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All Progress is Good Progress

GymMomGuru:

My oldest daughter Sam did two seasons of Level 4 AND two seasons of Level 5. Jessie did one season of Level 4 and two seasons of Level 5. Some of their teammates moved up more quickly.  At the time, I was frustrated they were not “staying with the group” and moving up to the next level. However, what I learned after looking back on the situation, is repeating a level was the best thing that could have happened to each of them. They developed confidence, got a taste of success and mastered the basics. They were able to quickly progress through the levels after their slow start. Oh yeah, and they caught up with their group, so that was not a big deal. 

I know it is stressful when the coach tells you that your daughter could benefit from another season at their current level. However, the coach is working with your daughter in the gym at every practice and knows her struggles, fears and maturity in the sport. The coach is usually the best judge as to which level she should compete. My advice is to trust the coach. 

My daughters are perfect examples of gymnasts who benefitted from staying at the levels a little longer and mastering the basics before moving up. They zoomed quickly through Levels 6-10 (although some gymnasts will zoom through compulsories and then get struck at a higher level a little longer). They all progress at their own rate and speed.

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Failing your way to success

I was checking out the blogroll and sidebar links on an old blog of mine; and was pleased to see that some of the links still work (sad that others are wiped with good content lost).  There are blogs that aren't really active that still are enriched by having archives to peruse.

One person I was pleasantly surprised to find still active is J Orkowski's Gymfinity blog.  He posted as recently as yesterday:


I have a very different definition of success. I have always believed in the oft quoted “Shoot first, what you hit, call the target” philosophy. As a coach, I have guided many athletes to great success by my definition and as defined by other people as well. I have always believed that if we focus on success, rather than growth, we often lose the biggest benefits from trying to do anything at all. Here are 5 things that we tend to lose when all we focus on is success as defined in a traditional way.

ou limit Discovery

When we follow the laser focus of working to achieve a specific goal we will often lose sight of the many opportunities along the way. I drove to Illinois yesterday and ended up stopping at a great roadside market. If I would have only been focused on my destination, I would have missed some of the best sweet corn I have ever had. Not to equate striving for our goals with shopping for produce, but it illustrates the odd and interesting things we can find on our path to success.

You limit your ability to Grow

If we are only focused on one outcome we lose the opportunity to learn as we go. We need to embrace our shortcomings, our failures, and mistakes. By doing so we learn to adapt and we learn to overcome future mistakes by developing resiliency. Striving for our goals is a long-term commitment; persistence, resiliency, quick thinking, and wisdom are natural byproducts of the process if we commit to the long term effort and stay open to the process.

You fall into Black & White Thinking

When we are solely focused on a successful outcome we are quick to label those errors, misjudgments and mistakes as failures. If we do not achieve our stated goal then everything else seems to be a failure. There is nothing more untrue. We cannot, in any effort, be so short-sited that we only see black and white. The world is made up of shades of gray and there is not only much to be learned in the gray areas, but there is a lot of happiness in them as well.

Read more, along with past posts of his.  A lot of good reflections from a good coach.

The Day After the Worst Day Ever

1-16-2017

For 5 or our 6 who competed level 3 this past weekend, it was their first gymnastics meet; and it was hosted in a big venue.  The girls did amazing.  I was already proud of them before they even entered the competition hall because I know how hard they've been working, leading up to the meet.  So my expectations were grounded in reality; but I suppose for a couple of them, their expectations were...a little different than mine?  So we talked about their experiences and thoughts.  Most of it was positive; but one girl thought the judges just didn't like her- like they had a personal grudge against her, especially on beam (lol).  Another, I heard, had tears during awards because some of her teammates medaled and she did not (I posted a couple of great blogposts on the GW FB page, that should help any gymnast feeling this way).

Anyway, one of the things I shared with them was a poem by 11th grader Chanie Gorkin that went viral a couple of years ago.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/social-media/11760731/Hidden-meaning-behind-poem-will-brighten-your-day.html

Today was the absolute worst day ever
And don't try to convince me that
There's something good in every day
Because, when you take a closer look,
This world is a pretty evil place.
Even if
Some goodness does shine through once in a while
Satisfaction and happiness don't last.
And it's not true that
It's all in the mind and heart
Because
True happiness can be attained
Only if one's surroundings are good
It's not true that good exists
I'm sure you can agree that
The reality
Creates
My attitude
It's all beyond my control
And you'll never in a million years hear me say
Today was a very good day

After reading it, the kids described to me what the poem meant to them.  A couple of them said they liked it (this was after reading it forward- lol!).  One of them actually thought it was a positive poem, telling me the part about "My attitude is beyond my control" meant how she was feeling wasn't her fault- omg, rofl!

