All-Star Doing It All Over

[coldasICE]

My last year in Allstar was last year, and I think I speak for my whole family when I say I'm glad it's over. To me, it began to feel more like all work and no play. I was not having fun and felt like the sport itself had changed. I accomplished all my goals I had set for myself and was happy, but I knew it was time to be done. I'm doing high school cheer now and couldn't be happier. It reminds me of how Allstar was when I was younger, family focused and it just feels right to me. If I have kids one day, I'll let them try any sport they're interested in and be themselves, but I'd want to understand the sport before they got too involved. I'm glad I did experience Allstar and all the memories I made were definitely worth it in the end!

 

[stuntjumptumble]

Speaking for myself, I'd do it over, again and again and again. I love this sport so much an I'm incredibly happy I found it. I have not only learned skills in cheer but important lessons that I will carry with me throughout my life. My cheer career is far from over and as a future gym owner I am so excited for the future :)

 

[DropAndRun]

I know how these young adults saying no feel.. I live it every day.

When your sport is like your job and it becomes something you do and such a part of you that it's long surpassed being a hobby, it can be hard seeing your children get involved in it.

I am a professional athlete by trade and while I love my job, it is my job and not my hobby like it is for 99% of the participating athletes. I did and still do offer my children the chance to participate in it but it is not and I'm not sure will ever be their chosen sport because I'm not entirely sure I want to go there. I loved it enough to make it my life but I can no longer remember what it was like to do it with no real pressure- just to enjoy it at a low level for what it is.

I feel like a lot of people who grow up in cheer, especially at the worlds level, probably have lost sight of that initial level as well, and they don't want to put their children through the pressure cooker situation.

There is a big part of me that hopes my kids will both enjoy my sport on their own terms. I can't say that I have aspirations for them at my level though. The lifestyle is not idyllic. (And not what people who are new to it or looking in from the outside perceive it to be.. Much like a mini mom watching senior 5, I am sure)

 

[cheermommaRN]

I would not have pulled my cp from gymnastics as fast as I did. Moving to Texas was a huge change and more demand but I think if we had given her time she would have adjusted. If we had stayed in at this point (barring injury) she easily would have been junior elite (which was the track she was on). She had aced the TOPS testing and probably would have made the National team if I had just made her stick with it.
I also would have never left CA the 1st time. I think the moving around she has done has kept her from progressing at the same rate as her peers. I also regret letting her take a year off with no tumbling at all.
I still want the littlest one to do one year of cheer only because she's so darn good when she's messing around with coaches. If any of my kids would be Jags material it's her.

 

[TheUltimateFan]

If I knew what I do now but my daughter did not, the answer would be "No". She wouldn't know what she missed and this journey wasn't about me. The cost - physically for her and financially for me - was far too high.

I would miss the excitement of competitions but I imagine there would have been some other type of competition to fill that gap, if that's your child's nature. Not to mention all of the exotic and fun trips we could have taken if we weren't committed to a schedule that eats up most of a working parent's vacation. What I would miss, terribly, are the friendships we made along the way.

 

[ryann3794]

I always say I would give ANYTHING to have one more season. I would take a whole season full of my worst practices ever if it meant I could compete one more time.

 

[Dixie]

Shocking, but yes, If she asked I would allow her to participate in AS cheer again. She has told me AS cheer taught her lessons she never would have learned in a rec sport or school.
Why would she choose to do it again? She has become friends with kids from all over the country whom she never would have met otherwise, learned the good and bad of teamwork, how to spot and avoid the self-promoter and the importance of staying far away from drama. She learned to depend on others and show them they can depend on her, that teammates will have your back whether they like each other or not, time management, how to respect the leaders decisions, commit to something and see it through to the end, to push herself physically and mentally when exhausted, make her own choices and deal with the repercussions and most importantly, when it's time to let something go and move on.
Why would I allow her to do it again with all the negatives people point out with cheer?
Because I've noticed while she complains about bad ankles, knees, wrists and back it has made her more aware and compassionate to the worker who stands on their feet all day or the football official who runs an entire game with kids half their age. Seriously, how many 16 year-olds know how it feels to have a seventy year-old body?
I've heard her tell friends who comment on her missing birthday parties and summer camps she feels blessed it was by her choice to miss for an activity she enjoyed and with friends she wanted to be with and not because she wasn't invited or couldn't afford to go.
I've watched her learn to budget money to pay for her private lessons and prioritize spending money on what she really wanted. Guess what? They don't teach that in school.
I've told her often how proud we are of her for the maturity she has shown being young on a high pressure team at a high profile gym and not letting that blow her ego out of the stratosphere.
She has learned how to manage 13+ hours a week in the gym plus 2 school dance teams, school sports, church and a rigorous course load at school. She laughs when kids say they 'don't have time for homework'.
Only dedicated athletes would understand, but she has learned life-lessons it takes most people decades to learn and we owe it to her years in cheer.

