Need Advice/thoughts About Changing Gyms

[MamaW]

I was hoping for some thoughts and advice from others about the best option for my daughter long term.

A little background first. Her cheer age is 6. She just completed her first Allstar season on a Mini 1. She loves it. We are at a large gym with 40+ teams currently. She loves the coaches and says the gym is her happy place. She had level 2 skills at the beginning of last season, but due to it being her first season starting her on level 1 to learn all aspects of cheer is what the gym decided to do. Totally ok with that, but she did have her sights set on making level 2 this upcoming season. She has a strong BH series on the floor and has a tuck on the trampoline and working in them in the floor. Unfortunately at the end of March she hit a massive growth spurt and is suddenly scared to do any of her back handsprings without a spot. Gym had plans on moving her to a level 2 team, but now with her block all they can offer is level 1. She is bummed. All her friends are moving up and she feels like she worked so hard for nothing now. I know it's a blip on the radar and she will tumble normally again and it's normal for friends to not always be on the same team. Since it is a large gym they place kids were they need them most to make a successful team. I totally understand that.

In the midst of all this her main tumbling coach changed gyms. Is now at a D2 gym that plans to have 2-3 teams this coming season. She has an offer to cheer there on a Y2 team. There she will have more individual focus since they only have a few teams and can possibly have more progression. The downfall is this gym is an extra 30 minutes away and our current gym is 10 minutes away. My husband often works long hours and we have a 4 year old so he has to tag along a lot, but with our current gym being so close my husband can often swing by and grab him on his way home so he isn't stuck up there so long. I'm not sure if the drive is worth my sanity because at that point my husband won't have the option to come pick him up from me.

I've asked her her opinion and all she says is "I don't know". She is a pleaser so she is looking for my opinion before giving me hers, but I'm trying hard to leave my thoughts out of it and let form her own. In a perfect world she would say stay where she is and make a Mini 2. Unfortunately that isn't a choice at this point.

What would you do in this situation? I don't want to be a gym hopper, but I also want to see her progress. Thoughts on large vs small gyms are also welcome!!


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[cheer25mom]

It's never a good idea to put a child on a team they don't have the skills for, even if it's due to a tumbling block. It's a setup for failure, and she will likely only become more frustrated, perpetuating the block. I know it's not what you want to hear, but if she isn't tumbling at level 2, she doesn't belong on level 2. It isn't fair to her or the team. She is 6, and has lot of time to be on level 2 and up.

Also, consider that there is a reason the new gym is willing to take her on level 2 without the tumbling. Either they plan to just nugget her or they know they won't have the tumbling ratio anyway. Neither situation is palatable IMO.


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[quitthedrama]

Taking everything you said out of consideration except for the fact that you have a 4 year old along with your 6 year old. Stay at current gym. I was lucky to have both kids always involved in cheer, but over the course of my time doing this I have seen so many siblings take a back seat to their cheer sibling. Sometimes it is unavoidable, but at the very least, prolong it for as long as you can. Progressing slowly is better, and your daughter has PLENTY of time to advance through the levels.

 

[CLynn]

Agree with the others, I would stay put. It does not sound as if your current gym has done you wrong in any way, your child has a block and they are giving her time to be confident without stress of a higher level team. Given her age I think this is a smart approach. Also, keep in mind that the small gym might have a team for her this year, but what about when she progresses? The gym with 40 teams would seem to be most likely able to match her going forward. Lastly and not least important is the commute. There is nothing more soul crushing than a long commute, and your child could be cheering for 12 more years!

 

[CheerBank]

Ditto, ditto, ditto. Stay where you are. Let her work those skills stress-free and be ready to potentially move up next season. You never know what could happen even this season.

You are so fortunate not to have to commute to a large gym. They will always have a team for your child age and skill level.

 

[mamabear]

Did the gym that you are at treat her well when she lost some of her tumbling? Did she continue to grow? Was she given other challenges to meet while she blocked?

If so, stay! I think most younger kids can benefit with a couple of years on One to learn the basics. There are so many components that go into a routine that she can definitely benefit with more time doing it, before she is chasing skills.

Enjoy the closeness of the gym and your four year old. You potentially could have 12-13 more years in the sport to progress


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[MamaW]

Thank so much everyone. My gut says staying is the best choice overall for my family. I guess I needed to hear it from others too especially those that have been in the sport awhile. There is some peer pressure as dumb as it sounds to move gyms and I think that is my hang up. Our current gym has been nothing but kind and helpful during her block. I couldn't have asked for better treatment. And technically she doesn't have level 2 skills as of today even though they are still in there somewhere. My biggest thing I've learned through this block is I just want her to be happy and have fun doing what she loves. She is a sensitive child and it takes her forever to warm up in new environments so another fear of mine is we switch gyms and her block only gets worse.


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[123jump4!]

Agree with the others, stay. We quit a big gym that was 10 mins away (because the mini coach was mean) for a small gym that was 30 mins away! The drive was a pain and it was too far to come home while she was at practice. Although it was quite a good season it also had a lot of bad parts and we would have switched back to the big gym if we didn't end up moving out of state.

Your daughter is so young, she doesn't have to be level 2 this season. I think maybe being on a level 1 team will help with the block... no pressure!