Welcome to Week 1 - Gym Setup, Practice, & Team Photos
- madisonmemorialgym
- Nov 9, 2024
- 6 min read
Hello everyone,
Welcome to Week 1 of the 2024-2025 gymnastics season. Every weekend, I will be sending an email overviewing the upcoming week, providing highlights of the week before, and more. Given this is the first email of the season, it's going to be lengthy - so bear with me.
Gym Setup:
Gym setup is Sunday, November 10, at 12:00 PM. All gymnasts are required to attend. Please plan to bring closed toed shoes (to protect your toes) and clothes you are willing to get dirty. Setting our gym up is hard work so there will be a lot of grease, dirty, dust, chalk, and more. Once arriving at Memorial, head to the fieldhouse (court 1 / gymnastics gym) and you'll find us there. If you have any questions or concerns about this, let me know. Setup may take around 2.5 hours so parents, please plan to pick up around 2:30 PM with the understanding we may go slightly earlier or later, depending on how setup goes.
If anybody wants to bring some of their workout gear ahead of time, I can store items in the cage or locker room.
Practice Schedule:
Monday: 5:00 - 7:00 PM
Tuesday: 6:30 - 8:30 PM
Wednesday: 6:30 - 8:30 PM (parent meeting at 5:20 PM)
Thursday: 5:00 - 7:00 PM
Friday: 11:00 AM - 4:30 PM (Team Lunch, Pictures, and Practice)
Saturday: Rest!
What will the first week look like:
The first week includes a massive amount of strength and endurance training as well as a lot of team bonding. Athletes are going to be sore and tired and ensuring that they are eating and sleeping well will be key. Staying hydrated and stretching will also help stave off the weariness. We will break out into groups and do events throughout the week, with emphasis on getting used to the gym and equipment while also starting to build routines. Our first varsity competition is December 7th, so focusing on routines early on will be important.
What should I bring to practice?
Gymnasts need to be in a leotard or in work out gear, with their hair up in either a ponytail or bun. We will get plenty warm at the start of practice and to avoid injuries, no baggy clothes should be worn while practicing. Gymnasts need to always bring their grips and braces into the gym along with a water bottle. Please also bring a pair of gym shoes / sneakers to keep in your locker at all times.
If you plan on needing something taped, please plan to arrive at the gym early so I can tape you up. Please bring any items needed for your tape job as the items we have for the team are for one off or emergency uses.
If you have emergency medications I need to know about, please send me an email letting me know what the medication is for and instructions for use. I can keep emergency medication in our med kit and ensure it's on hand at all times.
Locker Room Information - Important
Each morning, Tim (our athletic director) will be outside the locker room from 8:00 - 8:05 AM to allow gymnasts to put items in the locker room. After 8:05, the locker room will be locked again. If you need to access the locker room, you must do so between 8:00 - 8:05 AM. Tim has meetings shortly after this so he can't extend that time.
Before practice, gymnasts are not to enter the locker room until a gymnastics coach or Tim has let them in. No other coach or teacher should open the locker room for them.
Each gymnast will have their own locker in our locker room where they can store stuff. It's important to note that the locker room will not be opened throughout practice. It will be opened at the start, closed during practice, and opened again once practice is complete. Phones must be left in the locker room. If a parent needs to get a hold of their child, you can do so by texting or calling my phone (608-770-9924). During practice, bathrooms in the fieldhouse will be open for use but not the bathrooms in our locker room.
It is HIGHLY recommended that each locker be locked with a personal lock so plan to bring a lock with you on the first day.
If girls need a locker outside of the one in the locker room, they can request one from the school using the following link:
Where to go before practice:
On Monday - Thursday there is an after-school study center from 3:45 - 5:15 PM in room 1217. At 5:00 PM, the after school dinner program starts. Athletes can head to the cafeteria, grab dinner (provided by the school), and continue to study or hang out in the cafeteria / atrium until I arrive. I will be starting a group text with the team so that I can inform them when I arrive at the school and they can come find me to get the locker room opened.
Fridays will be more challenging since there isn't a study center. However, as I try to burn up PTO at work, we will start practice at 4:30 PM on Fridays, meaning I will be at school around 3:45 / 4:00. For now, the girls can wait in the fieldhouse entrance outside of the gymnastics gym for me to arrive on these days. We will reassess once 2025 starts.
Parent Meeting:
The parent meeting will be Wednesday (November 13) at 5:20 PM in the Lit center. Every gymnast is required to attend with at least one parent. At the parent meeting, I will go over expectations, give details about the season, discuss parent help with spaghetti dinners and Spartan Invite, collect the additional team fee to cover our team poster / senior banner session, and make sure all paperwork has been completed. I can accept the extra payments in either cash, check, paypal, or venmo. I will know the exact amount owed the day of the meeting. It will also be great to meet all our new parents and have parents connect with one another.
Friday, November 15:
There is no school on Friday, November 15. We will meet at the school at 11:00 AM and then head to Panera to get lunch together. At 12:15, we will head to Waunakee. Our photo session goes from 1:00 - 2:00 PM. Gymnasts MUST bring their competition leotard (to be given to them on Tuesday) and have hair and make up done before we arrive at Waunakee.
During the photo session, each gymnast will have pictures taken individually (that will ultimately be cropped together to make our team poster). Gymnasts need to have poses that they want to do prepared ahead of time. They can practice poses throughout the week at practice and take pictures so they remember. In order for us to do everything in the time allotted, having poses already planned will help.
After our photo session, we will head back to the gym and have a practice from 2:30 - 4:30 PM. Friday's big focus is going to be on routine building across all the events.
Team Website:
For up to date information, schedules, and important links, visit our team website:
Forms:
I previously sent an email about forms that needed to be filled out prior to our first practice. I will re-send that email to remind everyone but please ensure each athlete AND parent has filled out the appropriate athletic forms.
Team Item Donation:
If you are donating any items to the team, please feel free to send them along with your gymnast on the first day of practice. Item donations for the team can be found here:
Snack Donation Sign Up:
To ensure the girls have healthy snacks to fuel them for practice, I have a signup sheet where parents can sign up to donate snacks to cover a week of practice. The link is below:
Spaghetti Dinner Sign Up:
Spaghetti dinners are dinners that are hosted by a family on the Monday of the week we have a dual meet. Because we have 7 dual meets, we are looking for 7 hosts. Dinner does not have to consist of just spaghetti (it's just what we call it). Parents are welcome to pair up and host together. After practice ends on Monday, kiddos will head over for dinner, likely arriving around 7:20 PM. If you would like to host, the link is below:
Team Contact List:
Below is a link to a list of all our coaches, gymnasts, managers, and parents. Please review your information and update the sheet, as necessary.
Oddly enough, I feel like I'm missing something! But that's all I can think of for now. If you have questions about anything, I am here as a resource for you. The first week is a transition but the best thing each athlete can do for themselves is positive self talk.
Happy handstands!
-Danielle
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