest of the team did routines. Our gym has very large teams, with 5 year olds up to 18 year olds. Everyone learns the routines in practice with rare exceptions for the ones struggling to get it.

Also, just remember that this is a marathon, not a sprint. There are age limits to levels, and she will have to wait until she is 7 to even try to compete or score out of level 4. She has all this time to learn skills and basics. Be careful not to fall into the trap.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

One month out from her private and no issues. Everything has stuck, her ROBH is beautiful, and she hasn't forgotten anything. I am now wondering what happens after competition season? How will practices change? What has been your experience at lower levels and mostly low hour gyms?

So you have paid extra for her to know routines that she won’t compete until fall. Or is it next winter?

Now that meet season is winding down.....

There will likely be a period of time where no routines are done and uptraining starts more seriously. Hours may be different during the off /summer season.

During this time it will be decided which kids will compete which level. Not an issue for your daughter she will be L3.

The L3s that did compete, most of those will likely move up to L4. There perhaps may be some staying back, but most will likely move to L4.

There will then be a new group of L3 kids that will start training with your daughter. They won’t know the routines. So they will start learning the routines, your daughter already knows, but unfortunately can’t move on from because of her age

If she stays interested she is likely to have a rockin season

 

[SMH]

Once meet season is over, our gym starts splitting the kids up into groups- the ones repeating level 3 and the ones moving on to 4. Nothing ‘official’ right away, but you slowly see shifting happen in training groups. The group moving to 4 starts to uptrain more earnestly, while the level 3 group does some uptraining, but not a whole bunch. A month or so after states, every gymnast gets a paper evaluation with a few notes in each event, and a ‘projected level’ for next season.

 

[Peachy88]

Not every gym or coach is the same as yours and your experience. I tried to breach the subject with her coach of her doing other things while the girls worked on the routine but she never did anything different and I wanted to support the coach even though there are many things I don’t agree with. Many girls repeat level 3 and there are a number in her training group who did not compete this year either so she’s not alone. I do worry about her getting bored but she hasn’t yet and understands she has to be 6 for level 3 and 7 for level 4 ( but could move to optionals age wise)

Also, why can’t a 5 year old do a back hand spring? She can connect two too. Is this a problem? She just does it.

Also it is only a marathon if your goal is level 10 or something long term. I am not sure I want her competing past level 7 or 8 some day, but for now the skills come easy and she is having a blast.

 

[Peachy88]

Once meet season is over, our gym starts splitting the kids up into groups- the ones repeating level 3 and the ones moving on to 4. Nothing ‘official’ right away, but you slowly see shifting happen in training groups. The group moving to 4 starts to uptrain more earnestly, while the level 3 group does some uptraining, but not a whole bunch. A month or so after states, every gymnast gets a paper evaluation with a few notes in each event, and a ‘projected level’ for next season.

I really like the idea of a projected level! A clear idea of what they think however they realize that you could really take off as well or fall behind (don’t get her kip consistent).

 

[Sasha]

Also, why can’t a 5 year old do a back hand spring? She can connect two too. Is this a problem? She just does it.

I think the reason that you are hearing some cautionary criticism is that so many of the folks on here have developed a pretty keen sense, over their many years of experience, of what 'proper' progression, technique and fundamentals are (especially for the highly technically-critical JO pathway) , and the minimum ages typically associated with the physical and mental ability and maturity to really achieve that high bar. Many folks here have become highly critical of gyms who do not necessarily follow good form, technique, or age recommendations. For example, performing a bridge alone (without support from a coach) is a highly controversial topic for those athletes under age 5. Therefore, if a 5 year old is already encouraged to be doing back handsprings (a progression already far advanced than a bridge), it is often assumed that the coaches are potentially naive, negligent (safety issues), or simply sloppy in coaching. Not all share this view, but it is a very, very common view.

Just google "5 year old back handspring" (or even worse, 4 year old, 3 year old or 2 year old!) and know that at least 90% of the thousands of videos posted by giddy, but naive, parents are cringe-worthy to many here on CB. The "back handsprings" performed by nearly all of these 5 year olds have horrible form mistakes at best, and are a neck-injury waiting to happen at worst to those who understand what an actual backhandspring should look like. The vast majority of children under age 6 doing BHS are 'chucking' them and learning bad habits.

Also wrapped into the bias here on CB is the generally held understanding that there is 'proper' tumbling skill technique for skills like BHS, and the "sloppier" versions often coached for Cheer, Recreational gym, and in some places, Xcel. I believe you said you were in a low hours gym with not a lot of choices around. Your gym may very well take a more recreational or cheer approach to teaching tumbling. I don't know this of course, but it is one possibility.

All that said, your daughter and coach may very well be an exception, and she may very well have a technically beautiful BHS and other skills. Just please understand that she would be the distinct exception to the rule otherwise seen 1000s of times in the collective experience of those here on CB who really do have you and your daughter's best interest at heart! I promise!

So that is my take on where the skepticism and push-back is coming from.

 

[Sasha]

Thank you for sharing those! She is adorable.

I'm not a coach, but there are amazing coaches here on this board who might be able to give you some understanding of her progress on that skill.

To my parent eye, I'd say...

