Quotes of the Day
Victor Scotti wasn't feeling quite as agile as he wanted to be. So like more and more fitness-conscious Americans, he joined a gym, diligently showing up five times a week for a circuit-training regimen that included a cardio workout on the cross trainer, push-ups, crunches and weight training to target his biceps, triceps and quads. Now, Scotti says, "I've definitely gotten faster and a lot more limber." An added benefit is that it makes his mom happy too.
Her opinion counts because Scotti is 12. The weight machines he pushes are mini-size, designed especially for the Children's Health & Executive Club (CHEC), a kids-only gym in Chicago. (The "executive" membership is for those who stay to do homework for two hours after the daily supervised two-hour physical routine.) "Schools have cut back on physical-education classes," says Sherry Drake, the owner of CHEC, which now has two other franchises. "Both the parents and the kids, some of whom are heavy and some of whom just want to move around, are looking for an outlet."
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Though CHEC, with its smaller-scale equipment and children-only policy, is not yet the norm, Scotti is just one of a rapidly growing group of teens and preteens who regularly hit the health club to lift weights, run on treadmills, take spinning classes and relax in the hot tub. According to the International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association (IHRSA), membership among teens and preteens has jumped 65% in the past five years. Kids ages 6 to 17 now make up 12% of all club memberships, and about a quarter of IHRSA's member clubs have some kind of family program.
Children sweating it out on stationary bikes and hip abductors may seem counterintuitive, even unsafe, to earlier generations brought up on neighborhood kickball games. Yet in recent years, pediatricians have dismissed the old idea that weight training could stunt growth by harming areas within young bones that are still developing. Indeed, in 2001 the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a paper outlining the benefits of such activity when performed properly (see box). And so with childhood obesity at all-time highs, rising parent concerns about letting their kids play unattended and a growing desire by athletic teenagers to train for organized team sports, health clubs are becoming all-purpose family havens.
"Family friendly is the buzz phrase now," says Sandy Franco, co-owner of the 15,000-member Franco's Athletic Club in Mandeville, La., a suburb of New Orleans. "A lot more owners are realizing it's good business. Parents love it. And if you're a teen or preteen, your friends are there or you can be on your own. It's hip. And there are a million things to do."
Many clubs offer family days — a day when everyone, regardless of age, is welcome. Some, like Bally — where a new aerobics class is called Get Your Body Started, a play on Get the Party Started, the hit song by pop-artist Pink — are just starting to ramp up efforts to target teens. But others are instituting ambitious programs built around high-tech equipment and cool instructors. The Michigan Athletic Club (a.k.a. the MAC) in East Lansing, with some 800 kids on its rolls, features an expensive, theme park — style water slide for its youngest members. Sports Clubs for Kids, a spin-off of Town Sports International's chain of 130 adult clubs in areas around New York City, Boston, Washington and Philadelphia, offers a particularly popular version of spinning, in which a giant 7-ft. screen displays music videos or clips from old action films like Independence Day and Top Gun, while 10-to 15-year-olds whip themselves into a biking frenzy in a dark room.
At Franco's, the youth program includes a sports-training academy, a class for obese youngsters, instruction for children on the etiquette and mechanics of using the workout room, and a media center for kids in need of downtime. Chad Ferguson, 12, is proud of completing the four-week-long Junior Fitness Instruction course that teaches kids, among other things, how to use cardio and weight machines safely and considerately. ("It's a privilege," instructor Jason Angelette, 24, tells them.) Ferguson likes to wear his new blue T shirt — his ticket to use the club independently — at home, school and other extra-Franco's venues. "Normally," explains Ferguson, "you can't go upstairs on your own unless you're 14."
The biggest challenge for clubs is figuring out how to reach out to kids without alienating adult members, particularly those who don't have children. Some clubs cordon off junior classes; others designate "adults only" areas for those who want peace and quiet. At Eastern Athletic in Brooklyn, N.Y., no one under 18 is allowed on the floor, but classes for kids include weight training, cardio kickboxing, fencing and in-line skating. Town Sports International launched its first Sports Club for Kids, a studio within the adult club, in 2000. There are now 18.
Young kids may be drawn to health clubs by the blaring music, ubiquitous TVs, Internet access and the chance to act grownup, but the incentive for body conscious teen-age health-club goers tends to be, well, actual fitness. Workouts serve as a way to reduce stress and offer welcome alternatives for those less interested in school team sports. But growing numbers also use the clubs to enhance their strength and agility on the basketball, tennis or volleyball court. At Franco's, Mike DeMaria, director of the club's sports-performance academy, oversees daily training for some 200 kids, including six girls' volleyball teams. Other kids organize routines on their own, sometimes hiring a personal trainer. Says DeMaria: "They're very aware now that if they want to be the best they can be at their chosen sport, they have to be strong."
A place with strong bodies isn't too shabby for people-watching, either. Some teenagers even use the multifaceted clubs as dating destinations. "The girls I've dated are usually good athletes, so we might meet at the club, hit the weights, shoot some hoops, take a shower and eat dinner there," says Luke Porter, 16, who first walked on a treadmill alongside his dad at age 5 and says he practically lives at the MAC. "My dad tells me I've run up quite a tab."
Parents are discovering that health clubs also offer an easy and enjoyable way to spend time with their soon-to-be-independent teens. Larry Sernick's daughter Rebecca asked him to teach her how to work out three years ago to combat a weight gain that was interfering with her performance on her softball team. "I was thrilled," he says. "Both for myself, because I'd have somebody to work out with, and as a father." Though the athletic Rebecca, now 16, has since shed 40 lbs. and met her fitness goals, neither father nor daughter has any plan to stop the thrice weekly workouts. While some parents at first may have to push their younger kids to go to the clubs, before long it can be the other way around. "We like going together. I can work out, and they can be on their own, which they love," says Candace Ferguson, mom to Chad and his brother Benton, 10. "But I can tell you that there are times I'm way too tired, and they're always asking to go. If they're acting out, I threaten we won't go, and it works."
There's no way to predict exactly how long the facilities will hold the attention of the 18-and-under set, but signs suggest the trend is in no danger of waning soon. The toy company Sport-Fun last Christmas saw its foam-covered barbells and brightly colored treadmills for kids as young as 4 land on the Toy Industry Association's Top 50 People's Choice nominee list. As if that weren't enough, My Gym, a growing national chain of activity centers, offers stretching and other wee workouts for "terrific tots" (2 to 3 years), "waddlers" (11 to 18 months) and "tiny tykes" (3 to 11 months). Newborns, beware.
- Harriet Barovick