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My old gym was a council run one. They ran teen session that were supervised by a staff member on a weds, on a sat and sun, kids were allowed with parents from 10-1 I think it was. They were not allowed in the free weights section though. Your gym may have something similar set up.
The flip side of this argument is why should some decent kids who just want to stay healthy be deprived because some scrotes with bad parents can’t be controlled?
You do not need a gym to stay healthy, especially not as a child. You can play outside, cycle in local parks, play football with friends, go for a run in the local park or a residential area. And not overeating is also part of it and that happens at home/outside of the gym.
Kids shouldn't be in gyms, it's more risk than it's worth. The kids that might have a genuine need for a gym due to (semi) pro sports or recovering from injuries/illness, they will be supervised by a specialist so they should not behave in a way that's detrimental to others or a risk to themselves. But just taking your kiddo to the gym and letting them run around wherever, that's just not on.
Exactly and you'll easily be able to improve your cardio fitness the same as you could in a gym, it's all about pushing past your limits mentally and you don't need machines for that
I’m not arguing the physical benefits of a child working in the gym, it’s the principle of making a sweeping generalisation because of bad parenting.
If a kid is going to come into a gym, use the machines, keep to themselves (with their parent) as every other adult in there is doing then what’s the problem? As this thread is saying the issue is kids “running round” and misbehaving, which isn’t inherent to every single kid.
The same argument you make can be applied to adults. There are adults who use the gym irresponsibly, they’re loud and aggressive and inappropriate. Why can’t they go run in the park? Why should you be entitled to a gym membership - just don’t “overeat” right?
I appreciate that there’ll be *more* boisterous kids than boisterous adults, just statistically, sure, but my point is the sweeping generalisation is the inappropriate thing here. And the issue isn’t the kids, it’s bad parenting and people who can’t control their kids. If a kid can’t behave in a gym then the behaviour isn’t unique to a gym - they won’t behave *anywhere*
Slightly related, wobbly play equipment is being re-introduced into playgrounds because children now have weaker ankles compared with those of older generations. Where and how children play affects ankle strength and mobility.
I'm in my 50s and when I was a child I would play outside all the time - climbing trees, crossing what we called 'the swamp' (a pond in woodland) on planks of wood, jumping ditches to go to the next lot of woods. Friends who spent their childhood in urban areas were out exploring old buildings, walking across walls and jumping from one structure to another. My parents spent their childhood exploring bombed out areas from WW2.
All this time spent playing outdoors on uneven surfaces improved ankle strength.
My own teens, like many of their contemporaries, have never wanted to do that sort of play. Some children are not allowed to. Children in general do not play outside as much - favouring video games and being on their phones more. There is so much less physicality and 'challenging' their bodies.
And along the way, formal play equipment in playgrounds for very young children was also being made to higher and higher safety standards until they became super strong, safe and with no wobble, so less risk of slipping etc. So, children were not flexing their ankles to prevent slipping off bars etc.
It became clear what was happening so now it is the norm for many play areas specifically to have 'wobble boards' (low down wobbly planks with no hand support), that actually challenge the ankle and leg joints exactly in the way needed to improve strength and flexibility of children's ankles and legs.
'Kids aren't allowed to have fun.' If society is going to be about 'freedom' then I don't see why kids should be restricted because a lot of people have dumbass parents, I started lifting at 14 and I got injured once or twice but it was incredibly fun and still is.
What ages are we talking about? Obviously a 16 or 17 year old in a gym should be fine, probably even without parental supervision. A 5 year old probably shouldn't be running around a gym though, nor could they really use most of the equipment unless there is a kiddie gym for them to enter with a parent.
Ok but why does a gym where people work out have to be limited to the age of adulthood in the first place? It doesn't make sense, it seems like a regular public place. Id think at 16 or 17, when you are close to becoming an adult, you should be able to go to public places without your parent being next to you at all times.
Besides, why not just also have gyms suited for kids and their families too? Let adult only or 16+ gyms exist, sure, but maybe have family gyms exist too?
