Parents Would you do it again?

[curlymomof3]

Hi everyone! This is my first time posting on this board and I'm hoping you can help be decide what to do with DD. We are currently at a crossroads. DD has been doing gym since she could walk and has been invited to join the Level 4 team this summer at age 7. She loves gymnastics and it only seems natural for her to move up. The only problem is that she also did competitive dance this past year and loves that too. I feel that we are at the point where she needs to decide which one she will pursue, as each will be too time consuming to do both.

I'm worried that once she starts competitive gymnastics she will love it so much that she will never want to quit, and I'm not sure that I want her getting to the point where she does gymnastics everyday! I'm also nervous about the injuries! Will she have chronic pain later on due to intense gymnastics training? Watching the older girls at her gym terrifies me and I'm not sure I even want DD attempting those tricks!!

Dance seems like the easier choice because she loves it too and she will be doing it with her friends. It is also closer to our home which is a big plus! But I don't want to rob her of the opportunity to compete in gymnastics. And BTW, I tried to let her decide, but she loves both so much that she keeps going back and forth and I feel the decision is up to me!

Maybe I'm being silly about all this. After all, she might try it and hate it! So my question is, knowing what you know now, would you choose gymnastics again? Or would you go a different route? TIA for the feedback!

 

[MdGymMom01]

Welcome to the CB Curlymom!!! I am in the same boat with my dd (she is 12) and she does gymnastics and dance. We are fortunate so far because she has been able to do both for the past few years. Her gymnastics league is low-key and only practices 2 days a week, so she has ballet class on the other days. Right now, we are taking it year by year to see if she can continue to do both and still keep her grades up. It also helps tremendously that the gymnastic's schedule and the dance program schedule does not conflict too much and they are understanding if she has to get out of gym practice or dance class early or miss.

Is there a way that she can continue to do both? Her being 7, she is still very young and SHOULD be exposed to many different activities. Hopefully you can work something out because she sounds like my dd in that it is hard for her to choose which one she likes more.

 

[gymjourneymom]

Welcome to CB!!! And congratulations to your DD on being asked the L4 team! I thought of Mdgymmom right away when I saw this thread! I knew you'd have some good advice to give here MGM!

I remember having to make that decision & it was difficult! I too saw all the injured higher level girls & it really worried me. Luckily, my DD was at a lower key gym that encouraged the girls to try other things as well as gymnastics. If I remember back that far, L4 was only 6hrs/wk for my DD. As they move up in levels the time commitment becomes greater. But even our highest levels only do 18hrs/wk. so they can enjoy other things too. My DD is 16yrs old & a Sophomore in highschool. She does 16hrs of gym/wk & is involved in school activities also.

It all depends on the type of gym & dance programs your DD is in. It could be possible for her to do both a while longer to let her true passion for one or the other develop more. We still just take it year by year and each year my DD chooses gymnastics. She says it is the one thing that truly challenges her. Everything else is too "easy". Good luck to your DD! She's lucky to have such a caring mom who worries about her !

 

[Tumblequeensmom]

I would have my DD do it again, BUT... I would definitely encourage her to enjoy other activities too!!! DD did gymnastics for a year in kindergarten, then 2/3 years of dance, ice skating and then back to gymnastics. BUT i seriously wish she had kept up something else as well. She's now in high school and is still involved in gymnastics, but I really wish she had something else to fall back on if/when she quits!!!

 

[Muddlethru]

My passion has always been dance. It is such a beautiful art form and does require a lot of training to perfect. I am just hoping one of my girls will want to pursue this performing art. I introduced all my girls to dance and no one has gravitated to it and given the choice, it has always been gymnastics.

My DD has been doing gymnastics now for three years and I will say there is nothing quite as thrilling as gymnastics; competing, just even training, move up from level to level, and learning the insane skills. It gives my DD such high (and lows). At Level 4, your Dd may be able to manage both activities. I think your dilemma relates more to your personal preference and convenience and not really your DD. Initially, I was going to suggest to have your DD give gymnastics a shot because it is easier to get back into dance a little later than to start gymnastics a little later. However, since you indicated in your post that you are worried your DD will love it too much and not want to quit and that you don't think you'd want the comitment of her having to do gymnastics everyday, then I think it is best you don't get her started. You may just end up having to break her heart. From what I see, the decision is truly yours, and not your DD. If you decide to let her give gymnastics a shot, she will need your support if she decides to keep going. I do understand what you are going through as I have been in similar situations on a daily basis. We don't want to be the person who does not give all the available opportunties to our children. I've on several ocassions let my children participate in activities, playdates, etc. even if it puts unecessary strain on my schedule and budget. Then I am happy when they do not pan out or get so cranky because they do pan out. Then I have to tell them they can't do it. It is not easy beng a parent.

