How do you feel about home gyms?

[hakunamatata]

A coworker of mine were talking the other day, and she told me she has a "gymnastics room" for her son and daughter who are gymnasts. I guess she's got tons of mats, a couple of beams, a bar, a pommel trainer/mushroom for her son and some other things. I had a floor beam when I was younger but never a mat or a kip bar or anything like that. I was just interested to see what people thought about home gyms. I'm not fully decided. On the one hand, I know a lot of you guys' kids are going to be doing gymnastics at home regardless whether they have equipment there to do it on, so maybe equipment makes things safer (and of course more fun). On the other hand, I know a lot of parents who really want to separate gym and home and who are concerned about safety.

If you have any equipment at home, how has it worked out for you? Do your gymmies actually use the equipment? I loved my beam for about a half a year while I was competing and then I stopped using it so much. I get it out about two or three times a year now just to mess around on, though I'm not a gymnast anymore. I don't have kids and won't anytime soon, I just think it's an interesting topic.

 

[Deleted member D3987]

that's nice...

 

[bogwoppit]

I have no issue with a beam and a few mats, but some parents find it really hard not to play coach when they get more equipment. I have seen some horrific videos on youtube of glassy eyed kids doing that FHC for hours to "get it". Sure the kid wants to, but their is dad with the video camera telling her "Ooh so close baby, you can do it!". If a child wants to learn skills they haven't mastered in the gym, home is not the place for it.
We did buy a beam, it got used mostly as a prop for games playing. We gave it away a year ago due to lack of use of any kind.

 

[MdGymMom01]

I agree that some equipment is okay. We have a floor beam and a mat but they rarely get used anymore, except as props for indoor games of hide and seek or for building forts. I also have seem many home videos of kids on their bars in the basement or garage or beam in the living room practicing for hours on end, which is only disturbing to me because you wonder when does this kid "just play"?

Even the most dedicated "eat, breathe and sleep" gymnast will grow tired of the home training soon enough. They usually end up discovery that thing called "life" and the friends, sleepovers, trips to the mall and movies, school activities and just hanging out that comes with it.

Don't worry about a home gym--you'll need that money when they want the newest cell phone, iPod or car soon enough.

 

[2012_olympics]

I am all for home gyms i think they help you in many ways i have a home gym and have had one for years and it really has helped me perfect my skills.

 

[hakunamatata]

that's nice...

What's nice?

 

[hakunamatata]

I have no issue with a beam and a few mats, but some parents find it really hard not to play coach when they get more equipment. I have seen some horrific videos on youtube of glassy eyed kids doing that FHC for hours to "get it". Sure the kid wants to, but their is dad with the video camera telling her "Ooh so close baby, you can do it!". If a child wants to learn skills they haven't mastered in the gym, home is not the place for it.
We did buy a beam, it got used mostly as a prop for games playing. We gave it away a year ago due to lack of use of any kind.

I've seen some of those youtube videos too and I completely agree. The kids look so exhausted! If my parents had done that, I have a feeling I may have just quit gymnastics entirely because I would have become so stressed and felt so pressured all the time. But I do think that if the parent handles the situation well, a beam and a mat or two can be fun and helpful.

 

[Geoffrey Taucer]

I hate to plug my blog at every opportunity, but the timing on this post could not have been more perfect.

(More to come over the next week or two)

 

[MaryA]

Over Thanksgiving, when my husband had the girls in Florida visiting his parents, my mom and I turned an unused room into a "home gym" of sorts. We painted, tore up the carpet (nasty, nasty job), and sanded and refinished the hardwood floors (just the fact that my 70-year-old mother and I hauled the sander up the steps to the 2nd floor is impressive in itself, I thought). We put in a ballet bar and a couple of good-sized mirrors for dd #1. I took dd #2's gymnastics mat, folding beam, and mini trampoline OUT OF MY LIVING ROOM. I mounted a set of rings (like men's gymnastics rings, though they also have a "trapeze" between them) in the door (with a crib mattress to put under them), put in a boom box and a couple of CD racks and a big magnet board with pictures from meets and dance recitals and such all over it. I am very pleased with the room. The girls love to play in it, I think in part because the lack of furniture in there leaves more room for the imagination. Oh, and did I mention that it got all of the gymnastics equiptment OUT OF MY LIVING ROOM? I have yet to go in there to make them do anything. And some day we'll get a nice fat home equity loan and that room will become my master bathroom and walk-in closet. But for now, it's just for fun (though not as much fun for me as having a master bath and walk-in closet would be).

 

[Deleted member D3987]

What's nice?

you know, like what a waste of time and money. kids spend enough time in a gym. home should be for home. kids eating dinner at the table with their family, doing homework, reading a book, playing an instrument or just doing NOTHING AT ALL because it is good for the soul.

 

[CoachGoofy]

I dislike them intensely.

So much injury, joy killing, and bad habit potential. Drives me nuts. I tell them if they want to gym at home they can stretch, condition, & do handstands if their parents allow. But I don't want to have to undo something that seemed like a good idea at home, I don't want them hurt, & I don't want gym to be the only thing in their lives.

