Anyone have a kid who quit at 15?My second daughter scaled back her competitive swimming right around this age. The club my kids swam at, Scottsdale Aquatic Club, had a group they called 'High School Development' which was kind of like a USMS fitness workout for high school kids - no competition requirements, no attendance requirements, focused on fun and fitness. The original intent of the group was to provide year-round training for kids who only wanted to compete during the high school season, but they welcomed anyone (e.g., my daughter didn't even compete in HS). It was a great way for her to stay swimming and stay in shape. She did that through high school and is now swimming Masters. I don't know if many USAS clubs do this type of group, but I think it was a win-win: club got continued revenue and kids didn't drop out.
They all eventually find their own bliss. It will seldom be yours; nor yours, theirs. I was a track & field guy. My 4 children all gravitated toward something different, never running. I have no idea why they chose their sports. Soccer, volley ball, swimming, gymnastics, softball. That was what made them happy, not doing what I did, but whatever they were drawn to.
One son began his first year swimming in the please-don't-drown lane and in his senior year was team captain. One got cut from the high school soccer team. On his way to the locker room a friend told him they still needed volley ball players. He ended up as the MVP. The oldest daughter was into gymnastics since age 6. At 41 she can still do it all.
Your kid is not quitting, he's refocusing.
My 3rd and final kid quit at 14 and concentrated on Track and Cross-Country. She didn't like the idea of 2-a-dayers in high school plus she thought she'd have a better chance running. Our girl's high school team just won their 31st straight title and will likely be mythical national high school champs for the 5th or 6th time in a row. Unfortunately, she had a ton of swimming talent and I hated to see this but I kept my mouth closed because there's nothing worse than living with an unhappy teenage girl. I don't think she ever regretted her decision.
I swam for a club team as a youth. At 14, I said I was quitting, and my parents, who were not themselves swimmers, did not protest. Halfway through the season, I realized I missed it and rejoined. I ended up doing much better for some reason (it was probably due to a growth spurt) and I only stopped once I hit the mandatory age for stopping (turned 18 right before my final season).
My son decided to go to Ystates this past weekend. He and I had a great time. He added in his 5and2 free, but dropped in *** and went 23.22 in his 50 free relay split which really impressed me (no conditioning needed). I was so happy just to even watch him warm up! I don't expect any swimming out of him again the rest of the school year, but maybe in the summer.
I have a kid who quit at 13. Of my 3 kids she was the most talented and successful swimmer in our family but possibly this stressed her out. Anyway, she told me she couldn't stand swimming anymore and wanted to change to cross-country and track (7th grade). I am a parent that fully supports my kids in their decisions so she dropped off the swim team and never looked back. I always hoped and thought she might go back to swimming in high school, she would have been a member of a team that currently holds the world record of the amount of state titles in a row(Carmel High School). She never returned to swimming but did run all 4 years of high school and loved it. I personally feel she had tons more talent in swimming than running but her heart just wasn't in it. A few years later (she had graduated from college and is working as a nurse in Florida) I was cleaning out kids rooms and getting rid of stuff. I stumbled upon her middle school journal and sat down and read it. I am so glad I supported her decision to quit swimming. Her last 2 or 3 months of swimming was filled with negativity, self doubt, and bad feelings toward swimming. I'm not sure what got her so negative. She did have a shoulder injury and her coach encouraged her to do her exercises 3X a day and keep swimming right through it. The other thing that seemed to scare her was when a coach told her of a very high ranking she had but pointed out to her who might beat her at State that year. Maybe she just didn't have the mental toughness required for swimming. Each child should be able to choose their own path to happiness I believe.
I hear ya. My son never had an injury or adversity and never swam more than three days a week. It is not burnout or a lack of improving. After Y states, he's gone right back to nonswimmer. Just hoping he thinks about it and gets back in it. Maybe during summer.
