QUESTIONS ABOUT OUR GYM:

Questions, Comments, or Suggestions?
Our office hours are between 3pm and 7pm weekdays. Feel free to call with questions, and if you get our voicemail, we'll be happy to return your call to answer your questions. Also, we check our email frequently and are happy to respond to your information request via email. 

Empire Gymnastics Academy
4925 G Jefferson Hwy.
Jefferson, LA 70121

Phone (504) 734-0644
Fax (504) 734-0117
Email empireacademy@bellsouth.net

About Our Sport

If you've seen gymnastics on TV, you've seen the best of the best. We admire our gymnastics heroes, but there's much more to the sport than the few Olympians who become famous. Here's an overview of gymnastics, from Empire's perspective. 

Women's Gymnastics at Empire

Girls in gymnastics classes at Empire learn basic skills on all four women's events: vault, bars, beam, and floor. They use the regulation apparatus (the equipment you see on TV) as well as modified equipment (low beams, smaller springboards), for learning purposes. 

Beginners will learn tumbling skills such as forward and backward rolls, handstands, cartwheels, and backbends on the floor. On beam, different walks, positions, jumps, and holds are emphasized. On bars, casts, pullovers, and swings are basic skills. The actual vault apparatus is not introduced until gymnasts are quite advanced, so running and jumping off the springboard are ways to work on this event at a low level. 

Each class also incorporates warming up and stretching, as well as conditioning exercises such as squat jumps, push-ups, and sit-ups. Additionally, students enjoy jumping on the trampoline and the TumblTrak. 

Girls who progress through Developmental classes may be interested in setting their goals for competitive gymnastics. Our team features level 2-10 gymnasts. 

Men's Gymnastics at Empire

Boys in gymnastics classes at Empire have their own classes separate from the girls, and they do events that are exclusively for boys. The men's events are floor, pommel horse, rings, vault, parallel bars, and high bar. Tumbling is similar to the girls, as described above. High bar, rings, parallel horse, and pommel horse emphasize upper body strength. Beginners will often use lower or smaller versions of the apparatus when they are first learning. As for the girls, each class incorporates warming up, stretching, and conditioning. The trampoline and Tumbl Trak are also a fun part of gymnastics class. 

Boys who progress through Developmental classes may be interested in setting their goals for competitive gymnastics. Empire has the only boys' gymnastics team in the metropolitan New Orleans area. 

Progressing in Gymnastics

Every child is unique. All children do not learn to walk or talk or read on the same exact day, and the same is true for gymnastics. Some children are "naturals" and some are not. However, you do not have to be a "natural" athlete to enjoy the benefits of gymnastics. A child may remain in the same level for as long as necessary--there is no "failing." There is no correspondence between age and skill level, as children start gymnastics at various ages. 

Small classes and skill progressions allow instructors to cater to each individual's ability. For instance, in the same class, Mary may be practicing backward rolls, while Jane has already mastered the skill and can begin learning a more difficult variation of the same skill, a backward roll to handstand.  

In a once-weekly Developmental Class, the progress you will see in your child may not be in learning a new trick every single week.  The progress you can expect to see is improvement in the skills they already have, exercises that will prepare them for new skills, and enthusiasm for fun, physical activity.  

The Benefits of Gymnastics Outside the Gym

The physical benefits of gymnastics are obvious--many of our students excel in other sports such as baseball, football, martial arts, dance, and soccer. But did you know that gymnastics fosters many other character-building qualities and skills? Our coaches and older gymnasts can vouch for the lessons they have learned throughout their careers. Confidence, discipline, diligence, respect, teamwork, humility, and determination are just a few. Kids that remain in gymnastics are less likely to get into trouble and more likely to do better in school.
 
We get a LOT of questions about our gym and our sport! Below I have compiled a list of the ones I hear the most frequently. If your question is not listed below, don't hesitate to ask. We have gotten plenty of very strange questions, so don't be afraid to speak up! 

Isn't gymnastics just for kids that want to be in the Olympics?  My kids just want a fun after-school activity, not long hours of training.  

The vast majority of kids involved in gymnastics are in it for a fun activity!  Even those kids who do decide to train for competitive gymnastics had to start somewhere--it's called "recreational gymnastics."  Most kids attend a once-weekly recreational class where they learn basic gymnastics skills, meet new friends, and get in some exercise.  