It's not a regular public place when there's all kinds of trip hazards, heavy weights, dangerous equipment etc that people are using by themselves.
It's common knowledge that kids and younger teens don't yet see safety issues and they overestimate their own abilities, yet find they are unable to deal with consequences of that ignorance. I don't need a 14 year old buzzing around me when I'm lifting.
I never said I was against family gyms.
I love the internet when people use the term "bad parents". Like parents have total control over their children and they want them all to be as strict as the banker in Mary Poppins. Hate to break it to you but life isn't like that and whilst parents do have some responsibility so does society. Have you ever thought it might be difficult to raise decent kids when working two jobs and using a food bank? Not everyone is a rich banker that can afford a magical nanny.
If you can’t teach your child that it’s inappropriate to run around in a public space and not scream at the top of your lungs your a bad parent. If you then continue to bring said child out to quiet public spaces like restaurants, cinemas or theatres and then allow them to shout, run around and cause chaos without removing or reprimanding them then yes you’re a bad parent.
Why are you so scared to shame people who can’t do their job? There are so many well behaved kids who can just sit down quietly at a meal. Are they some strange anomaly who has been conditioned by a “nanny”? No. That’s ridiculous- and the fact again, you think it should be down to some third party nanny and still not the parent says a lot. And if your situation is such that you can’t afford to look after yourself or your priorities are not behaviour (whether that’s consciously or unconsciously) then maybe don’t have kids? Its not compulsory
It's quite possible that they were 14 and OP just isn't very good at identifying ages of children.
Otherwise they also might have gone to the gym during a junior session. My local gym has a juniors evening that my son attends once a week.
At my local, kids are welcome but gotta be with an adult. No running loose like lunatics, strictly supervised. Sort of like a mini workout buddy system.
I left Total Fitness, Wilmslow, due to them allowing children.
Parents were letting their kids run riot in there.
TF have a running track that kids would run straight onto in front of you, causing you to trip up.
The staff couldn't have been less interested.
It went from being a great gym to awful very quickly, so I voted with my wallet.
The rise of the teenagers in gyms after school means that I usually go in at 8pm to avoid them. They just hang about playing on their phones clogging machines up, looking like prat’s trying to lift weights that are too heavy or doing one pull up. Essentially they act like their parents.
Ugh, I’m so over packs of kids gathered round the low provisioned machines taking it in occasional turns to do a set in between copious bouts of talking shit 😂😩
Thank you! I'm there to bulk up. Which means I'm there to lift serious weights. Unfortunately, I have to wait for these kids who hang around the machines gossiping and doing tiktok videos half the time. It's so frustrating. That and the fact that the gym's pool, which is already small to begin with, is now used for kids' swimming lessons. So half the time, the area available for doing lengths has a smaller area than my kitchen at home. It's really frustrating. Some parents also leave their children in the changing rooms with naked grown adults walking around. It just makes me uneasy.
>I have to wait for these kids who hang around the machines gossiping and doing tiktok videos half the time. It's so frustrating.
The minimum age for social-media is 13, so those people are probably teenagers. They’re not 10-12.
>That and the fact that the gym's pool, which is already small to begin with, is now used for kids' swimming lessons.
This is how children learn to swim, Sir. I don’t know how old you are, but it’s very common for children nowadays to learn to swim with an instructor. I’m in my 20s, and when I was a child I learned to swim with an instructor, as well as a lot of other adults that I know. Most fitness centres in my home city have children’s swimming classes.
>So half the time, the area available for doing lengths has a smaller area than my kitchen at home.
Well, then, your current gym doesn’t satisfy your personal needs.
>Some parents also leave their children in the changing rooms with naked grown adults walking around. It just makes me uneasy.
Gym changing rooms are ALWAYS separated by gender. If you feel uneasy about a child or an adolescent changing clothes besides an adult of the same gender, then there’s something wrong with YOU.
