gymnastics

Rachel is in Level 1 advanced in her county-run gymnastics class, meaning that they do more advanced work like chin-ups, pushups, and the like. To pass into the next level, she has to learn how to do a perfect cartwheel and several chin-ups. We will see how this goes.

Afterward she complained that the instructor was "too strict." She has to pull her hair back (it's not optional anymore) and I told her that this is the next level, which means it's harder. She looked unconvinced.

The instructor, who is also named Rachel, said that our Rachel is "one of the stronger kids in class" because of her ability to focus. I was watching some of the advanced gymnasts, some of whom appeared to be quite young, and she said that they had been plucked from some of the county classes and put on a more advanced track. They are in USGA, the certifying organization for the Olympics, and Ms. Rachel said that they had been there since 4 p.m. (it was 8 p.m.) practicing, and that they practiced 20 hours a week. She also said it's too soon to see if our Rachel is that talented. Right now, she said, the kids have to learn the concept of squeezing their muscles and working their bodies before they can really show promise.

Rachel was happy to hear that her teacher said she was one of the stronger kids, so maybe she'll be happier about the increased rigor. We also bought her a sparkly purple-and-silver leotard to replace the one she has, which is too tight.