 

[curlymomof3]

Thank you everyone for the replies!! You have given me something to think about. I am definitely having a hard time accepting the idea that DD has to commit to one thing at age 7 (she isn't even technically 7 until next week). Her brother does all the seasonal sports (i.e. football, basketball, and baseball) because they don't overlap. So choosing to "specialize" is only 1 sport year-round is so foreign to me! I might look into the non-competitive dance; it seems like it would complement her gymnastics and wouldn't be as time-consuming as competitive so she could do both. Oh, and she loooves soccer too Thanks for letting me ramble!

 

[cher062]

I would think that she would have time for both at this level. What would the practic times be?

I would do gymnastics again but my DD never really wanted to do any other type of team things. She tried karate one summer as it was in the day and gym at night she liked it and was even invited to join their Dream Team (competitive team that does the demos for the dojo) I told her she would have to give up gym to do that as there just aren't enough hours in the day and in the fall there would be a conflict she choose gymnastics. She does Piano and scouts and lots of other activities but school comes first then gym for her.

My question at 7yo would she really be that crushed to do one over the other. I think I would choose the one that fits your lifestyle the best as she likes both and just let her know she can't do everything. If she start one and finds she really doesn't like it she is still young enough to come back to the other and still do the teams. 7 - 9 is the time that alot of kids try lots of things and make choices of which they like better. Good luck

 

[lhmom]

My daughter is the same age as your daughter and just completed her first year as a level 4. I'm really glad that we let her do it, because gymnastics has been very good for her. She's always been shy and competing really gave her self-confidence. She's much more talkative and will now look people in the eye when speaking to them. Also, unlike other sports she tried, gymnastics did not instantly come easy to her. She really has to work hard at getting the skills and I feel that's been an excellent life lesson for her. She loves other sports so we did fit soccer into the spring schedule (AYSO, very relaxed). She will be doing a few 1/2 day specialty sports camps this summer (soccer and basketball). Who knows, your daughter may do a year or two and decide that dance is where she really wants to be. Personally, I don't think you will regret letting her compete.

 

[GymGirl's Mom]

YEP! I enjoy gymnastics and I enjoy watching DD doing gymnastics. I am glad she enjoys the sport as much as I enjoy watching it. DS loves baseball..... to me boring, soccer.......not fun unless I am playing. I love both my kids and will cheer them on no matter what they choose to do, but I am glad DD enjoys gymnastics b/c, to me, it's fun to watch and a great fit for her personality. I can't think about the "what-ifs" yeah, what if she liked something else better- it's a roll of the dice she has tired other sports so I can pretty much say that-- for now-- gymnastics is her thing.

If she wants to compete I say let her compete. It isn't set in stone that she HAS to be a gymnast forever. DD had several girls from her team leave after this season to explore and pursue other sports. I can say this- she will be in great shape after a year of gymnastics and this will make the transfer to another sport (if she wants) very easy.

 

[Bella's Mom]

My daughter does gymnastics with soccer as a second activity as long as it doesn't interfere with gym. I'll admit that I dreamed of a little ballerina or a musician. I didn't know a lot about gymnastics when I signed her up for a Mommy and me class. It just grew from there. I've tried to keep up with her by learning as much about the sport as I can. Sometimes I do wish she would have loved something that I also had a love for but she's doing what she loves and I find myself starting to appreciate the sport and maybe even starting to love it too.

I understand about looking toward the future. I jokingly tell Bella she has to quit after L5 because beam makes me freaky nervous and it is hard for me to watch the more advanced girls on the beam. Once they start back walkovers, I start worrying about them and they aren't even my kids!!! LOL

I don't worry about future aches and pains because I don't think she will ever train at the levels where that might come into play. I worry about injuries but no more than I do when she's playing in the backyard or riding her bike. Kids are going to get hurt and they can get hurt at home just as easily as at the gym. And if they love being in the gym then how do you take that from them?

My opinion is jump on the train and enjoy the ride until it's time to jump off. You can always stop if things start going poorly.

 

[10.0]

Well it looks like it is soul searching time! Here are a few tidbits that might help. While gymnastics looks scary and injuries can happen, they also happen in dance, as a matter of fact I tore my MCL as a teen dancing. I never got hurt in gymnastics and I made it to about level 8.