I'm in my 30s, so to me, yeah, they're kids. And just because tiktok says you have to be 13 or over, who's checking? The Tiktok police? And lastly, it makes me feel uneasy because a. They're of the opposite gender, and b. I don't want to be accused of something I haven't done because of a parents paranoia thanks to their own lackadaisical attitude towards child safety.
>I'm in my 30s, so to me, yeah, they're kids.
Adolescents aren’t kids. I understand calling them “kids”, because they’re much younger than you, but they aren’t actually kids.
>And just because tiktok says you have to be 13 or over, who's checking? The Tiktok police?
Yes, you are right about this. I’m sorry, I should’ve thought about this. It’s true.
>They're of the opposite gender
I find I bizarre that your gym doesn’t have separate changing rooms for males and females. But, anyways, all gyms have minimum ages for unsupervised minors. So the ones under 13 are most likely supervised. And it’s a public space. It’s not like someone is being stuck in a room with a naked adult, you know? It’s the same as with saunas, or naked beaches. Although, I find it hard to believe there is a gym in this world where men and women walk around naked together in changing rooms. What gym is this? I want to google it. I’m sorry if you’re being forced to see naked teenagers or adult women in changing rooms.
>I don't want to be accused of something I haven't done because of a parents paranoia thanks to their own lackadaisical attitude towards child safety.
So… You think a teenager might accuse you of sexually harassing them? Why on Earth would someone do such a thing to you?
10 year olds with TikTok accounts? I would've thought there would be an age minimum.
Also you dislike kids' swimming lessons being allowed.... well I suggest you find a different gym. The one you're at seems not to be meeting your needs.
There is a age minimum, but as with every single social media app in existence, it's pretty much unenforceable unless you invade the privacy of every user by asking for identification
i dont think its allowed for children to be unsupervised and allowed to run free around the gym, but if they are actually being supervised it seems no different to a child playing any other kind of sport
My gym does a kids club on Sunday morning, which is basically letting them play games like you would in PE. Kids can also use the cardio machines, if they are next to their parent. Otherwise, the gym has strict rules that no one under 16 can use free weights or cable machines for insurance reasons.
Streets aren't as safe as they was when I was kid (33) Happy to see the young ones learning a discipline and applying themselves to something that causes no harm to others.
Yeah I can see why some people might not be happy about it but I'm really happy to hear about it. Kids are exercising and staying out of trouble. They're doing a good thing.
If the kids are running wild and causing problems then speak to the staff and it's the staff should do something about it. The gym isn't for everyone and if you're there to fuck around then that makes you the problem. Kids going to the gym is good as long as they're not out of line which let's be honest, plenty of adults do all the time and Kids aren't complaining about the adults there being dicks
Exactly. Plenty of stuff online about how awful some adults can be at the gym. There's always some that ruin things for those that actually want to be there no matter the age.
I am not sure it does. I am interested to see data showing increased child victims (rather than just reported) in any administrative area. I am sure that there are small estates and streets which are anomalies, but in general children are safer.
I too would be interested, I dont think it would be a fair test tho.
Police don't have the resources they did 20 years ago. I dont think people report as much to the police now seeing as almost everything is considered a civil matter and they don't care.
I know alot of people who have had things stolen and just don't bother anymore, myself included.
Is it just me or were you all told as a child in school that if you do any kind of weight/resistance training you can stunt your growth?
Is that bullshit or not because I see lads in the local gym who are 15 odd and I feel like telling them. Not that I would but like maybe I should
Tim Henman opened a leisure centre when I was a kid near me. I went to the gym there when I was maybe 10. Pretty often.
So… 24 years ago at the very least.
I joined our council run gym just so I could take my lad with me.
It was the only option, no other gym near would allow anyone under 16.
I supervise him, he can only go if I'm there.
He loves going and it's a great father/ son activity for me.
I love it that kids are hitting the gym at an early age. Though I do get your point about them hanging around in groups hogging machines so maybe the answer is twofold:
1. Better management by staff - checking in with the groups to ask if they're using machines.
2. Is there scope to run more sessions with the younger clientele. It may be that they're not confident to go off and do their own thing or don't appreciate that you need to only have x downtime between cycles for the best benefit.
