Parents What to do if the gym that's best for one daughter is not best for another

[archangelcoach]

wow

Im a little late for the party but still Id love to add here. First I dont know where your old gym was but I sure would spread the word about it, that way no one else finds themselves in that position. Im an owner and a coach and their behavior is totally unacceptable. My apologies for this unfortunate situation. Its very disheartening and actully angers me. However it might help your eldest to know that in that situation it was probably only a matter of time before the same happened to her. I have a question for you as well. Does your gym owner coach and if so does he/she favor certain children and families???????

 

[gym mom]

So how is the new gym going ? Has your oldest dd tried it yet?

 

[Megley]

Hi, I just saw this thread today and wanted to add that we are very much enjoying having Bigtiny's youngest dd at our gym. My dd hit it off immediately with her and we are thinking already about playdates and sleepovers. I hope that her youngest dd is having fun at gym too - she seems to be! I think her older dds have decided to try competitive cheer - at least last I heard. I do hope that they are coming around to the idea of a new gym.

Our gym is not an elite gym, but we do have a few girls who are potentially headed that way and our coaches do uptrain. I think our coaches take the long view about gymnastics - the goal is not compulsories, but to get to and do well at optionals. At the same time, we do try to do well at compulsories and placed reasonably well at L4-L6 States last year. Our optional program is small but pretty strong and the coaches are good. We have a tendency to pick up a few girls from other gyms (including bigtiny's previous gym) once they hit optionals. I like to think we are the "happy medium" gym in the area - not too intense, not a giant program that requires a lot of repeating of levels. No gym is perfect, certainly, and ours has its issues for sure but at least the owner/hc is accessible, flexible and easy to talk to.

Anyway, just wanted to post and say how much we are enjoying have the littlest bigtiny family member at our gym!

 

[bigtiny]

Thank you, Megley! You and your DD have been so welcoming and friendly to us! We are enjoying the new gym very much and are happy that we made the move. Older two DD's are doing competitive cheer for now (not my choice, but it seems to be making them happy for now, so that's what's important).

It was really great to have a Chalk Bucket friend at the gym when we started and also a couple of others we knew from our old gym. By the way, Megley's daughter is doing GREAT and I am predicting she will SHINE in years to come (she made her BHS on beam the other day!!!) - not to mention the fact that she is a sweetheart.

Thank you everyone for your support. I am still somewhat bitter about the "old" gym and the way our situation was handled, but we have moved on. Little DD said after 4 hours of practice + 1 hour of dance at the gym the other day: "I feel GREAT!" I guess that's a good sign!

 

[dmytv]

moving

Look, I would move her. I am in the same situation except, it is my oldest who is moving. I talked to the owner and told her that my oldest wanted a different type of program. Most importantly I said that her program was great and I thought what she offered was wondeful,but it just didn't fit my oldest. My youngest though, loves it here and will stay. Don't burn the bridge and don't tell the other parents what your doing. Talk both programs up for different reasons and say that each of your childrens needs are different. Best of luck!

 

[Deleted member D3987]

I'm looking for advice. I have been feeling more and more strongly that I need to make a move with my youngest daughter. I think she could progress more and be happier at a different gym. She has seemed very disheartened since being shelved by her Level 4 coach and mostly ignored for the past month. The coach decided months ago that "She is young (6). We'll just have her do another year of Level 4." I don't believe that she ever even considered moving her to Level 5, despite scores in the 37's and having all of her Level 5 skills. I will not have her work with that coach anymore. My daughter is ready to try a new gym.

My oldest daughter is on the fence between Levels 6 and 7. They haven't decided yet where they are going to put her. She loves her Level 6 coach. She is adamant about not leaving the gym we are at and vows to quit gymnastics if I try to move her to another gym.

How do I juggle this when I believe that the best gym for each is a different one? I am willing to do the driving and cover the expenses, but I don't think either team will accept having the girls compete one on each team (they are rivals). I know the gym we are at now won't.

Whose needs do I put first? My daughter who has been doing this tirelessly for 6 years but says she may be done this year anyway? Or my daughter that the other coaches have told me is going to be "phenomenal" and who still loves the sport and has passion for it (but not at the current gym)?

Gym parents, I am at a loss. Please help me with your advice.

Thank you.

well then, we're not all the same. but...i have coached 1 sister when another gym coaches the other. i have coached 1 brother and same. i have coached a brother and not the sister. and the sister and not the brother. and then mix that all up anyway you want and some of us have done it all. if your gym won't do it it's their loss. and would you believe that some of us have had both boy and girl twins split up. and boy and boy twins. and girl and girl twins. stick around in the sport long enough and you see it all!

but the 6 year old is still 6. you have a little more time as long as the current gym is doing a reasonable job. and remember that the coach could be gone before you have to make a decision. give it a bit more time.

 

[Bobby]

... but the 6 year old is still 6. you have a little more time as long as the current gym is doing a reasonable job. and remember that the coach could be gone before you have to make a decision. give it a bit more time.

Isn't the 6 y/o turning 9 any second?
Does anyone know how this all turned out in the end? Is BT OK?

 

[Granny Smith]

This thread is from almost 2 yrs ago (OP)... looks like it was just brought up because of a similiar situation rather than a new thread being created by dawnmytv. Just wanted to throw that out there.

 

[bogwoppit]

Holy ancient thread Batman!!!

So funny to see old stuff dredged up as the answers are still relevant. I am sure Bigtiny is in a way different situation now!

 

[bigtiny]

Wow, this is an old thread, and it does bring back (bad) memories! Here is an update for anyone who is wondering: we did change gyms and have been very happy with our decision. My older daughter came around after two months off gym. She changed into the AllStars/Prep-Op Advanced program and loves it. This year she was state champion on bars, beam, floor and All-Around. She loves the new gym and is VERY happy we made the change. Younger DD was placed on the Level 5 team when we moved and had a good year, winning states on beam. She skipped Level 6 and competed Level 7 this past year. She did well, winning states on bars. She is now training Level 8, though we won't know what level she is competing next year until the end of summer. Most importantly, both girls are HAPPY. We are glad that everything worked out in our gym switch and hope the same for anyone else who is considering changing gyms.

 

[Deleted member D3987]

next time i'll try to remember to look at those post dates.

 

[kimskids]

LOL! I just read through all 8 pages and wondered how they appeared since this morning! LOL!

 

[bookworm]

It's funny that this thread just got resurrected when I literally just did this with my girls 2 weeks ago...kept one in the "old" gym because that was working for her and moved myother daughter to a different gym 40 minutes away that has a much better program for her...so far so good. Our original gym knows I moved my other daughter so I don't anticipate any "all or none" scenario with them..

 

[Bella's Mom]

It's funny that this thread just got resurrected when I literally just did this with my girls 2 weeks ago...kept one in the "old" gym because that was working for her and moved myother daughter to a different gym 40 minutes away that has a much better program for her...so far so good. Our original gym knows I moved my other daughter so I don't anticipate any "all or none" scenario with them..

We have a family in our gym that does this. Daughter trains with us, son trains about 30 minutes away. They've been this way for years and while both kids are doing great, mom looks a little tired sometimes. LOL But she says it works for both kids so she's gonna keep on keeping on.

 

[Gymmonkeymomma]

Funny to see my input from 2 years ago.... as I ended up in the "considering two gyms" situation myself recently! My little one (just turned 11) is now at a gym she loves, training Level 8. My oldest is at a different gym, doing elite tumbling. I believe that had she stayed in gymnastics, both of these (new) gyms would have accepted having 2 sisters at different gyms, however, at our old gym, they would not have been as gracious!