And as far as scary skills, there are progressions to learn them and each level bulids, she won't be joining the level 4 team and 2 weeks later be doing double backs and giants. They don't even jump to the high bar until level 5, and even then it is a jump a kip a back hip circle and some swings to a drop, nothing crazy

One thing I would warn of is both competitive dance and gymnastics are expensive and time consuming. You said you didn't want her doing gym every day, well dance also reaches a point where you have to practice almost every day, plus rehersals. If money isn't an issue all other things considered I guess you have to pick the one you want. I can say this, it is easier to get into competitive dance at a later age if gym doesn't work out than it is to do the reverse. Good luck on your decision!

 

[NGL780309]

I'm in a somewhat similar position. Her dance stuido asked her to be in their competition group and she already does gymnastics (level 5). I don't want to deny her the opportunity, but it would be a pain to try and coordinate. When asked she really wants to do dance, but she said she'd choose to keep doing gym and skip competition with dance and just take a regular class like she does now. The problem I'm facing is that her regular dance class is too easy for her. Gymnastics has just given her so much coordination compared to kids her age that it's not a challenge at all. She was initially in a class with older kids that was challenging for her, but we had to move it when gym was at the same time. I hate spending money and time (2 hours) for something that is quite remedial for her.

I will say that I love gymnastics and I think my DD is pretty good at it, but I hate how it limits everything else. I always imagined when I had a child that she would be in all sorts of activites, but here she is at 6 years old and gym takes all of her time. It's her choice so I guess I can only complain about the driving and sitting.

 

[sportsmom22]

My oldest did gymnastics for several years, and at the ripe age of 9 quit competing to pursue other sports. She was a level 5 at the time. I believe she is so good at other sports because of her foundation in gymnastics. She went into softball with so much upper body strength and coordination, that even though she started at a later age, she quickly caught up to her peers. She is used to coaches expecting the best of her, and gives it in all situations. I never regret my decision of allowing her to be a gymnast first. My youngest also competes and loves it. She gave up dance (not competitive) and competitive cheer for gym. This year, I did let her take a hip hop class, and she has loved it. Good luck with your decision!

 

[cathiann]

If she loves gymnastics, then continuing with non-competitive dance would be SO good for her!

Would I do it again? YES! Both my girls have gotten so much more out of gymnastics than just learning gymnastics. That said--I didn't make them choose and specialize at age 7. Both continued with other sports until they decided they wanted to just concentrate on gymnastics. I don't know what the time commitment is for your gym, but our level 4s go 3 days a week, so that left time for soccer or softball or whatever. They were able to try other things and see that gymnastics is what they loved. If you can make it work time-wise and financially, I highly recommend letting her do more than one thing.

 

[exgymnastmomx3]

Well, I could write a book about this one, but despite my 3 girls being very successful in this sport, I absolutely say I would NOT do this again for so many reasons. We are nearing the end of this journey with my oldest daughter who just finished her sophomore year of HS. She has won many state and regional medals, is a western AA/event medalist and has qualified for JO lv. 10 Nationals both years of lv. 10. She will in all liklihood receive a college scholarship. However, I can say that the financial drain, family sacrifice, injuries, emotional toll, etc. will not have been worth any reward at the end of this path. She has loved it, but as her mother if I could, I would go back and rewind the clock and guide all of my girls down a different path without question.

 

[Kiwi]

My DD is 8 and still managing to do both gymnastics and ballet. The ballet is not competitive, but they do an exam each year. She also does piano, and has just started doing soccer at school which they do during school time.

It would be good if your DD could keep both gym and dance going for a while, perhaps by doing non-competitive dance. Also, I agree with the person who thought it would be easier to pick up dance later than to try to return to competitive gymnastics later. Also, as somebody else said, gymnastics is a great background for moving into other sports. One of our gym's senior girls recently retired from gymnastics and I heard she is now doing very well at athletics.

I don't know how far my DD will go with gymnastics, but I know she won't get this opportunity again, so I'm supporting her for the journey. I also agree with the person who said it was a great life lesson for their child, because they weren't a 'natural' and had to work hard - it is like this for my DD, too, and she is learning how to perservere and chip away at difficult skills, instead of giving up when things don't come instantly.

 

[cher062]

just an FYI Gymnastics doesn't even make the top 15 list of worst sports for kids to get injured at.

from the U.S. Consumer Produce Safety Commission on injuries treated in emergency rooms.