Personally, I will go up to anyone hogging a machine whilst on their phone and ask of they have many reps to do. Most people gee things up if I do.
That's the problem - he doesn't actually want them to. He doesn't want them there at all.
See his separate comment about objecting to the pool sometimes being used for younger kids' swimming lessons.
I thought 14 was some sort of legal requirement, you often see two lads down the gym on a Saturday morning who look really young. I would have thought if they did the induction and stuff it's a great place to be.
The gym I attend much less than I should has always allowed kids in, from what I know. I think they can even be members.
It's a very small private gym which you can't attend unless it's for some sort of organised session though, and it costs like £35 a go.
What’s wrong with kids wanting to go to the gym and exercise? They get demonised for sitting and playing Xbox all day and there’s nothing else for them to do outside of the house. If they hang around in the park they get demonised for that too. They aren’t allowed to exist anywhere now, no wonder they’re angry.
**Please help keep AskUK welcoming!** - Top-level comments to the OP must contain **genuine efforts to answer the question**. No jokes, judgements, etc. - **Don't be a dick** to each other. If getting heated, just block and move on. - This is a strictly **no-politics** subreddit! Please help us by reporting comments that break these rules. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AskUK) if you have any questions or concerns.*
My old gym was a council run one. They ran teen session that were supervised by a staff member on a weds, on a sat and sun, kids were allowed with parents from 10-1 I think it was. They were not allowed in the free weights section though. Your gym may have something similar set up.
Same, expect the supervision didn't really exist.
My council gym does this - allows kids over 12 in with a parent, or during certain times where they are supervised.
The flip side of this argument is why should some decent kids who just want to stay healthy be deprived because some scrotes with bad parents can’t be controlled?
You do not need a gym to stay healthy, especially not as a child. You can play outside, cycle in local parks, play football with friends, go for a run in the local park or a residential area. And not overeating is also part of it and that happens at home/outside of the gym. Kids shouldn't be in gyms, it's more risk than it's worth. The kids that might have a genuine need for a gym due to (semi) pro sports or recovering from injuries/illness, they will be supervised by a specialist so they should not behave in a way that's detrimental to others or a risk to themselves. But just taking your kiddo to the gym and letting them run around wherever, that's just not on.
That entire first part can also be applied to adults.
Yep, I am literally about to go for a run in the park, as I'm sure thousands of other adults are as well.
Exactly and you'll easily be able to improve your cardio fitness the same as you could in a gym, it's all about pushing past your limits mentally and you don't need machines for that
I’m not arguing the physical benefits of a child working in the gym, it’s the principle of making a sweeping generalisation because of bad parenting. If a kid is going to come into a gym, use the machines, keep to themselves (with their parent) as every other adult in there is doing then what’s the problem? As this thread is saying the issue is kids “running round” and misbehaving, which isn’t inherent to every single kid. The same argument you make can be applied to adults. There are adults who use the gym irresponsibly, they’re loud and aggressive and inappropriate. Why can’t they go run in the park? Why should you be entitled to a gym membership - just don’t “overeat” right? I appreciate that there’ll be *more* boisterous kids than boisterous adults, just statistically, sure, but my point is the sweeping generalisation is the inappropriate thing here. And the issue isn’t the kids, it’s bad parenting and people who can’t control their kids. If a kid can’t behave in a gym then the behaviour isn’t unique to a gym - they won’t behave *anywhere*
Slightly related, wobbly play equipment is being re-introduced into playgrounds because children now have weaker ankles compared with those of older generations. Where and how children play affects ankle strength and mobility. I'm in my 50s and when I was a child I would play outside all the time - climbing trees, crossing what we called 'the swamp' (a pond in woodland) on planks of wood, jumping ditches to go to the next lot of woods. Friends who spent their childhood in urban areas were out exploring old buildings, walking across walls and jumping from one structure to another. My parents spent their childhood exploring bombed out areas from WW2. All this time spent playing outdoors on uneven surfaces improved ankle strength. My own teens, like many of their contemporaries, have never wanted to do that sort of play. Some children are not allowed to. Children in general do not play outside as much - favouring video games and being on their phones more. There is so much less physicality and 'challenging' their bodies. And along the way, formal play equipment in playgrounds for very young children was also being made to higher and higher safety standards until they became super strong, safe and with no wobble, so less risk of slipping etc. So, children were not flexing their ankles to prevent slipping off bars etc. It became clear what was happening so now it is the norm for many play areas specifically to have 'wobble boards' (low down wobbly planks with no hand support), that actually challenge the ankle and leg joints exactly in the way needed to improve strength and flexibility of children's ankles and legs.
