All-Star Mommy Dearest...

[Cheer_Explosion_Coach]

What cheer mom hasn't? Unless you never stay at the gym...or your gym closes practice...but even then if there is a place for parents to gather your going to have gossip.
Back in AZ we would have parents talk about kids right in front of their parents all the time...My oldest was not the strongest tumbler but made up for it in other areas. One time I was in the back of the room reading and overheard a mom saying "Ugg I don't know why that little fat kid is on our team, she can't tumble and our team is never going to win with her on it." I spoke up and said "yeah that's my kid..." I think she melted into the floor. Funny enough that team went on to be undefeated locally as a Youth 2, it wasn't until we went to Nationals that we came in 2nd (and it wasn't due to lack of tumbling).
Worse is competitive gymnastics...especially pre-elite. When you think your kid is next Nastia or Shawn, it's amazing the things people will say. One mom would sit in the viewing area and compare her child to all the others, including picking apart our kids technique or strength. I was never more happy when then decided to move her kid to pre-team!

At a gymnastics place that I used to coach, their was a mom who started a rumor that another girls dad would take advantage of the kids when they would go to sleepovers or whatever. Cops were involved and everything. Nothing came of this, just the mom didn't want the girl to have friends because she was the next one in line to go elite.

 

[EWalsh1029]

T

At a gymnastics place that I used to coach, their was a mom who started a rumor that another girls dad would take advantage of the kids when they would go to sleepovers or whatever. Cops were involved and everything. Nothing came of this, just the mom didn't want the girl to have friends because she was the next one in line to go elite.

That is horrible! The lengths some people go to... don't they realize in the end this is just going to hurt their own child

 

[carolina04]

Ugh moms are the worst. It got so bad at my gym a few years ago that we had one of the moms try to run a practice to see if she could do it better. We were in the gym the whole time to make sure everyone was safe, but if she thought she knew so much, we let her try it. She didn't open her mouth again.

 

[ohhh lindss]

After reading all of these, I'm so glad my mom wasn't the typical "cheer mom." Before I could drive, my mom would usually just drop me off, go to her friend's house, and then pick me up (since we lived too far away, she wouldn't go home between). And then when I started to drive, she wasn't really at the gym much, only at show offs. It sounds sad, but she was so supportive of me even though she wasn't at practices.

There was this one mom at my "old gym" who would CONSTANTLY blame her daughter's bases and back spot when she fell. I was her back spot. It was in NO way our fault. Her daughter would bail all the time, or sit, or unlock her leg. Our practices were supposed to be closed, but she would always look through the window in the door. Needless to say, she was THE crazy cheer mom at our gym... She would even go to the coaches and demand her to change her stunt group, but my coach was smarter than that. Haha she never changed the group. They ended up leaving our gym a year or so later. The funny part is, her daughter doesn't even fly anymore.

 

[omgitssydthekid]

Ugh moms are the worst. It got so bad at my gym a few years ago that we had one of the moms try to run a practice to see if she could do it better. We were in the gym the whole time to make sure everyone was safe, but if she thought she knew so much, we let her try it. She didn't open her mouth again.

That is the best idea I've heard in a long time haha. How embarrassing for the daughter though because her mom made a fool out of the both of them :/

 

[zonkadonk]

youth and mini practice is the worst time to ever sit in the lobby!!

I agree...for some reason youth and mini parents are always the ones to think that their kid is the next level 5 worlds bound athlete, and that they should be on level 5 next year (dang those age restrictions!) and that the coaches cant single out their kids and make them "feel bad" if they aren't doing what they are supposed to. Diva moms.

 

[zonkadonk]

How many gyms out there close off their practices periodically or always have them closed off to parents? I have heard of some gyms where they close off practices like 2 weeks prior to a competitions, which I think is a great idea...

 

[omgitssydthekid]

How many gyms out there close off their practices periodically or always have them closed off to parents? I have heard of some gyms where they close off practices like 2 weeks prior to a competitions, which I think is a great idea...

The gym that I coach at does that but the gym I cheer at doesn't and the parents just have to stay in the lobby

 

[cheerlove]

as surprising as it may be, we really only have one mom at the gym that tries to gossip about the girls but no one ever listens to her. somehow we keep a drama free gym(knock on wood!)

 

[keepdreamin]

Ugh. Moms are always getting in the way of things (including my own mom).

 

[omgitssydthekid]

as surprising as it may be, we really only have one mom at the gym that tries to gossip about the girls but no one ever listens to her. somehow we keep a drama free gym(knock on wood!)

That's great!!! Because those moms need other people to fuel the fire and if they don't then maybe she won't trash talk anymore We can only hope!

 

[cheerbear]

After reading all of these, I'm so glad my mom wasn't the typical "cheer mom." Before I could drive, my mom would usually just drop me off, go to her friend's house, and then pick me up (since we lived too far away, she wouldn't go home between). And then when I started to drive, she wasn't really at the gym much, only at show offs. It sounds sad, but she was so supportive of me even though she wasn't at practices.

This is exactly how my mom is, plus it leaves an element of surprise during competitions!

unfortunately, there are the few, select parents of my gym that like to stir the pot not just within our gym, but local gyms as well...

How many gyms out there close off their practices periodically or always have them closed off to parents? I have heard of some gyms where they close off practices like 2 weeks prior to a competitions, which I think is a great idea...

The only time my gym allows true 'open practices to the parents' is the first practice of every month, but no one really follows it, meaning most parents don't go into the actual gym. but we have a cafe, and a gym next door to us, so the cafe always had parents peering through the window into practice. but just last week the cafe closed down, so no more parents watching during practice!

 

[DONTstopNOW]

I will never understand those "helicopter moms", always at practice, nagging their kids! I already feel the pressure from myself, my coaches, and my teammates, I cannot imagine what it's like to have a parent who adds to that pressure. At comps, my mom would rather do her own thing, then magically appear when my team comes on, and that's perfectly fine with me. As long as I know she supports me, it doesn't bother me at all that she's not as obsessed with cheer as I am.

 

[Katybugmom]

As a coach, I'm always surprised to hear parents talking about the coaches! Sitting there "armchair" coaching (who should fly, formation ideas, critiquing technique) as I'm right next to them. Last week I even composed a joke email that I sent to my owners that we should send to all the parents that think they can do a better job! LOL

As a teacher I would hate to have parents watching and critiquing everything. I feel sorry for the coaches when this happens. I am quite involved and ask lots of questions so I have to apologize quite often for overstepping my boundaries.

 

[Katybugmom]

How many gyms out there close off their practices periodically or always have them closed off to parents? I have heard of some gyms where they close off practices like 2 weeks prior to a competitions, which I think is a great idea...

Our coaches closed our long practice for the month before nationals which I think is wonderful. We still have 2 open practices a week because we are in a rec. gym place so no way to close those