Advice on gymnastics leotards?

[lottieandmia]

My dd has just started gymnastics and says she wants a long sleeved leotard. Is long sleeved the best for this time of year or will it be too hot? Also is it worth investing in a Zone one? TIA

My dd has always worn a long sleeved leotard, even in the summer. I did try to talk her into a summer one, but she preferred long sleeves. We bought it (new) from Ebay for a fraction of the cost of shop bought ones. We have ordered her a club one though, short sleeve, as she has just started doing competitions. Gyms can be quite cool though, dd's is in a big, draughty converted warehouse.

My gymnast is now 16.
We have training leotards which have no sleeves. Some are winter weight some are summer weight so some are velvety to the touch and others are smooth. Competition ones in our case are all long sleeved and the only time she wears long sleeves. My daughter equates long sleeves with sweaty patches under the arms.

We have bought some direct from the club, some from older children who have grown out the size (£5-10) and several on eBay.

We also purchase a few from the likes of Milano, The Zone and Adidas.
These are normally anything from £35 - £55 depending on size. Normally we only buy these for a Birthday present or at Christmas. In truth they only last about a year - 18 months but mine is an older more fashion conscious gymnast who wants to differentiate herself from the nine year olds.

We have also sold a couple of our expensive mistakes ... one of which went to an eBayer in Japan!

If she's aged about six I would make friends with a mum of a nine year old in the same club and do a deal on hand-me-downs.

Thank you for your replies. The first thing I thought of wrt long sleeves was sweaty patches under the arms! Does the sizing on these leotards run very small?

The sizing is fairly true to size but coaches prefer them to have a fairly tight fitting one. I struggle with that as I like a bit of growing room!

Zone ones are good and I've found their customer service excellent.

Zone wash really well. My DD tends to sleveless ones, but it depends on the time of year (and the building heating).

DDs gym is usually quite warm, last week before Christmas it was freezing. At a guess not all classes upstairs were running and some one had turned the heating down.

Personally I think the sizing across most leotards runs small.
DD turns 17 in April has size 2.5 feet and stands nearly 5 feet 2 yet we are an adult 36 in all leotard ranges. If I was buying her something out of Top Shop, New Look etc she'd be a size 6 or size 8. To me a size 36 equates to a size 12 but not in this world.

Size 36 in France = an 8 in the UK
Size 36 in Italy = a 6 in the UK

That might explain it then!