For Children, a Head Start On the Road to Fitness

By Michael Alison Chandler (Contact)

Thursday, January 10, 2008

After a long day of math drills and science lessons at Sugarland Elementary School, 10-year-old Jacob Wilson likes to hit the gym. There, he vents a little bit of stress while pumping iron and sweating on an elliptical trainer.

“My mom has a gym, so I wanted to go, too. But they never had a gym for kids,” said Jacob, who, like many kids his age, has logged more time playing Super Mario Galaxy on his Nintendo Wii than playing basketball or soccer. So after a gym called Fitwize 4 Kids opened in Sterling in August, he signed up.

Concerns about unhealthy eating and a lack of exercise among children have given rise to gyms oriented toward the younger set, particularly in family friendly Loudoun County.

Dozens of businesses and community centers offer lessons in martial arts, yoga and dance for children of all ages. Some, including the Little Gym in Ashburn and Sterling, offer motor skills development for those as young as 4 months, helping them work on their rolling abilities or build upper-body strength to prepare them for crawling.

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Kids Get "Fitwize" in Sterling

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At Fitwize4Kids in Sterling, children work out on the grown-up style equipment. (Dayna Smith)

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Jacob Wilson, 10, wipes the sweat from his face after a grueling workout at Fitwize4Kids. (Dayna Smith)

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Jacob Wilson gets encouragement from his instructor, Danielle Kearney. (Dayna Smith)

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Fitwize4Kids instructor Danielle Kearney gives some encouragement to Jacob Wilson, 10. (Dayna Smith)

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Grace Renich, 8, and Emily Renich, 10, show off their Fitwize bucks. (Dayna Smith)

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Saied Banafshe, co-owner of Fitwize4Kids in Sterling, hands out "Fitwize bucks," which can be used to purchase gifts. (Dayna Smith)

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Laura Castro, 11, tackles an obstacle course at Fitwize4Kids in Sterling. (Dayna Smith)

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Jocelyn Gritton, 7, works out on a dance mat. (Dayna Smith)

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Emily Renich, 10, jogs in place. (Dayna Smith)

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Jocelyn Gritton, 7, on the obstacle course at Fitwize4Kids in Sterling. (Dayna Smith)

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Alora Cox, 12, does push-ups. (Dayna Smith)

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Emily VanDyke, 9, works out on the equipment. (Dayna Smith)

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James VanDyke, 11, and his sister, Emily, 9, in background, work out on the equipment at Fitwize4Kids in Sterling. (Dayna Smith)

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Fitwize 4 Kids is different because it offers weight and cardio machines resembling those used by adults but engineered for younger bodies.

Given the growing number of children’s gyms, more parents are making resolutions not just to get themselves in shape but to sculpt or slim down their children.

“My son, he needs to lose weight,” Mai Tran of Reston said of her 7-year-old son, Matthew Tran. She worries about his adult-size appetite and high cholesterol.

She noticed Fitwize 4 Kids while running errands one day and signed him up. The regular workout has helped keep his weight steady, and he enjoys it. “He likes to bounce around,” she said.

He bounded in Monday night, tearing off his jacket to show off a red Spider-Man T-shirt that matched his Power Ranger shoes. After a warmup of 35 jumping jacks and some twists, he flexed to show his growing biceps.

The gym is equipped with about a dozen machines for cardiovascular exercises and strength and agility training, including a shoulder press and a weight machine for pectoral and triceps muscles. There’s also a jump-rope area and a bench for doing sit-ups. Children spend about a minute at each station and then switch to another one.

When the children are done with the circuit, which can take up to an hour, they’re allowed to play athletically geared video games. One game is steered by rhythmically tapping feet; another is hooked up to a stationary bicycle, with the speed of the onscreen action determined by how fast the player is peddling.

“They think they are playing video games, and they are, but they are also working out,” said Sally Nanas, a substitute teacher who opened the gym with Saied Banafshe, a former program manager in the telecom industry. They have signed preliminary franchise agreements to open two more gyms in the area in coming years.

The gym, which the owners call a “healthy lifestyle center,” is targeted to children ages 7 to 17. About 50 children have joined so far, and most are 8 to 12, Nanas said. Some members are trying to lose weight, some are athletes who want to stay in shape and some have not yet found a sport they enjoy.

Membership costs vary and run about $100 a month. Membership includes a nutrition program and constant drilling about healthy eating.

“If there’s something you can’t read in the nutrition list, don’t eat it,” said Steven Androphy, Nanas’s 10-year-old son and a regular at the gym. That’s one lesson he learned in the ongoing nutrition course.

“No McDonald’s,” said 7-year-old Jocelyn Gritton, citing another lesson, as she pushed weights with her legs while sweat trickled on her forehead.

Jocelyn’s mother, Lillian Brown, said her daughter recently turned her nose up at french fries because they are unhealthy. Brown described Jocelyn as a lover of books and opera music, saying the gym has turned her activity level up a notch.

On Monday night, Jocelyn did not want to leave until she danced to a Cyndi Lauper song while playing a video game.

Nanas said the gym’s goal is to teach children healthy living.

“We are teaching them life skills they can bring with them,” she said.

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