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Original poster

Gymnastics... Artistic or Acro???

34 replies

gymadviceneeded · 03/08/2021 22:39

Hi All! I'm hoping someone more knowledgeable in gymnastics can help with this!!

DD is nearly 7, she does 2 hrs in an advance rec class (will call this gym A).

She had asked to progress into one of their development class but wasn't getting anywhere so started 6 hrs a week at the beginning of the year in a development group at a different gym where they advance into either artistic or team gym squads (will call this gym B).

This gym then asked her to do 3 more hours a week which clashed with the rec class so she chose to leave the rec class. When the head coach found out why she was leaving she came to look DD and offered her 10 hrs a week in a NDP Acro with the view of increasing this next month.

She's good at artistic gymnastics but likes the idea of moving to Acro (as they use blocks) so I was hoping someone with knowledge of the two could help me to help her to decide which is the best one to progress with.

If you've followed this this far then well done and thank you!!

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MomOfTwoGirls2 · 23/05/2022 13:23

@gymadviceneeded ah, that is a pity, and I’m sure you are feeling her pain too!

My DD found disappointments difficult to deal with at first, especially when she was younger. She had a range of disappointments relating to partnerships, competition and injury.

In my experience, give it time and things seem to right themselves one way or another. But it can be very stressful!

Original poster
gymadviceneeded · 23/05/2022 12:28

@MomOfTwoGirls2
She's just facing a bout of disappointment now so it will be interesting to see how it turns out.
I think the thing with gymnastics is that it's brutal from such a young age, you can't just enjoy taking part past the very basic level.

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MomOfTwoGirls2 · 07/05/2022 15:16

@gymadviceneeded
That is lovely to hear!

My DD got years of enjoyment from Acro. Things didn’t always go her way, there were several disappointments along the way but there is learning and growing from that too. Overall it was a very positive experience.

Beat of luck to your DD!

Original poster
gymadviceneeded · 07/05/2022 14:40

Hey @MomOfTwoGirls2

Shes been a top in a trio for the past 6 months or so and has been really enjoying it.
I think she has enjoyed competing more as part of a “team” rather than individually.

You were so right about the changing of partnerships, they are always on the search for the “dream team”.
They are currently waiting to see if there will be any changes after the results from inter regionals/Nationals so we will see how it goes.

From the gymnasts point of view, it’s a positive environment, DD adores all the coaches. The negative for me is that it’s a big commitment but they can be dropped at any time!!

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Original poster
gymadviceneeded · 07/05/2022 13:39

@Lily4444 one of my main concerns for giving up artistic was the lack of opportunity with acro but in reality, very few athletes will get to that level so I think for a 7 (now 8) yr old it’s more important that they are enjoying whatever they are doing.

I spoke with parents at other artistic gyms in the area and didn’t get a good vibe from any of them… some of the stories I heard meant I couldn’t send DD, it just wouldn’t have been right.

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MomOfTwoGirls2 · 07/05/2022 12:41

@gymadviceneeded
Come back and tell us how the decision to go with acro has gone??

Lily4444 · 07/05/2022 08:09

I’d say it depends on 3 things:

The first gym sounds bad and I’d recommend if sticking with artistic, moving to a better gym where they give your dd more opportunities

The second is which plays to your daughters strengths: with acro there is no apparatus other than blocks but your daughter will need to work with others - as a top she’ll need to be flexible or as a base she’ll need to be very strong. If you go to a competition you perform as a pair or group so it’s a very team sport. Artistic is more individual, your responsible for your own performance which means you perform individually on apparatus and ideally you need to be both strong and flexible.

The third is how far does she want to go? With artistic there’s more opportunities such as going to the Olympics or getting a full university scholarship to a US university which is an amazing life opportunity - sadly with acro there aren’t these opportunities yet

Original poster
gymadviceneeded · 07/09/2021 17:40

My daughter loved Gymstars @alphabetspagetti.

She's decided to go with the acro. She's been given a partner so we will see how it goes.

I'm sure this will bring its own host of issues and im still not 100% happy with her doing gymnastics s but she's happy and that's the main thing.

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alphabetspagetti · 05/09/2021 07:03

@gymadviceneeded have you & your DD come across a series on CBBC called Gym Stars? It's available on iPlayer. It follows various children who are excellent gymnasts, some of whom do artistic & some of whom do acro.
As someone who knows nothing about gymnastics but whose DD was, at the beginning of series 1 at least, very into gymnastics, it was really interesting and helpful.

Original poster
gymadviceneeded · 10/08/2021 13:54

@HGC2 Gym B has closed for an extra 2 weeks due to Covid over the summer so I've said to the head coach of Gym A that she'll see how she gets on this month and go from there.

Although she's going 4 times a week a month probably isn't long enough but we'll see how we go.

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Original poster
gymadviceneeded · 10/08/2021 13:43

@ilovemydogandmrobama2 yes totally agree no one should be shouted at, especially little ones.

It's difficult to know if we're getting the full story with DD though, for example I picked her up from acro last night and the coach asked if I knew DD was supposed to be there on Sat for tumbling to which I replied yes she was there on Sat... turns out she had told the coach she wasn't there when she had been there! When I asked why she said that she said she got confused!!! Confused. So rightly or wrongly I always take what DD tells me with a pinch of salt.