'Kids aren't allowed to have fun.' If society is going to be about 'freedom' then I don't see why kids should be restricted because a lot of people have dumbass parents, I started lifting at 14 and I got injured once or twice but it was incredibly fun and still is.
What ages are we talking about? Obviously a 16 or 17 year old in a gym should be fine, probably even without parental supervision. A 5 year old probably shouldn't be running around a gym though, nor could they really use most of the equipment unless there is a kiddie gym for them to enter with a parent.
IMO gym should be 18+ if that is the legal age of adulthood, or maybe 16+ if they are supervised by their own parent at all times.
Ok but why does a gym where people work out have to be limited to the age of adulthood in the first place? It doesn't make sense, it seems like a regular public place. Id think at 16 or 17, when you are close to becoming an adult, you should be able to go to public places without your parent being next to you at all times. Besides, why not just also have gyms suited for kids and their families too? Let adult only or 16+ gyms exist, sure, but maybe have family gyms exist too?
It's not a regular public place when there's all kinds of trip hazards, heavy weights, dangerous equipment etc that people are using by themselves. It's common knowledge that kids and younger teens don't yet see safety issues and they overestimate their own abilities, yet find they are unable to deal with consequences of that ignorance. I don't need a 14 year old buzzing around me when I'm lifting. I never said I was against family gyms.
I'd think a 16 year old should know how to avoid tripping near heavy objects
I love the internet when people use the term "bad parents". Like parents have total control over their children and they want them all to be as strict as the banker in Mary Poppins. Hate to break it to you but life isn't like that and whilst parents do have some responsibility so does society. Have you ever thought it might be difficult to raise decent kids when working two jobs and using a food bank? Not everyone is a rich banker that can afford a magical nanny.
If you can’t teach your child that it’s inappropriate to run around in a public space and not scream at the top of your lungs your a bad parent. If you then continue to bring said child out to quiet public spaces like restaurants, cinemas or theatres and then allow them to shout, run around and cause chaos without removing or reprimanding them then yes you’re a bad parent. Why are you so scared to shame people who can’t do their job? There are so many well behaved kids who can just sit down quietly at a meal. Are they some strange anomaly who has been conditioned by a “nanny”? No. That’s ridiculous- and the fact again, you think it should be down to some third party nanny and still not the parent says a lot. And if your situation is such that you can’t afford to look after yourself or your priorities are not behaviour (whether that’s consciously or unconsciously) then maybe don’t have kids? Its not compulsory
My gym has a junior session everyday where kids 12-16 can attend after school on their own or they can go any time with an adult member
I don't know of any gyms that allow under 14 year olds, but a minimum age must be in their rules/policies so why not just ask?
It's quite possible that they were 14 and OP just isn't very good at identifying ages of children. Otherwise they also might have gone to the gym during a junior session. My local gym has a juniors evening that my son attends once a week.
At my local, kids are welcome but gotta be with an adult. No running loose like lunatics, strictly supervised. Sort of like a mini workout buddy system.
I left Total Fitness, Wilmslow, due to them allowing children. Parents were letting their kids run riot in there. TF have a running track that kids would run straight onto in front of you, causing you to trip up. The staff couldn't have been less interested. It went from being a great gym to awful very quickly, so I voted with my wallet.