I started the video clip as they read it next, from bottom to top.






Almost 2 years ago, the older girls seemed to get a lot out of this poem, asking if they could keep their copy.

What do you ask your team at the end of the day?

Typically, at the end of practice, we line the girls up.  And typically, aside from other discussions and comments, the stock one we ask is, "What did you accomplish today?"  Or, "What were you most proud of?"


I think I'm going to adopt these 3 questions and try it out for a while.  May last a week.  A month.  May have permanence.

I am Second

When second place feels like failing....and then no longer does:

I love to watch you play

From your kids:



Hat tip:  JAG

Today was a Great Day

Lisa's letter to her daughter:

Today was a bad day. You fell on beam. You missed your connections on floor. You didn’t reach handstand on bars. Your execution was low. Today was a day you wanted to quit. All that hard work for what? All those long hours of training, missing out on friends, missing out on parties. Getting up early, struggling with being tired. What was it all for? It was for nothing. A big fat zilch.
Today you wanted to quit. Today you wanted to hang your grips up, you wanted to wipe the mag off your rough and bleeding hands for good. You wanted to throw away all your leotards and be a “normal” kid one again. You wanted to turn your back on something that was so engrained in you, such a part of you that cutting a limb off would be the closest thing to it.
Today was a sad day. The disappointment etched in your face, the hot tears burning your skin as they tumbled down your cheeks. The hurt clearly displayed on your little face for all the world to see.
Today broke two hearts. Yours and mine.
Today was hard. Hard for you. Much harder for me to watch you fall apart. I wanted to swoop in and save you from this heartache. I watched helplessly as you fought those demons that tortured you from inside. I was powerless to stop them. I felt like a failure as a mother as I hadn’t protected you from this hurt.
Today was a struggle. The little voices in your head told you that you were no good. They told you to quit. They tormented you and filled you full of doubt. And with doubt comes failure. I watched you in a tug of war with your mind. I saw the inner turmoil that threatened to consume you.
Today was a battle. Somewhere deep inside of you a war was raging. Would you let disappointment and hurt win? Would you let those mental demons tear you apart? Would you fall and never get up again? No. You gathered your strength, you stood up to those voices. Every fibre of your being held steadfast in your resolve. I saw my little girl fight from the core.
Today was a day of hope. The flame that burns inside you, that had all but been extinguished today, flickered again. You held your head high as you watched other gymnasts, not better than you but who had cleaner routines, stand up and receive ribbons and medals. I watched you hug your team mates, congratulating them, sharing in their victory. The joy that had been robbed from you was soon replaced with the love you felt for your sport. I saw that tiny glimmer of hope light the dark place that was your heart. I saw you banish the voices in your head saying you should quit, you were a failure, that you were no good.
Today was a good day. Today you learnt things that I could never teach you. You learnt how to lose. You learnt how to fight back. You learnt the importance of not always winning. You learnt how to take disappointment and turn it in to a positive. You learnt that love prevails. You made me proud, much prouder than if you had a gold medal hung around your neck.
Today you won.
Today was a great day

You can drag some gymnasts to water.....

The relationship between coach and gymnast at times, metaphored up in an animorphic video:

<3 aww
Posted by Crazy Clips and Pics on Wednesday, March 2, 2016

Fired Up Friday!

Tribal flow:

Dekiru.

Ganbatte!

This is Japan ! Can not explain in word ... Watch video
Posted by I'm Gaijin on Saturday, February 27, 2016

Hat tip:  JAG Gym

Gotta get focused- It's Monday!

Well I guess that's one way to learn focus..
Posted by Stick-It TV on Saturday, January 16, 2016

Hat tip:  Greg Roe Trampoline

Not uncommon practice amongst college teams (although this one is a bit off the charts- lol).


I always liked this video of Mike Chaplin holding the imaginary boom camera:

Gymnastics Center of Hershey: Where Character Counts

There are two stories at play in this post:  One is in regards to level 7 hopeful Renata- a gymnast who moved out here, briefly trained at another gym; and who eventually settled with us a few months ago.  The other story I'd like to relay is a shoutout to the Gymnastics Center of Hershey in Pennsylvania.