She looks to be doing it reasonably safely - yay! Sidenote - is she on the tall or long-limbed side for 5 years old? That helps if so. The shorties that are still built like toddlers have the more worrisome form, typically, as they are more likely to hit their heads because of their short arms.
Her round off form looks pretty sound (I am no expert, so coaches correct me here, but nothing hugely awful jumped out).
Her BHS form has some issues, as you seem to already know.
Her tumble track, unsurprisingly, looked a bit better than her floor (that is common).
Still LOTS of work to do to really have a 'nice' single BHS, so I hope that her coaches will be doing LOTS of shaping drills before encouraging the double-BHS too much. Getting a clean single BHS is the key to connecting the second.

Personally, I have seen a LOT of kids where your daughter is, form-wise, and many of them were able to clean up with patient and knowledgeable coaches.

I hope she continues to love gymnastics and she has a wonderful L3 season next year!

 

[Peachy88]

Thank you for sharing those! She is adorable.

I'm not a coach, but there are amazing coaches here on this board who might be able to give you some understanding of her progress on that skill.

To my parent eye, I'd say...

She looks to be doing it reasonably safely - yay! Sidenote - is she on the tall or long-limbed side for 5 years old? That helps if so. The shorties that are still built like toddlers have the more worrisome form, typically, as they are more likely to hit their heads because of their short arms.
Her round off form looks pretty sound (I am no expert, so coaches correct me here, but nothing hugely awful jumped out).
Her BHS form has some issues, as you seem to already know.
Her tumble track, unsurprisingly, looked a bit better than her floor (that is common).
Still LOTS of work to do to really have a 'nice' single BHS, so I hope that her coaches will be doing LOTS of shaping drills before encouraging the double-BHS too much. Getting a clean single BHS is the key to connecting the second.

Personally, I have seen a LOT of kids where your daughter is, form-wise, and many of them were able to clean up with patient and knowledgeable coaches.

I hope she continues to love gymnastics and she has a wonderful L3 season next year!

Despite asking her magic 8 ball if her coach would let her do two in a row, and the ball responding "most certainly" her coach only lets her do one for now.

 

[Peachy88]

Thank you for sharing those! She is adorable.

I'm not a coach, but there are amazing coaches here on this board who might be able to give you some understanding of her progress on that skill.

To my parent eye, I'd say...

She looks to be doing it reasonably safely - yay! Sidenote - is she on the tall or long-limbed side for 5 years old? That helps if so. The shorties that are still built like toddlers have the more worrisome form, typically, as they are more likely to hit their heads because of their short arms.
Her round off form looks pretty sound (I am no expert, so coaches correct me here, but nothing hugely awful jumped out).
Her BHS form has some issues, as you seem to already know.
Her tumble track, unsurprisingly, looked a bit better than her floor (that is common).
Still LOTS of work to do to really have a 'nice' single BHS, so I hope that her coaches will be doing LOTS of shaping drills before encouraging the double-BHS too much. Getting a clean single BHS is the key to connecting the second.

Personally, I have seen a LOT of kids where your daughter is, form-wise, and many of them were able to clean up with patient and knowledgeable coaches.

I hope she continues to love gymnastics and she has a wonderful L3 season next year!

Oh, and I have been checking it with an elite gym an hour from here that we would probably have to move to at Optionals (if she continues) to make sure she wasn't making too many bad habits. She will be going there for camp this summer.

 

[Sasha]

Oh, and I have been checking it with an elite gym an hour from here that we would probably have to move to at Optionals (if she continues) to make sure she wasn't making too many bad habits. She will be going there for camp this summer.

Well the camp should certainly be fun

It's good there is an option for optionals, even if an hour away (some are worse! but an hour is still a lot). So tough to know how to set our young ones up for the potential of success, not knowing what the future holds.

I'm not sure of your current gym's focus or capacity to train very polished upper compulsories in readiness for the demands of optionals, particularly if the target optional gym has elite athlete training in their repertoire. But if you're in contact with coaches as the optional gym, and they have said flat out that your current gym is a good "feeder" program for the kind of athletes that they will be looking for as optionals, then you should be in good shape. Always good to know what might be on the horizon.

 

[Peachy88]

Well the camp should certainly be fun

It's good there is an option for optionals, even if an hour away (some are worse! but an hour is still a lot). So tough to know how to set our young ones up for the potential of success, not knowing what the future holds.

I'm not sure of your current gym's focus or capacity to train very polished upper compulsories in readiness for the demands of optionals, particularly if the target optional gym has elite athlete training in their repertoire. But if you're in contact with coaches as the optional gym, and they have said flat out that your current gym is a good "feeder" program for the kind of athletes that they will be looking for as optionals, then you should be in good shape. Always good to know what might be on the horizon.

Absolutely not the case that her gym is a feeder. If she finishes the camp this summer and wants to train there, I guess I will be driving. We will continue to reevaluate as she progresses and matures.

 

[suebee]

Another thing to be aware of is that the camp at the farther away, gym may get you absolutely no exposure to team coaches and team kids. Team camp is usually only for members of the team.

 

[Peachy88]

Another thing to be aware of is that the camp at the farther away, gym may get you absolutely no exposure to team coaches and team kids. Team camp is usually only for members of the team.

It is an open camp for girls training for competition but on other teams. She was already invited to their preteam so if she wanted to go there she would probably be offered something. Or not, then no driving for mom!