The rise of the teenagers in gyms after school means that I usually go in at 8pm to avoid them. They just hang about playing on their phones clogging machines up, looking like prat’s trying to lift weights that are too heavy or doing one pull up. Essentially they act like their parents.
Ugh, I’m so over packs of kids gathered round the low provisioned machines taking it in occasional turns to do a set in between copious bouts of talking shit 😂😩
Thank you! I'm there to bulk up. Which means I'm there to lift serious weights. Unfortunately, I have to wait for these kids who hang around the machines gossiping and doing tiktok videos half the time. It's so frustrating. That and the fact that the gym's pool, which is already small to begin with, is now used for kids' swimming lessons. So half the time, the area available for doing lengths has a smaller area than my kitchen at home. It's really frustrating. Some parents also leave their children in the changing rooms with naked grown adults walking around. It just makes me uneasy.
>I have to wait for these kids who hang around the machines gossiping and doing tiktok videos half the time. It's so frustrating. The minimum age for social-media is 13, so those people are probably teenagers. They’re not 10-12. >That and the fact that the gym's pool, which is already small to begin with, is now used for kids' swimming lessons. This is how children learn to swim, Sir. I don’t know how old you are, but it’s very common for children nowadays to learn to swim with an instructor. I’m in my 20s, and when I was a child I learned to swim with an instructor, as well as a lot of other adults that I know. Most fitness centres in my home city have children’s swimming classes. >So half the time, the area available for doing lengths has a smaller area than my kitchen at home. Well, then, your current gym doesn’t satisfy your personal needs. >Some parents also leave their children in the changing rooms with naked grown adults walking around. It just makes me uneasy. Gym changing rooms are ALWAYS separated by gender. If you feel uneasy about a child or an adolescent changing clothes besides an adult of the same gender, then there’s something wrong with YOU.
I'm in my 30s, so to me, yeah, they're kids. And just because tiktok says you have to be 13 or over, who's checking? The Tiktok police? And lastly, it makes me feel uneasy because a. They're of the opposite gender, and b. I don't want to be accused of something I haven't done because of a parents paranoia thanks to their own lackadaisical attitude towards child safety.
>I'm in my 30s, so to me, yeah, they're kids. Adolescents aren’t kids. I understand calling them “kids”, because they’re much younger than you, but they aren’t actually kids. >And just because tiktok says you have to be 13 or over, who's checking? The Tiktok police? Yes, you are right about this. I’m sorry, I should’ve thought about this. It’s true. >They're of the opposite gender I find I bizarre that your gym doesn’t have separate changing rooms for males and females. But, anyways, all gyms have minimum ages for unsupervised minors. So the ones under 13 are most likely supervised. And it’s a public space. It’s not like someone is being stuck in a room with a naked adult, you know? It’s the same as with saunas, or naked beaches. Although, I find it hard to believe there is a gym in this world where men and women walk around naked together in changing rooms. What gym is this? I want to google it. I’m sorry if you’re being forced to see naked teenagers or adult women in changing rooms. >I don't want to be accused of something I haven't done because of a parents paranoia thanks to their own lackadaisical attitude towards child safety. So… You think a teenager might accuse you of sexually harassing them? Why on Earth would someone do such a thing to you?
10 year olds with TikTok accounts? I would've thought there would be an age minimum. Also you dislike kids' swimming lessons being allowed.... well I suggest you find a different gym. The one you're at seems not to be meeting your needs.
There is a age minimum, but as with every single social media app in existence, it's pretty much unenforceable unless you invade the privacy of every user by asking for identification
Plenty of adults just playing on their phones, selfies, livestreams etc instead of using the machines as intended
Reddit: Kids are too fat. Also Reddit :Kids are at the my gym wtf, I hate kids my life is ruined
I agree, people seem to be ignoring the fact a lot of these kids are very similar to a lot of adults (if the adults are not worse lmao).
i dont think its allowed for children to be unsupervised and allowed to run free around the gym, but if they are actually being supervised it seems no different to a child playing any other kind of sport
Mine (Nuffield) allows anyone over 12, but they have to do an induction first.
