My Experience on My First Team  

My first competitive team Alpha Omega left a hug impact on me. I was on that team from ages 10 to 13 years old. (If you want to know how I ended up on my first competitive team please refer to my last blog post.) This was definitely the closest I have ever gotten with a team. I became best friends with these girls. We did not only see each other in the gym 12 to 15 hours a week, we also carpooled, hung out outside the gym, had birthday parties, and traveled to meets together. Although our coach Judy was crazy, and had some questionable coaching styles, I do give her credit for creating the tight knit atmosphere of the team. She would not put up with exclusivity or bullying. I am very grateful to say I am still extremely close with some of my old teammates from Alpha Omega.  

Alpha Omega was very unique. We did not have our own gym. We rented out space from Gym Inc because we had a much smaller team size then normal. Typically, most teams would have different practice times for each level but because we were such a small team, we all practiced together. I loved this! This gave me an opportunity to watch the upper levels on my team and ask them for advice.  

Alpha Omega introduced me to one of my best friends Kendra. We created a handshake the first day we met and still have it memorized to this day. Some of the fondest memories I have from my childhood were the team bonding events Alpha Omega created. I vividly remember after practice on a hot summer day my coach bought us all ice cream. Instead of conditioning for the last half an hour like we normally did we got to sit, eat ice cream together, and bond.  

On a typical team girls would only go to the session time of a competition they were competing. My teammates went above and beyond that standard. I remember the upper level and lower-level girls all coming to my session to cheer me on and I would do the same for them.  

Due to disagreements with my coach and the owner of Gym Inc they would no longer allow us to rent out space in the gym. We were a team without a gym. For the next year we ended up going to three different gyms to train. Unfortunately, our team ended up splitting up. All the girls ended up quitting gymnastics or moving to a different team. Although I was sad this chapter of my gymnastics career came to an end, I was exhilarated to start my next.  

Joining a new team can be very scary. It is extremely important to look for the culture of the coach and the girls. I have experienced many gyms. I have been in environments I loved and I have been in environments I hated. Your gymnastics will only excel if you are happy. I hope you can use my experiences from my blogs to determine a good gym for you.