child care room at the gym?

[boogiemomz]

Anyone ever drop of your DC in the child care room while working out in the gym? I just joined a gym that has child care included with membership, and the room looks pretty nice and the staff seem qualified. Still feel a little uneasy about it, though. I am currently a SAHM and ALL my time is spent with DD, so it's not so much about being away from her as it is leaving her in a generic child care room with strangers (even though I am right outside the door). But I REALLY need to get in shape... it is too hot here to exercise outside and I'm more of a gym person anyway, and the only options for going without her are 5:30am (ouch) and 8pm (not gonna happen). Don't love at home exercise videos either, though I do that sometime. SO... anybody have experience, good or bad, with this kind of service at a gym?

[egoldber]

When I was a SAHM, I regularly used the child care at my gym. Heck, I would somtimes go and not even work out just to sit in the cafe and have a cup of coffee in peace.....

Having a healthy, fit mama is a great gift to your child.

[sidmand]

I do it about once/week now. I have had much better luck at a smaller gym with a smaller childcare room although DD might be okay now.

We belonged to the local YMCA and it just didn't work at all. I've heard people give it rave reviews but it was much too crowded, it was generally younger people working, and they would come get me every ten minutes and that just wasn't conducive to anyone's peace of mind!

OTOH I also belong to another gym (you'd think I'd be really fit considering we sort of belong to three different places!) that has two older ladies (probably in their 60s?) and both DCs have been going there since they were little. They knew that DD needed about 10 minutes in her stroller to just look around and observe before she would join in the activity (the other gym told me she didn't seem to like other kids...yeah, well, not when they're in her face!). She still cries when I drop her off, but she cries ANYWHERE I drop her off. It stops after a few minutes. DS loves it there though.

During the worst of the separation anxiety though I was also not able to exercise so we didn't go at all for about a year and I was dreading going back with DD but she's been...okay. Nothing bad to do with that childcare, just how DD is with anyone.

[Nosrac]

My dc gets dropped off several times a week. He loves it. He actually runs in ahead of me and waits to be let in the door. We started this around 1 yr. though. I had the same issues being a SAHM as you. It is so tough to leave them with someone you don't know but our experience has been nothing but positive.

[wellyes]

It really depends on the gym. The first one I belonged to was all ages in one room, staffed by apathetic high school girls. I tried it but was not comfortable with it. My current gym has a much better staff and I love it. They have a tumbling room and the kids run around with the staff and get a workout! (There is a quiet area too, depending on the kids mood). DD is spends an hour there 4-5 times per week - sometimes DH takes her, sometimes I do. Not a problem at all.

If you end up not liking the childcare room in your gym I encourage you to try another. In the beginning working out sucks but after a few week you feel so, so much better.

[luckytwenty]

I've done that since my oldest was a baby. When I was a SAHM, I used the childcare pretty much every day. I'll be using it again when I am on maternity leave (for the last month of it, anyway.) We like YMCAs for childcare and have chosen them over "better" gyms because of their facilities.

[edurnemk]

I did it starting when DS was 3 or 4 months old. I chose a gym which was a bit more expensive than the one my friends attended, but the child care was soooooo much better. At first I was nervous, but he did great and they had a policy about going to find the mom if the baby was upset and they couldn't soothe him after 10 minutes. They only had to go get me once, and that was much later, when he hit the separation anxiety phase. Also by this time he started trying to guilt trip me! He'd cry when I left him, but I'd stand a few feet from the door where he couldn't see me and I heard he'd stop crying immediately and start playing. Then when I came back, he would be happily playing but as soon as he saw me he'd cry... oh, well. But that hour for myself was wonderful for both of us. And I knew he was having a good time.

I always felt very comfortable leaving him because they had a separate baby room (6 weeks-18 months), with a 3:1 baby to caregiver ratio (but usually it was 1:1 or 2:1), super clean, they changed diapers, fed bottles, all the caregivers were well trained and loving, they were very careful about allergies and such. And of course it was in the same building. The other gym had one big room for everyone, they didn't change diapers or feed anyone, only one caregiver who'd usually be texting or whatever, and she'd park the babies and toddlers in front of the TV in their strollers. I'd never leave my child in a place like that.

I say go for it. It's a nice break for a SAHM.

[Beckylove]

I do it 3 times a week. It is good for DS and for me.