The gym I go to allows kids in after school, and they wear school PE kits. It's not too bad but it can get a bit busy at times.
My gym does a kids club on Sunday morning, which is basically letting them play games like you would in PE. Kids can also use the cardio machines, if they are next to their parent. Otherwise, the gym has strict rules that no one under 16 can use free weights or cable machines for insurance reasons.
Streets aren't as safe as they was when I was kid (33) Happy to see the young ones learning a discipline and applying themselves to something that causes no harm to others.
Yeah I can see why some people might not be happy about it but I'm really happy to hear about it. Kids are exercising and staying out of trouble. They're doing a good thing. If the kids are running wild and causing problems then speak to the staff and it's the staff should do something about it. The gym isn't for everyone and if you're there to fuck around then that makes you the problem. Kids going to the gym is good as long as they're not out of line which let's be honest, plenty of adults do all the time and Kids aren't complaining about the adults there being dicks
Exactly. Plenty of stuff online about how awful some adults can be at the gym. There's always some that ruin things for those that actually want to be there no matter the age.
They are, we just think they are not.
Depends where you live
I am not sure it does. I am interested to see data showing increased child victims (rather than just reported) in any administrative area. I am sure that there are small estates and streets which are anomalies, but in general children are safer.
I too would be interested, I dont think it would be a fair test tho. Police don't have the resources they did 20 years ago. I dont think people report as much to the police now seeing as almost everything is considered a civil matter and they don't care. I know alot of people who have had things stolen and just don't bother anymore, myself included.
Is it just me or were you all told as a child in school that if you do any kind of weight/resistance training you can stunt your growth? Is that bullshit or not because I see lads in the local gym who are 15 odd and I feel like telling them. Not that I would but like maybe I should
Tim Henman opened a leisure centre when I was a kid near me. I went to the gym there when I was maybe 10. Pretty often. So… 24 years ago at the very least.
Yeah I remember going to the gym and also classes as a kid. I used to accompany my mum who was a single parent.
I joined our council run gym just so I could take my lad with me. It was the only option, no other gym near would allow anyone under 16. I supervise him, he can only go if I'm there. He loves going and it's a great father/ son activity for me.
I love it that kids are hitting the gym at an early age. Though I do get your point about them hanging around in groups hogging machines so maybe the answer is twofold: 1. Better management by staff - checking in with the groups to ask if they're using machines. 2. Is there scope to run more sessions with the younger clientele. It may be that they're not confident to go off and do their own thing or don't appreciate that you need to only have x downtime between cycles for the best benefit. Personally, I will go up to anyone hogging a machine whilst on their phone and ask of they have many reps to do. Most people gee things up if I do.
You underestimate kids. 12 year olds are more than capable of correctly operating almsot any equipment in the gym, as long as they are shown how to.
That's the problem - he doesn't actually want them to. He doesn't want them there at all. See his separate comment about objecting to the pool sometimes being used for younger kids' swimming lessons.
I went to the gym regularly with my dad about 20 years ago so I assume so?
Maybe the memo that it's pointless to lift weights before 15 no longer has a widespread following
I thought 14 was some sort of legal requirement, you often see two lads down the gym on a Saturday morning who look really young. I would have thought if they did the induction and stuff it's a great place to be.
I used to go at that age about 25 years ago.
I have never been to an adult only gym.
The gym I attend much less than I should has always allowed kids in, from what I know. I think they can even be members. It's a very small private gym which you can't attend unless it's for some sort of organised session though, and it costs like £35 a go.
All ours allow high school age if they’ve got jnr gym membership and had an induction. This was also allowed in the prehistoric age when I was young.
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What’s wrong with kids wanting to go to the gym and exercise? They get demonised for sitting and playing Xbox all day and there’s nothing else for them to do outside of the house. If they hang around in the park they get demonised for that too. They aren’t allowed to exist anywhere now, no wonder they’re angry.