Our gym was at Lady Luck over the weekend.  Given we only had one level 7 entrant, I was not needed to work the session; so conveniently showed up at leisure to lend morale support.  I missed first rotation- vault (apparently it went well, as she scored a 9.325 and earned herself a 2nd place finish).

Renata had been struggling with bar giants.  For months.  She could do them well enough on strap bar.  But on the regular rail?  Fergetaboutit.

 Months wore down to weeks away from her first level 7 competition in Vegas.  Weeks wittled into days, and still no giants- perhaps 4-6 makes up until the last week before showtime.

She hit a couple of giants 7 days before the Lady Luck meet.  A couple more over the weekend.  Then the week of the meet, beginning last Monday and her final practice on Wednesday, she finally began making around 30% of her giants.

When I walked into the competition site Friday morning, she was on her 2nd rotation- bars, and did not miss a single giant attempt during warm-ups, as far as I noticed.

As she prepared for her competition routine, I was handed her cameraphone to film.  Since I also wanted to film her routine with my phone, I held both phones in both hands.  Renata being our only level 7, we shared the rotation with another team from the Gymnastics Center of Hershey.  One of their gymnasts noticed me holding both cameras and kindly offered to hold one of them and film.  I felt much obliged to her.

As Renata went through her bar routine, the girls from Hershey Pennsylvania were all cheering for her.  Such sportsmanship certainly isn't a rarity- but I was still impressed as they cheered pretty vigorously- as vigorously as many teams cheer for their own teammates.

Renata hit the best level 7 routine she's done thus far (even her low bar clear hip had some life) and nailed her one giant in the routine.  4th place with a 9.250 which isn't too shabby for someone who didn't have giants 8 days ago, let alone any consistency before the big day.

Success on vault and bars was followed by disaster on beam.  I'm glad I filmed it, because as emotionally embarrassing and painful as it may have seemed to Renata at the time with 3 falls, it really deserves a place of honor in her video scrapbook as a blooper hallmark when she fell on her mount.  Life should always be taken with humor; and Renata was able to laugh about it, later on in the day.

During the beam routine, the Hershey gymnasts invested themselves in Renata's performance, cheering very loudly their support.  It wasn't just a token gesture- they watched with interest from beginning to end.  They cheered for her by name.  They displayed the exact kind of sportsmanship and conduct that I wish to cultivate within my own gym.  It is not easy for many gymnasts to compete as a lone member of their team; and these gymnasts gave Renata the support she needed in the absence of her own teammates.  For that my coworkers, Renata, and myself are entirely grateful to the coaches and gymnasts of the Gymnastics Center of Hershey.  They are not only building strong athletes but building strong people of moral fiber and character.  My deepest admiration for their program.

Time is not an infinite well

Anne Josephson:

What if this was your last day in the gym?

If you are a gymnast: your last tumbling pass? Your final routine?

If you are a coach: your final day calling your athletes in to practice? Giving your last correction or compliment?

If you are a parent: watching your child’s final routine? Saying goodbye to the other parents, your child’s coaches or the front desk staff?

What would you do differently?

Am I being morbid? Maybe. But that’s not my intent.

After reading an excellent op-ed piece in the New York Times, “To be Happier, Start Thinking More About Your Death” I started to think about the author’s idea: “Without consciousness, we mindlessly blow the present moment on low-value activities.”

We complain. About the conditioning assignment, the lack of effort of an athlete or the amount of time the coach spent with one child in favor of ours.

We gossip. About our teammates, our coworkers, the gym management or other parents.

Read more.

Live and breath every moment.  The last one will inevitably come, often without warning.

What Parents are Really Paying for

I've seen this linked by multiple sources- Why I don't pay for dance and gymnastics:

The other night someone asked me "Why do you pay so much money for your girls to dance?" Well I have a confession to make, I don't pay for dance. Personally, I couldn't care less about dance. I grew up in a family of 4 boys and no girls. The "Nutcracker" was something you did on a dare off of the high dive at the pool or something you unpleasantly surprised your brother with. Up until the day I met my wife if I were asked to go to Swan Lake I would have asked if we were water skiing or fishing. So if I am not paying for dance what am I paying for? I pay for those moments when my daughters become so tired they want to quit but don't. I pay for those days when my daughters come home from school and are "too tired" to go dance but go anyway. I pay for my daughters to learn to be graceful. I pay for my daughters to learn to take care of their body. I pay for my daughters to learn to work with others and to be good team mates. I pay for my daughters to learn to deal with disappointment, when they don't get that part they hoped for, but still have to work hard at the part that they received. I pay for my daughters learn to make and accomplish goals. I pay for my daughters to learn that it takes hours and hours and hours and hours of hard work and practice to create something beautiful, and that success does not happen over night.

