At the word "gymnastics", most of us immediately recall the demonstration performances of athletes involved in rhythmic gymnastics. Graceful slender girls in beautiful swimsuits literally soar above the stage. What could be more beautiful? When it comes to choosing a sports section for a child, many parents think about gymnastics. How to become a gymnast, is this sport suitable for everyone?
The right choice of sports school, section and coach
If you decide to enroll your child in the sports section, answer the simplest question: “Why?” Units dream of growing Olympic champions from their children. Most parents bring their children to sport for general development or for health. If you belong to this category, any section of gymnastics in Moscow is suitable for you. You can choose a sports school for classes on the basis of geographical availability or the cost of training. The situation is similar with rhythmic gymnastics. Without dreaming about world fame, you can limit yourself to training in the school section or the nearest palace of culture. But if you want your child to try to make a sports career, a lot depends on the school and the specific trainer. Look for craftsmen who have raised more than one generation of champions. It is such a specialist who will best explain to your daughter how to become a gymnast.
The best age to start training
Some sports have strict age restrictions. Gymnastics is one of them. Most sports schools and clubs enroll girls from 4-6 years old. Sometimes you can find ads with the text: "Gymnastics for children from 3 years." The section making this invitation should alert you. Professional trainers believe that training should begin at 4-5 years. At the age of three, the child is not always able to fully understand what the mentor wants from him. And at the age of 6-7 years, natural flexibility is lost, and it is becoming more and more difficult to develop stretching. Workouts started in elementary school can be painful and ineffective. If you want to benefit the health of a first-grader daughter, give preference to gymnastics at an amateur level instead of rhythmic.
What will be needed for rhythmic gymnastics?
Be prepared for the fact that when enrolling in the sports section you will be asked to purchase special clothes for training. The required minimum is a gymnastics leotard and Czechs. If your child has just come to a sports school, you can choose the simplest and cheapest models for training. Sparkly embroidered swimwear is worn only during shows and competitions. When wondering how to become a gymnast, many girls dream of graceful "dances" with various shells. In fact,
exercises with a hoop, ball and ribbon begin only from the second or third year of training. For young athletes, the section often provides their shells. And this is very good. Accessories for rhythmic gymnastics are quite expensive. If over time you decide to leave this sport, you will not have to regret the money spent.
The benefits of classes
Rhythmic gymnastics is a sport that involves performing various exercises with or without objects to the music. According to the classical training program, girls under 7 years old are engaged in general physical training, during which maximum attention is paid to stretching. Such exercises under the supervision of an experienced trainer are incredibly useful. The child forms the correct elegant posture and plastic develops. According to some experts, good stretching reduces the risk of future fractures and sprains. Do not forget about the psychological component of sports education. Regular training is a mode, discipline, determination.
Is it true that rhythmic gymnastics is dangerous to health?
While the girls ask their mothers how to become a gymnast, and ask them to enroll in a section, many parents are seriously worried whether such training would be harmful. This sport is full of horror stories. The most common of them boil down to the fact that gymnastics can lead to gynecological diseases and deformity of the feet. Similar problems are indeed sometimes observed in adult professional gymnasts who train for a long time daily. If you are afraid of injuries, choose a “quiet” sport, such as chess. Any active training can cause the child to get a sprain, fracture, or even more serious damage. But do not forget that injury can occur during a normal walk or home games. Rather, it is a matter of personal luck and the physiological characteristics of a particular child. How to become a gymnast, maybe this sport is safer than rhythmic gymnastics? If for your child sports activities are only part of a diverse development, you can safely choose any section. Gymnastics, as well as rhythmic gymnastics, is aimed at the harmonious development of the muscles of the body and includes many elements of stretching.
Sports career or hobby?
Wise parents allow their children to decide for themselves
who to become at a conscious age. This is a good position, there is only one problem. To the question: “Is it possible to become a gymnast at the age of 14 or 15?” - any coach will categorically answer you: “No”. Starting to do gymnastics after 6 years, in principle, does not make sense. This means that the decision on
sports activities and their intensity must be made by parents. If you like rhythmic gymnastics, then why not give your own child the opportunity to try this sport? Most experts agree that the success of a gymnast in many respects depends on natural talent. Having talent, you can choose any section and, if you wish, over time, retrain from an amateur to a professional. In any case, gymnastics for children from 3 years old, whether it is a section or a sports school, will do more good than harm. In extreme cases, any sport can always be quit, do not forget about this.