 

[garretttt]

I'd do it all over again but soooo much differently that's for sure.

 

[CoachTamara]

If I could have my experience over again, YES. A million times yes. I look at some of the elite teams that are out now and I wish I would have been a part of that level... When I cheered, standing tuck was great and a full was awesome. I never felt like I needed more, and I never really pushed for more. I wish I would have been able to see how far I could have progressed and accomplished. It was much less pressure back then, and a lot more fun I think. We never got ripped apart on social media, or attacked for dropping a stunt...

Every time we see little bit on the ultrasound she is bouncing around and my husband is like "Well, she's a cheerleader..." Even as a gym owner, this is totally scary to me. I don't like where the industry is going either, and I can't imagine the level it will be at when my daughter is 16. I guess we will see what she enjoys, but I have a feeling cheer is going to be a part of our lives forever...

 

[BigBow]

Yes. And not even for the cheerleading aspect of it. I learned so many life lessons and to this day have amazing bonds with people that I have never found anywhere else.

 

[Ashley]

I never did All-stars until I joined an open team in college. We don't have anywhere near the expenses and commitment level that the younger teams do, but I couldn't imagine putting my parents through that. Or my siblings, to be honest.

I'm not sure if I'll put my kids in it. Kids aren't in our immediate futures and I still stress about getting home early enough from work to pick them up from daycare - never mind make a 4 PM practice. I think I'd put them into Pop Warner first, or maybe an all star prep team. If they enjoy it, maybe then we'd move them to all-stars. It might mean they're not a level 5 athlete in the long run, but I'm okay with that.

It might all be a moot point anyway - my fiance plays tennis and I'm sure he'd love to get our kids doing that. And that's probably an equally expensive sport, if not more so.

I will say though, that my gym owners have done an excellent job not pressuring their kids into it. Their daughter loves cheer and would probably triple compete if they let her, but their son plays basketball and doesn't cheer - even though he spends sooooo much time in the gym.

 

[Mom2Cheergirls]

I could certainly do without the drama but my kids have learned A LOT: 1) That even when you and your team do your best you still may not get first place - sometimes your best just has to be good enough for you 2) That hard work is appreciated and pays off 3) That life is not fair and sometimes decisions are not based strictly on abilities but on things beyond your control and sometimes that it is not fair 4) That you need to take care of yourself off the mat to do your best on the mat 5) and much much more - my kids tried other sports and they were in dance and loved it but then decided they loved cheer more (hard for me I was a dancer) Cheer takes up somedays/weeks WAY to much time and there has been plenty to drive me crazy but I have gotten to know some great families and kids and I have watched my kids grown mentally and physically - would I do it again - yep and still on the road for a LONG time because the little one is just really starting.

 

[XtremeWpg]

There are certain aspects of my cheerleading coaching career that I would change, like the failure of my first program. But at the same time, all the events have lead me to where I am, which is with a phenomenal group of athletes who love this sport as much as I do.

I would go back and learn to tumble though. That is my one big regret

 

[flcheermom]

This is our first year out of all stars - after being involved for 11 years - so I admit I feel a little lost this year , not going to competitions :( I am thankful for the financial aspect though this year. I do think I would do it all over again as I think the positives for us have outweighed the negative. Knowing what I know now though, and I know it sounds crazy lol, but I would not object to moving to an area (Stingrays, CEA) for a different cheer expereince - those areas also have good soccer and we had talked about moving years ago - so I think I would have explored that possibility differently. I know my daughter misses it - she does college cheer but she says all stars will always have her heart - but she knows she can't cheer forever and has to grow up lol

 

[ashscott41]

There are quite a few small moments (injuries, quitting a few months sooner when it became too much for my family, adding in school cheer earlier) that I would change that probably would add up to a completely different experience, but I absolutely would do it all over again. The struggle to get out of bed in the morning because none of my joints work is all worth it when I think about the friendships made. My cheer friends are the ones who have seen me at my worst and my best and will be at my wedding, birth of kids, all that fun adult stuff. I was lucky enough to have my mom at all of my comps and my dad at most of them, plus spending over an hour in the car with one of them every day on the way to the gym, so a majority of my memories from that age revolve around cheer and related experiences. I wouldn't trade that for anything.