Parents Will tightness ever click?

[Kcanflip]

I'm the mom to an older (almost 11 year old) level 3 gymnast. She just finished her last level 3 meet with a 36.25 AA score, which is not competetive in our neck of the woods. She is strong and has no issues with the skills at all but just can not seem to be tight or to get her toes pointed. We've done privates, etc. And she can do it in isolation but when it comes to a full routine or meet time it just isn't happening. She doesn't look as crisp and polished because of the lack of tightness.

My question is...will it ever click? Why does this come so naturally for some girls and not others? It's kind of depressing to be honest.

 

[EastCoastGymMom]

How long has she been doing gymnastics? I think it can take 2-3 years for some of them to get strong enough to be "tight." Is she extremely flexible? I've been told that flexibility can make it harder to stay tight. Is she getting exhausted during her routines and can't keep the tightness? Maybe some cardio would help her - it's hard to stay tight if you are out of breath and tired.

 

[Seagull00]

I wonder if ballet could help? I was a dancer for years and that straight pointed toes thing... It gets ingrained.

 

[profmom]

My two gymnasts are both very much of the Gumby mode, so tightness has been a challenge. For DD, it's just coming together now in her fifth competitive year. For DS, he gradually got it over his first two years and it really clicked this year. It's a very individual thing, but with enough time in, it seems like everyone who's moving forward and has good coaching gets there eventually.

 

[Kcanflip]

She's been doing gymnastics almost 3 years now. Kind of a slow and steady progress kid plus we started at a more recreational gym. Really no long term goals right now other than work hard and would like to see her place top half more consistently.

She has no problem with strength or cardiovascular. Isn't out of breath after routine. She's actually not very flexible and that is another issue. She struggles with splits still...After almost 3 years. Her legs never seem straight to me. Truly just seems more than lack of effort for her. Maybe it's just the way she's built. I wish ballet or extra classes were an option but it's not at this time.

 

[sce]

For most it does click at some point. Working flexibility at home might help. It's hard to keep your legs straight if they are too tight

 

[Kcanflip]

For most it does click at some point. Working flexibility at home might help. It's hard to keep your legs straight if they are too tight

I really kind of think this might be key. Thank you!

 

[Ali'sMom]

When I read your post, for a second I thought it was my own! LOL! (11 year old L3, whom I refer to as an older L3 )

For us, her first two levels came easy, so she was ALWAYS tight. Our gym seemed to teach the new USAG routines late last summer, so she was always focused on learning them, rather than being tight or perfecting them. Her scores showed it, too. I kept asking the HC, what's changed??? "She needs to be tight". (I didn't even know what that meant!)

My mom and I (Nana drives her to the gym, and is the only other person besides me that she allows to come to meets) have started joking with her,,, at random moments we just say "Squeeze!"
3 weeks ago, it seems to have come for her (at least in her scores). As we walked out, she said "I just kept telling myself "Squeeze! Squeeze! Squeeze!".
She's got her last L3 meet this weekend. That's when I'll know if it's clicked, or if she managed to be tight last meet.

I don't know if making it a mental thing might help her or not, but it helped us.