Empire offers me a prorated tuition so that I can join mid-month, but does that mean that my child will be behind the rest of the class?

Kids have no problem joining a class mid-month.  Gymnastics is an individual sport and classes are skill-based, not group performance-based....in other words, your child will not be entering a class where everyone has already memorized a routine.  Student-teacher ratios are kept low so that the coach can easily cater to each child's individual ability.  It's not like missing a few weeks of math class, either--part of learning gymnastics is the repetition of basic skills each week. 

I'm not sure if my child is going to like gymnastics. 

Please take advantage of our "risk-free policy." Everyone is welcome to participate in the class BEFORE tuition and registration fees are paid.  After the class is over, talk to your child, and if they had a good time, sign up and pay your tuition.  If they didn't enjoy the class, you owe us nothing.  It is especially important for very young children to try the class first, because it's difficult to know whether they'll enjoy it.  We strongly urge everyone to take advantage of our risk-free policy because tuition and registration fees cannot be refunded if you decide to stop attending mid-month.  

What is the difference in tumbling and gymnastics?

In tumbling class, students will learn skills on the floor only. Gymnastics classes involve tumbling as well as other apparatus (vault, bars, and beam for girls; rings, pommel horse, vault, parallel bars, and high bar for boys). Most young beginners prefer gymnastics classes because of the variety; we offer many more gymnastics classes than tumbling classes because gymnastics is more popular. Tumbling classes are mostly of interest to teenagers who are involved in cheerleading.

My child has been involved in dance before.  Is gymnastics a lot like dancing school? 

In some ways, yes.  Many of our gymnasts find that gymnastics and dance go hand-in-hand.  Some people find gymnastics to be a fun alternative after trying dance classes.  Many dance classes incorporate tumbling, but rarely use modern gymnastics equipment or training techniques. Still, dancers often have an edge coming into gymnastics. If you are accustomed to dancing school, some things you may find different are:

• we don't have elaborate recitals or "revues"
• you may enroll at any time throughout the year 
• we don't require you to purchase costumes or makeup for your child

My son wants to try gymnastics, but he's worried that only girls do gymnastics.

Not long ago, Men's Health Magazine declared men's gymnastics to be the toughest sport on earth! At Empire, boys' developmental classes are separate from girls' developmental classes (preschool classes are co-ed). The boys do all the men's events (floor, pommel horse, rings, vault, parallel bars, high bar). We also have guy coaches! We currently have the only boys competitive team in the New Orleans area, so if boys are interested, they can set their goals toward competitive gymnastics. 

My daughter needs to learn a back handspring in 6 weeks, in time for cheerleading tryouts!

If she has never taken tumbling or gymnastics before, chances are very, very slim that she will learn a back handspring that quickly. We get this question a lot, and similar questions regarding how long it will take kids to learn certain skills. Obviously, there is no single answer; every kid progresses differently. But when learning new skills, safety is the highest priority, and usually that means progressing slowly but steadily. 

How safe is gymnastics? 

At Empire we're very proud of our outstanding safety record. Modern teaching techniques and equipment make gymnastics safer than ever. Your child will never be asked to perform skills that he or she is not ready to do (even if they beg to try them!). Our teaching methods involve repetition of basic skills and progressive drills when learning more difficult skills. Our coaches are safety certified through USA Gymnastics. 

How soon can my child be on the team? 

A recreational gymnastics class is the child's first introduction to gymnastics. Progressing to team requires a strong interest in gymnastics and a commitment to work hard. At Empire, we have a Girls' Recreational Team which allows any girl who is interested to compete. The girls in this group practice 2 or 3 times per week. From there, some kids may go on to a more intense team workout and eventually compete at higher levels. Boys who are interested may be invited to a "pre-team" workout, and eventually train with the team to compete. We have team gymnasts ranging from 5 to 18 years old. 

My child is not progressing as quickly as I had hoped. Are we wasting our time? 

We know one thing for sure. All children progress at different rates. Some children have no intentions of ever competing and are perfectly content to remain in a regular gymnastics class. Most kids who participate in gymnastics do so on a recreational level and won't ever compete. If your child is enjoying themselves than they will benefit from a fun, healthy, and constructive activity. We don't think that's a waste of time at all!