Read the rest at the link.

Also blogging:
GymnasticsCoaching.com

Let Them Fail Their Way to Success

For kids older than 4, losing can teach a valuable lesson about how to recover from failure. 

"Everyone remembers the kid in the playground who kicked the ball into the woods when he lost the game," Matthew Biel, a pediatric psychiatrist at Georgetown University Medical Center, told the Wall Street Journal. "That kid wasn't given the skills to recover from failure. You don't want to be that kid."

Starting around 5 or 6, children become interested in competitive games because they gain the cognition to know rules, gauge odds and judge fair play. In essence, they are establishing their standing in the world.
"You have to recognize the stakes are really high for kids. That doesn't mean they are immature. They are playing the game with the appropriate level of gravity," Biel said. "It's why it's so much fun to play with them."

Throwing a game to a child is a bad idea because school-age children can sense when you're not trying and may view it as a loss of faith in them.

Read more.

Choking

Via JAG:

Moments of "just messing up" in high-pressure situations may seem random and uncontrollable, but scientists are beginning to demystify just why it is that we choke, and how we might be able to prevent such high-stakes errors.
It turns out that being too attached to winning may have been what caused Maroney to choke, according to some new research from neuroscientists Johns Hopkins University.
Whether you choke under pressure might have more to do with your motivation: specifically, to what extent that you are driven by a desire to win or by a desire to avoid losing. If you're very loss-averse -- meaning that you hate losing more than you love winning -- your chances of choking will be lower. But for those who value the rush of winning over the pain of losing, the likelihood of choking is often higher.
The Johns Hopkins study found that those who hated losing the most choked when told that they stood to win the most, while those who cared more about winning choked when they stood to lose something significant. In other words, it's all about how you frame the incentive: as a loss or as a gain.
“We can measure someone’s loss aversion and then frame the task in a way that might help them avoid choking under pressure,” Vikram Chib, Ph.D., assistant professor of biomedical engineering at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, said in a statement.
The researchers explain this phenomenon by looking at the ventral striatum, a brain region that may connect incentive-driven motivation and the execution of physical performance. The activity of this brain region suggests that an individual's attachment to winning is key to how they perform under pressure.

Read the entire article at HuffPo.

Flashback Friday: Heather Dorniden

It's hard to find a good quality video of this inspirational athlete:

When you fall down?  Get back up.

The Worst Workout Ever?

This poem by Chanie Gorkin, an 11th grader, has been gaining some traction over the internet.

Tonight at the end of practice, I had the JO Girls sit and read it out loud; asked what it meant to them (one of the older girls thought it was an awesome poem because it sounded real and relatable- interesting!). So our discussion segwayed into a reading of it backward. We then talked about the Yin and the Yang- the dichotomy of perspective and attitude; of looking at things from a perspective of half empty and half full; and on the importance of flipping things around in your own head when you think you're having a bad day. 

The girls thought the poem was really cool (You could see the light bulb go off on their heads upon reading it backward) and they even wanted to keep their handout copy and share it with their parents.

I have one level 4 girl in particular who has been struggling with her kip.  On account of that, and comparing herself to her teammates, she's been sabotaging her workouts by allowing her emotions to affect her self-confidence and energy output which reinforces her negative feelings, which....a vicious cycle that needs to be broken. 

Here's hoping she can turn her negative energy around on its head.  Attitude is everything.

What Gymnastics Teaches

Fall down 7 times....

Think about the first time you failed at something: blowing a job interview, not getting in to your dream college, even struggling through a bad breakup. Now imagine someone told you the next day to go back to that employer and try again, march up to the dean at your dream college and demand to be let in, bang on your ex’s door and refuse to leave until you work things out. Crazy, right? People do crazy things like this maybe once or twice in their lives, if they truly feel passionate enough to put aside their pride and refuse to give up.

Gymnastics asks you to do this every day. Fall flat on your face? Get back up and do it again. Break your leg? You better be back in the gym tomorrow, conditioning and doing everything you can to make up for lost time.

~~~

It is easy to work hard when you are doing well, but it is a whole lot harder to give your best effort when you have already failed multiple times. Gymnastics teaches you to push yourself even when you’re tired or have tried the same skill twenty times. And that twenty-first time when you finally do it right is what makes it worth it.

 Read from the beginning.

Hat tip:  ChalkBucket Forum