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Original poster
gymadviceneeded · 10/08/2021 13:33

@JemmaM1982 no, down south!

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Original poster
gymadviceneeded · 10/08/2021 13:32

Thanks @MomOfTwoGirls2 and @ImALittleBitAlexis that's really helpful.

She is easily offended and takes everything to heart so I think will take it badly if she's not in a group but also maybe it will help her be more resilient.

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JemmaM1982 · 10/08/2021 13:31

Out of curiosity - are you based in the North East?

Original poster
gymadviceneeded · 10/08/2021 13:28

Thanks @HGC2 she doesn't get to use the apparatus much as they are focusing a lot on conditioning and floor. She is very expressive though (is good at ballet) and is really good at tumbling.

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Original poster
gymadviceneeded · 10/08/2021 13:25

@dodobookends and @Bunnycat101 By shouting DD generally means being told off or corrected. We've had the same thing at school where she has said she was shouted out and it's turned out she was told off for talking/ messing about etc.

What I mean by this will happen anywhere after a certain level is that she's at an age now where they start to get told off more directly whether it's at school or at an extracurricular activity.

My DD in particular hates getting anything wrong/asking for help etc (this has been flagged by the school) so I don't think her learning that it's ok to make mistakes/not know how to do things at first is a bad thing.

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ilovemydogandmrobama2 · 10/08/2021 13:23

Really great advice here, and totally agree that coaches should not be shouting at children. There has been an enquiry by British Gymnastics about safeguarding and know that several coaches have been suspended until investigations have been concluded. This was last year so not sure about the final report.

I'd also look at cost - one of the girls who was training at a high level in gymnastics had funding that kicked in at some point, but not sure at what level. It may be worth asking about this as those in the elite squads practically live at the gym.

Original poster
gymadviceneeded · 10/08/2021 13:19

@helpmum2003 we don't get to watch her but she has the same coach when in preschool classes and she is very strict with them.

I've spoken to the coaches about how DD feels and they've said that there's no shouting but they are stricter with them in the group she is now in eg if they don't do something correctly they have to do it again.

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Original poster
gymadviceneeded · 10/08/2021 13:15

Oh my goodness I wasn't expecting any replies!!! I'll read through them now and respond to all of them. Thank you for the advice so far!!

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ImALittleBitAlexis · 10/08/2021 08:29

My DD has done acro for 5 years now. She is currently a top in a FIG trio but started in NDP when she was 6. She loves it but it is a lot of hard work, she currently trains 20 hours a week. She only did artistic for a very short time as a preschooler so doesn’t remember much but always says she wouldn’t like to go back to that now. She loves the group aspect of acro and being chucked up in the air 😂

Usually the children won’t have a say if they are a top or a base either. Most younger ones are tops as they are small, but they may go straight to a base if they are muscley in the right places and super strong! It is mostly the tops that use the blocks so if she is dead set on that it would be worth checking if she would be a top. As others have said most tops become bases as they get older/bigger and it can be a big change.
I think acro is amazing to watch too, the strength and skill that these kids have is unreal! That is true of artistic too of course but some of the balances and moves they do in acro are incredible.
Sorry not sure I really answered your question as I definitely know more about acro, but it will come down to what your daughter enjoys more as the stuff they learn and apparatus they use will be quite different.

MomOfTwoGirls2 · 09/08/2021 22:43

DD did Acro for quite a few years. She loved it.
However partnerships were changed on a regular basis, gym was always looking to put dream teams together. Waiting for a new partners is very tough when they split up a team.
Also most tops will eventually end up as bases, as they grow taller and stronger. Move from top to base is quite an adjustment.
My DD loved it and has lots of lovely memories. It made her very resilient too.

dodobookends · 08/08/2021 15:10

@Bunnycat101 Yes, thanks for agreeing with me, it would stop happening if parents weren't complicit in condoning it. But just watch all the gym parents go suddenly quiet on threads whenever this sort of thing is ever mentioned. This topic is a thread killer extraordinaire.

Bunnycat101 · 08/08/2021 08:49

dodobookends Your post echoes my thoughts reading the thread. Why should 9yos being shouted at be normal?

dodobookends · 06/08/2021 20:03

Her only reason for not doing artistic anymore is that the coach shouts but she's going to find that anywhere after a certain level Why? Why is shouting necessary, and why is that in any way acceptable to you?

We really haven't come very far have we, when parents are still happy to accept this sort of thing. It normalises the behaviour. People in a position of power shouting at children is the thin end of the wedge as far as mental health is concerned.

It seems to me that despite all the recent interest in the mental health and wellbeing of athletes (particularly those who start training at an early age such as gymnasts), that things are never going to improve whilst impressionable youngsters are taught to expect verbal abuse from their coaches. And their parents accept that it is a price their child has to pay.

helpmum2003 · 06/08/2021 19:11

Another thing about acro is whether dd has her heart set on being a top or bottom. Usually the coaches decide and you may get changed around.