What are the options for former gymnasts who want to train?

[ek2]

My question is regarding gymnasts who leave competition to pursue, maybe for a season, another sport (cheerleading) but realize they really miss gymnastics and might want to come back at some point. Are there programs within your gym that offer training options for those girls? My dd recently left gym, wanted to experience school life/friends etc. and started cheering for her school. Now she is really starting to miss gymnastics but because she has not done bars/vault for 5 months wants to work on those skills to see if maybe in the spring she could jump back in again. Her gym only offers rec classes or open gym once a week. She is definitely not interested in a rec gym class. Any ideas?

 

[cher062]

Usually those skills will come back fairly quickly. Call the gym and see if they will take her back. Maybe a few private lessons to get her back on track is all she would need. She may have to wait to compete to get things back to competition level.

there is always the Pre-Op option if you have a gym that offers that. Its usually less hours and good for those who want to compete but not do all the hours of rhe JO program

 

[gym law mom]

I would try a prep op program is one is available. That would get her in the gym on a regular basis and she can work on getting her skills back.

 

[vagymmomma]

Contact the coaches at your local gyms. We've had 4 or 5 girls come back to the competition team over the last year with similar stories. Some skills came back really quick and others not as fast as the gymnast would have liked.

Most of the girls ended up competing at a slightly lower level then when they left (all were/are optionals), but the girls (and parents) were fine with that because it was safest route and the girls were happy as a clam. They missed gymnastics and their friends. I've heard tales of gyms pushing girls in this position too quickly, so find a coach who is willing to let the girls train smart.

 

[fuzi]

I'd call the gym and see if they would take her back. If so, they might be able to get her on a modified training schedule until cheerleading season is over. I had a gymnast quit to do cheerleading after her 1st level 5 season. In the year she was out, all of her group competed a 2nd season of level 5. At first, she only came a couple of days a week to get back in the swing of it while she was still doing cheerleading, but once cheerleading ended, she started the full training schedule. She then had a fantastic year competing level 6 in the fall and level 7 in the spring. Point being, you don't know if you don't ask.