The Top 15:

1. Basketball: 512,213
2. Bicycling: 485,669
3. Football: 418,260
4. Soccer: 174,686
5. Baseball: 155,898
6. Skateboards: 112,544
7. Trampolines: 108,029
8. Softball: 106,884
9. Swimming/Diving: 82,354
10. Horseback riding: 73,576
11. Weightlifting: 65,716
12. Volleyball: 52,091
13. Golf: 47,360
14. Roller skating: 35,003
15. Wrestling: 33,734

Knee injuries, especially to the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), are some of the most common and serious, the new study found.

they also go on to state

Cheerleading emergency room visits have increased almost sixfold over the past three decades. There were nearly 42,000 in 2008, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. This would place them in the top 15 but many states don't recognize Cheer as a sport so it isn't included on these types of lists. They also say that Cheerleading is actually the most injury-prone sport for women not Gymnastics. Being tossed high into the air by teammates is risky business for the head and spine, and ankle injuries are common.

Personally I think it may be due to the fact that I've seen alot of "cheer coaches" who really are someones mom who use to be a cheerleader but I have also seen some who really are "trained" and have a safe team. I also think the fact that when they perform its out on a field or someother non protected surface without mats. I hope they practice with mats but if its like some of the schools i've seen the mats may be worn out to the point they might as well not even have the mat.

They also had this to say about Dance
For many people dance may not spring to mind when thinking about sports, but the physical demands placed on the bodies of dancers have been shown to make them just as susceptible as football players to injury. In particular, most professional dancers began dancing at the age of five or six, the repetitive practice of movements that require extreme flexibility, strength, and endurance make them prime candidates for overuse injuries.

They did not mention gymnastics other than to say it sends about 26,000 kids to the ER each year. Compared to the items above that is small in comparison when you think about it. But I bet that puts them in the top 20.

I find that interesting.

 

[Bella's Mom]

Keep in mind though your stats are for ER visits. I wonder if a list exists that can show us all injuries diagnosed by other doctors other than ER personnel. I'm thinking most parents wouldn't take their kids to the ER for overtraining or other less "dramatic" injuries.

 

[Deleted member D3987]

Hi everyone! This is my first time posting on this board and I'm hoping you can help be decide what to do with DD. We are currently at a crossroads. DD has been doing gym since she could walk and has been invited to join the Level 4 team this summer at age 7. She loves gymnastics and it only seems natural for her to move up. The only problem is that she also did competitive dance this past year and loves that too. I feel that we are at the point where she needs to decide which one she will pursue, as each will be too time consuming to do both.

I'm worried that once she starts competitive gymnastics she will love it so much that she will never want to quit, and I'm not sure that I want her getting to the point where she does gymnastics everyday! I'm also nervous about the injuries! Will she have chronic pain later on due to intense gymnastics training? Watching the older girls at her gym terrifies me and I'm not sure I even want DD attempting those tricks!!

Dance seems like the easier choice because she loves it too and she will be doing it with her friends. It is also closer to our home which is a big plus! But I don't want to rob her of the opportunity to compete in gymnastics. And BTW, I tried to let her decide, but she loves both so much that she keeps going back and forth and I feel the decision is up to me!

Maybe I'm being silly about all this. After all, she might try it and hate it! So my question is, knowing what you know now, would you choose gymnastics again? Or would you go a different route? TIA for the feedback!

the only thing i would do different, if i could have another go-around, would have been to train pommel horse more diligently. other than that, and as i've posted before, i wouldn't change a thing about my life.

 

[bookworm]

Well, I could write a book about this one, but despite my 3 girls being very successful in this sport, I absolutely say I would NOT do this again for so many reasons. We are nearing the end of this journey with my oldest daughter who just finished her sophomore year of HS. She has won many state and regional medals, is a western AA/event medalist and has qualified for JO lv. 10 Nationals both years of lv. 10. She will in all liklihood receive a college scholarship. However, I can say that the financial drain, family sacrifice, injuries, emotional toll, etc. will not have been worth any reward at the end of this path. She has loved it, but as her mother if I could, I would go back and rewind the clock and guide all of my girls down a different path without question.

Interesting perspective...my daughter too has been very successful and is headed to a top D1 program on a full ride for gymnastics but I hear what you are saying about the sacrifices...but I wonder if it would be any different with different sports or ventures? It has kept her busy, focused and out of trouble and she has loved what she does so I guess i would let let her choose again...