 

[gymgurl]

Home trampoline fine although before entering the gym or knowing that i would i taught my self a back sault with terrible technique and now i am trying to correct that and omg it is difficult and i think a floor beam is also fine but when you get to having a full gym set up beam bars mat and well vault is a little impossible although that didn't stop me from using hallway as the vault strip and couch as the vault hehehe

 

[NGL780309]

I also have seem many home videos of kids on their bars in the basement or garage or beam in the living room practicing for hours on end, which is only disturbing to me because you wonder when does this kid "just play"?

.

There is actually a video of kids practicing for hours on their equipment? Or are you just assuming that their parents were making them practice for hours?

 

[MdGymMom01]

There is actually a video of kids practicing for hours on their equipment? Or are you just assuming that their parents were making them practice for hours?

One video I saw in particular was a time lapse over the course of an entire weekend. There were subtitles explaining that this child was literally practicing for hours well into the night. I have seen others where the descriptions do say that the kids were "practicing for hours".

 

[bogwoppit]

One video I saw in particular was a time lapse over the course of an entire weekend. There were subtitles explaining that this child was literally practicing for hours well into the night. I have seen others where the descriptions do say that the kids were "practicing for hours".

Oh gosh Md, I think that is the video I saw too. I was horrified, the child is the one with the glassy eyes that I was talking about in my post. THe kid was in the garage/home gym on a bar doing FHC after FHC, Dad would keep going in and videoing her progress and encouraging. I wanted to throw up after watching it. It was like watching child abuse in action. It had gone to the point where an adult should have stepped in and stopped it, but no they just kept on proudly taping.

THis is where Dunno is totally right, some people need to leave the gym in the gym, because they do not get the BALANCE that is needed.

 

[cher062]

A "gymnastic" gym I am against they have enough time in the gym that they don't need to do more at home. They need some time away from that too. With that said I'm all for a home gym that everyone can use with standard home gym stuff.

My DD has an Iron Gym type chinup bar and a folding sit on the floor balance beam. The only gymnastic exclusive item she has is a beam she only really practices the dance move type stuff and a few leap type stuff.
In general for the whole family we have mat, physioball, and some hand weights ranging from 1lb - 5lb. and a step. Everyone in the house uses those when they exercise. We also use the Wii "personal Trainer" which comes up with a plan for just for each person based on the initial testing and review testing (great program)

If DD wants to exercise at home outside of the gym she can but its more like working on strength, flexibility, core. Just like I would work on being a mom.

 

[hakunamatata]

Thanks everyone for sharing your opinions! There are definite pros and cons. I think my two biggest concerns are safety and parents playing the coach role. I would hate to see a gymnast lose his/her passion for the sport because it's becoming a chore. I didn't even think about creating bad habits. But I did enjoy my floor beam, and I mostly focused on basic skills. I do think it helped me improve my dance and become a little more comfortable. Plus I had a lot of fun with it. Always got it out when friends came over. I guess it depends on circumstance and, like I said before, how the parent handles it. Most of the parents I come across on this site don't seem overbearing, they seem supportive and loving, so hopefully no one would force a child to practice at home.

MaryA, enjoy your gym-free living room!!!

For those of you who haven't read Geoffrey Taucer's blog post yet, I think it's helpful if you do have equipment in your houses. Good to know some basic guidelines of what your kids should and shouldn't be doing at home.

I wrote a post about this as well for anyone interested, but it is less opinion-focused and more of a general "here's what you should consider before setting up a home gym." Also some info on some of the best places to buy equipment.

Gymnastics Universe: Home Gym Equipment for Gymnasts

 

[ZZMom]

I don't like them. I think gymnastics (or any other sport) should be at the gym or on the field and that home should be home. That said, my older daughter briefly had a tape line on the carpet in our basement that she used to practice her level 5 beam routine (she taped it up on her own). She was the level 5 state beam champion and a mom told me that her daughter said E was so good at beam because she had one at home.

The tape lasted for a couple of months and then disintegrated into the carpet. I wasn't then and am not now a fan of kids working out at home.

Best Wishes,

ZZMom

 

[3rd_time_around]

I think a practice beam for practicing dance-throughs is a good idea, but no flipping or teaching new skills on at home. I have seen kids at our gym that have the whole home gym thing, and they come in all proud that they taught themselves "3 new skills" or whatever at home. But they have bad form and technique.

To me, it makes a young gymnast too proud to listen to the coach, as in "I taught myself at home, so I'm good" or "my mom helped me learn this at home, so why do I need the coach?" Usually the kids with more than a floor beam or a practice mat are the ones with overboard parents who think their girl is the next Nastia Liukin. Wow, I didn't realize how strongly I felt about this till now, LOL!

 

[MdGymMom01]

Oh gosh Md, I think that is the video I saw too. I was horrified, the child is the one with the glassy eyes that I was talking about in my post. THe kid was in the garage/home gym on a bar doing FHC after FHC, Dad would keep going in and videoing her progress and encouraging. I wanted to throw up after watching it. It was like watching child abuse in action. It had gone to the point where an adult should have stepped in and stopped it, but no they just kept on proudly taping.

THis is where Dunno is totally right, some people need to leave the gym in the gym, because they do not get the BALANCE that is needed.

YUP--that is the video. It was so disturbing to watch. It literally made me sick too. Balance is definitely the key!