AIBU to think a £90 gymnastics leotard is too much?

Some kids do genuinely live and breathe it. My daughter would be lost without gymnastics, it is her passion and her squad are her best friends. When they compete as a team they are proud to have matching leos and hair, and to represent their club. I understand other kids do just do it for fun, and there are recreational pathways with low stakes, just for fun competitions for those kids.

I'm in the north and daughter's competition leo is around that price. However, they are always available to buy second hand for around half price. They are made by an external company and very nice quality, so they are perfectly fine to sell on when they outgrow it. We have kept her first one, because it's the start of her journey and nice to see how she has grown.

Sadly this is normal for a squad competition leotard. I’m in the midlands and my daughter’s cost £100. The frustrating thing is they change the design every couple of years so no scope for buying off older squad members/re-selling. It’s so wasteful.

Ours was approx £90. But in 7 years of competing our dd has only had 3 different ones (they do stretch a bit!). Depends how often you gym changes their leo, ours has been good and only changed once.

Because then they’d bored pretty quickly. Gymnastics usually has some Rec. classes but most kids want to progress to another group once they’ve learned everything Rec. has to teach them. The way to make sure they’re ready - and safe - for the next group is to test them.

If she starts competing at the higher grades you’ll be grateful for a £90 leotard. We had to get 3 at around £300 each at one point. That said, my DD adored gymnastics. It took us on lots of adventures and was amazing for her self esteem and attitude to health and fitness. I don’t think she’d be brave enough to do half the things she does today (travel, go to uni abroad, etc.) if she hadn’t had those experiences and friendships.

Check if DD will get to compete, even if she is in squad.

Also - for those wanting a non- competitive fun class, then look for rec classes.

Our club leotard is just over £100 so I think it’s pretty standard. Welcome to the world of gymnastics!
Add that to membership fees, general class fees, insurance, club kit, squad kit, competition fees, tickets to get into the competitions you paid to enter!
But my daughter loves it and gets so much out of it so we suck it up!

That sounds about right. I think they are custom made and only in small numbers so they’re bound to be expensive.

Ours are £55 for 2 piece and £120 for 4 piece teams. Pretty standard unfortunately

Mum of 2 squad gymnasts in NW. Our last ones were £120. They normally keep the same design for 2-3 years, and within that timeframe the second hand leos tend to sell for around £70. It sucks when they only wear them maybe half a dozen times a year but its part and parcel of competitive gymnastics unfortunately.

A woman at work pays more than that for dance dresses.... And they are like leotards....

I am constantly amazed at how people afford it

I’m in the north and long time gym parent. £90 is reasonable for a competition leotard, especially if long-sleeved. Depends on the make and design but it is often well over £100. Some clubs change design every year which also makes getting a second hand one impossible. So I think you just need to suck it up if you want her to do gymnastics. The other costs are relatively low compared to other sports.
And dance costumes are way more expensive…

It’s the same with dancing, of any sort. And drama. And other sports.

My children don’t want to do competitions and exams, they just want to go to a dance club for fun. You can’t find any! All dance schools where they want them to do exams. My six year old just wants to go to a dance club for fun, but even the street dance ones do exams.

It was the same when my eldest did drama and my middle child did fencing - they wanted to do it as they enjoyed it, but it was just constantly preparing for the next exam. It made them give up.

£60 ish is usual ime

Couldn’t agree more @Helpmyarse but unfortunately gymnastics is one of those sports where they seem to want you to live and breathe it and sign up for all the extras 🙄

I never understand why these things can’t just be for fun. Why all the competitions and exams?

Wow. That's insane. They'll outgrow it in no time.

What happened to kids just doing sports for fun and kids being able to join in even if parents aren't on a high income.

It seems now that they always need to get graded, get certificates, compete, train several times a week etc. It's not just for fun anymore.

If your DD wants to do it I'd look to see if you could get a second hand one.

I think it’s because they are bespoke design so a short run. Also suspect the club puts on a markup and takes a cut.

All you can do is ask about second hand. Our club had similarly eye watering prices but were helpful about second hand options.

I don’t think it’s outside the realm of possibility, no. My dd does trampolining. Leotard costs £55, but it’s ugly. It’s not nearly as nice as all the other clubs. I’ve heard a rumour that they are re-designing the club leotard and getting a new supplier and the new ones will be around the £150 mark. 🙈

Mum of 2 squad gymnasts here in the south east. I am not surprised by this at all. Depends on the brand as some are cheaper than others but comp leotards are long sleeved and sparkly which costs £££