BABY GYMS : As Enrollment Climbs, Specialists Question the Need

Well before her first birthday, Alexandra Furie wanted to tumble. When she hit the 15-month mark, her mother gave in to her demands in a gym class.

“Alexandra comes here to see her sister’s class and she’s wanted to get out there for months now,” said Jody Furie, a San Fernando Valley mother whose toddler and 5-year-old child take classes at Jr. Gym in Sherman Oaks.

“There are a lot of benefits and it’s never really too soon to start them in these classes,” she said.

Baby gyms in the Valley report a class load at least twice what it was five years ago. And though some pediatricians say that baby gyms aren’t necessary for physical development, exercise specialists say it could be the key to tackling the problem of childhood obesity.

Most of the children enrolled in the classes are under age 2. Some gym programs, such as Gymboree, offer classes for children as young as 3 months. Although gym classes for young children and babies have been available for about 10 years, instructors say it is only in recent years that demand for these classes has increased.

“Sometimes parents bring their babies because they’re looking for the social atmosphere of a class, sometimes it’s for the physical development,” said Richard Kort, who owns two Kids’ Gym outlets in the Valley. “We don’t expect them to learn to walk here, but a lot of them do.”

Baby gym instructors say that they make no promises about advanced physical ability as a result of participating in a class, but many parents are looking for just that.

“We’re not out to make precocious gymnasts,” said Adrian Becker, who with her husband, Don, owns Gymboree outlets in Studio City, Northridge, Canoga Park and North Hollywood. “And we’re not trying to make them roll over or sit up or walk any sooner than they normally would have. These classes are about having fun and learning to like being active.”

At a recent gym class for babies able to walk, Glendale parent Debra Synott applauded and hugged her 21-month-old daughter, Rebecca, when she pirouetted on her toes.

“Rebecca is so proud because she can stand on her toes,” a beaming Synott said as her daughter grinned. “I didn’t realize how exciting it would be to see her accomplish something like that.”

Parents take pride in seeing their children achieve certain levels of physical activity, according to Jed Heller, director and instructor at Jr. Gym. Before children are 3, most of their rewards come from physical development--walking, sitting, crawling and playing, Heller said.

“And the parents enjoy the achievement as much as the children,” he said.

Some pediatricians, however, say that organized gym classes are not necessary for children to develop physically.

“For babies and young children who are receiving normal stimulation from their parents and from usual childhood playing, there is no medical reason or necessity for these programs,” said Dr. Sue M. Cheung, a West Hills pediatrician. “It may provide an environment for the child to develop more socially, but they really don’t need it.”

Also, children under age 1 who go to baby gym classes may be more susceptible to cold viruses when exposed to groups of children their own age, some pediatricians say.

“It’s a great thing for parents to get together with other parents and share their questions and concerns,” said Dr. Norman Lavin, a Tarzana pediatrician. “The socialization for the parents and children is really the reason it’s worth it to go to baby gym classes.”

But organized physical activity isn’t necessary for children until they reach age 8 or 9, Lavin said.

“It isn’t dangerous for young children and babies to participate in this type of activity as long as they don’t overdo it. But it isn’t going to produce children with advanced physical abilities, either,” Lavin said. She added that babies should not participate in classes longer than an hour, and that when they show signs of tiredness they should be allowed to rest.

Lavin said babies and toddlers do not need organized gym classes because they are naturally active as they learn to roll over, walk and run.

“It isn’t until they hit about 8 years old that they start to get more sedentary and begin playing with computers, video games and spending hours in front of a television set,” Lavin said.

But some exercise specialists and physiologists say there are more than social benefits for children who attend baby gym classes, and that these classes may be essential if society is to break the trend of obesity in children. While no studies have been done on the fitness of children who have participated in gym classes as babies, each program boasts dozens of success stories.

Ralph Rajs, director of operations at Mid Valley Athletic Club in Reseda, has a bachelor’s degree in physiology and nutrition from Cal State Northridge and has studied the topic of childhood obesity.

“The rate of obesity in Valley elementary school children is out of control and approaching the 50% mark,” Rajs said. “Organized activity at a young age is something that will become a routine for the child and it may be the only alternative to combatting the problem of childhood obesity.”

Also, Rajs, 26, says that because of increased crime in many parts of the Valley, some children are unable to play outdoors and walk home from school as they did 10 years ago.

“Parents are afraid to let their kids outside,” Rajs said. “How are they going to get the activity they’re supposed to get by sitting indoors all afternoon playing with computers and video games?”

Rajs said it is essential that families set a routine of activity in the lives of their children. That way, they will adjust to a lifestyle of physical fitness and learn the concept of interacting with other children at the same time, he said.

At Mid Valley Athletic Club, as well as at other health clubs, management is gearing more classes and equipment toward children as young as 18 months, Rajs said.

“Everyone is interested in getting their child physically fit,” he said. “If it’s supervised and age-appropriate, there is no age too young to start organized physical activity.”

The baby gym classes offered at several gymnasiums in the Valley also have equipment for babies as young as a year old. Typically, the classes are 45 minutes to an hour long and cost between $7 and $10 per class. At most gyms, parents must accompany children younger than 3 through the class.

Several baby gyms offer classes for infants 3 months old and up, and many children’s gyms that start them older are planning on including classes for infants.

“We would take them younger, but we have all we can handle with a full schedule for the young toddlers,” Heller said of the Jr. Gym program, which takes babies as soon as they can walk. “Baby classes are great for the children and parents and we’d like to have them as soon as we can work it into the schedule.”

Instructors at the baby gyms agree with Rajs that the reason their classes have become so popular is because of increasing urbanization in the Valley. Some pediatricians also say that the baby gym classes are the result of a growing trend among parents to give children every possible advantage over their peers.

Although the structure of baby gym classes vary, most are done to music and involve a series of activities that last less than a minute each.

“Babies have a very short attention span and they want to be doing something different all the time,” Heller said. “It isn’t fun for them if we spend a lot of time trying to perfect a certain activity. They are simply too young for that.”

The classes often begin with several stretching activities. For the youngest babies--3 months to a year--the parents move the child’s arms and legs in circles to the music.

“Sometimes the babies just like to watch the older toddlers participate,” Becker said of the Gymboree classes. “If they don’t want to do anything but lay there and watch, that’s OK. We’re not in the business of making them grow up too quickly. It needs to be fun and it needs to be on their own time.”

After stretching, the instructor leads the parents and children in activities appropriate to their age. Toddlers might walk in a circle--first on their toes and then with their knees bent--whereas younger babies might be held by their parents while the parents perform the activity.

The last half of many baby gym classes consists of play time on the equipment. At Gymboree classes, babies and parents like the air log--a 20-foot log-shaped inner tube filled with air. The parents straddle the air log with their babies sitting in front of them. Then, under the direction of the instructor, the parents lean one way or the other while the babies giggle in delight.

At Jr. Gym, the last half of the baby gym classes involve an obstacle course of mats, child-sized slides and ladders, tunnels and hills.

Between every activity there is always a round of vigorous applause.

And while the experts argue over the benefits of baby gym classes, Becker said the proof of their importance can be found in the smiles on children’s faces.

“It’s a fun place and a fun time,” she said. “Of course there’s more to it, but if they only got out of it a play time and a time to feel great about themselves, it would be enough.”