The Client:
Ellie was 8 years old and a very promising gymnast. She was on the elite pathway, training 20 to 24 hours per week. She was a very determined character and hugely committed to gymnastics. She lived in South West England about 45 min from her gym, so her life really was dominated by either being in the gym or travelling to or from it. During her free time she’d practicing gymnastics at home too. At the gym she trained with older kids in the GB development or junior squads with the ability to follow them.
The Challenge:
Ellie would get very anxious in the last few days before a competition. This resulted in either tears or, more commonly, vomiting. It often then went on to impact her performance levels causing more anxiety and frustration.
The Objectives:
The Process:
Over a twelve-week period we met every 1 to 2 weeks for 30 minutes using zoom video conferencing. The sessions included:
The Conclusion
I sincerely hope that this case study has given you a flavour of how we support young gymnasts. We find many parents and coaches read our articles, often self-diagnosing different challenges to their children. They also read and view other resources yet struggle to help their kids overcome the issues. By waiting too long these challenges become harder to overcome, my advice would be to contact a specialist (it doesn’t have to be us) if the issue goes on for any longer than one month.
With expert sports psychology support and guidance, challenges like this can be overcome and quite quickly.
If you’d like to learn more about how we could help your children or gymnasts why not get in touch. We are passionate about helping children get maximum enjoyment from their gymnastics and offer FREE resilience and confident gymnast programs as well bespoke programs to meet your needs.
You can also join our online community – THE SPORTS PSYCHOLOGY HUB – for regular Sports Psychology tips, podcasts, motivation and support.
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