He gets limited doses of playing and sharing with other kids. He gets to run around like a crazy person and play with balls and slides and cars and the cool toys they have that we don't have at home. I can see them disinfect the toys at the end of every day and he hasn't gotten sick, which was something I was nervous about. He did go through a seperation anxiety phase and they paged me after 15 minutes or so if he wasn't calming down, but that only happened one time. I can peek into the side window and watch as they talk to him, hold him and engage him in playing.

Its good for me because I need to work out, lose some weight and get back to feeling good about myself again.

I say go for it!

[babychi]

:popc1:

DD is 8 months and I've yet to use the one at our gym, but I'd really like to start using it for an hour or so each day on the weekends...

[catpagmo]

I will be the outlier here and say that I still haven't allowed DD or DS to stay in the child care room at my gym. It just freaks me out to leave them with total strangers. DS has major separation anxiety right now, too. It would be so much more convenient though. I just can't do it.

[wellyes]

It might help to ask how they hire people. There is a huge range of practices. One gym I checked out told me that I could have a free membership if I volunteered to staff the childcare room for one shift a month. This was during the tour, I was a total stranger! They knew I had a child, I'm guessing they only ask mothers (certainly only women). But still.

Our current place has background checks, everyone is CPR trained, there are always at least 3 adults present even if there is just one kid, there are videocameras and you can always see what's happening. It is not a cheap gym but it's definitely worth it for me.

[clc053103]

Started with DS when he was 8 weeks old. They had a separate room for infants and toddlers that aren't yet walking. I didn't really want him handled by the caregivers, so I would go at nap time and put him in a swing (that I had wiped down with antibacterial wipes like a loon) and let him sleep for the hour. Others would roll their sleeping kids in and let them sleep in the stroller. As he got older, there were weeks he would go through a phase and hate it, but generally goes willingly. Now at 5 he takes a leapster or DS and hangs out (of course, with his name on it, and the warning that he is not ever, ever to put it down or it will get lost).

Of course there are germs (DS did end up sick a lot and I did rename the gym "the germ" for a while) but germs are a fact of life, and a little time for exercise and adult interraction is truly a worthy cause!

[boogiemomz]

Thanks for the replies. I joined the gym today, so we'll see how it goes. :shrug: But I had a pretty good feeling about it on the tour today, the area looks nice, and all the child care staff have photos and bios on the wall and they all speak to some sort of child care/teaching experience. There's a separate infant area too, but it's full of swings and bouncy seats, and I'm pretty sure DD will want to be out in the more open area where she can crawl around. I'm guessing she will love it; might be hard for me the first few times but it will be nice to know she is right there near me and I can peek in anytime. Hoping for the best! Glad to hear so many of you have had good experiences doing this. :)

[HIU8]

Before DD was preschool age I did it ALL.THE.TIME. It was wonderful. It helped that I knew the lady who ran it from DS's preschool (preschool and the gym are in a community center). She worked at the preschool after the gym babysitting closed at 1 pm. DD loved being there (ok, after the first 2 times where she cried like crazy and I had to cut my workouts way short). DD would look forward to going (I was going daily while DS was in preschool). She even met some kids who entered the preschool with her (which was nice for the preschool transition).

[LarsMal]

We joined the gym about 2 months ago and the childcare room has been wonderful. The gym is brand new so the room is new and cheery, everything is so clean and fresh. There is a big climbing maze with a slide that L&M are old enough to use and they love it. They have several computers and a big flat screen tv that the kids can play Wii on. They also have games, coloring, puzzles, etc. They have a "baby" section that is gated off for the little ones, but now that C can walk she is allowed to roam around the big room. C went through a little bit of an adjustment, but she does great now. All of the staff is wonderful. They know the kids by name now and welcome them with smiles and warm hellos.

There have been a couple times that it's been at capacity and that stunk, but now that schools are getting ready to start it shouldn't be a problem.

I think I've gone to the gym more because my kids love going to the room so much. I was exhausted today but they begged me to go and workout. I felt so much better after and they got to have some fun. It's been a great break for me, too, since my kids are always with me.

[LarsMal]

Our current place has background checks, everyone is CPR trained, there are always at least 3 adults present even if there is just one kid, there are videocameras and you can always see what's happening. It is not a cheap gym but it's definitely worth it for me.

We have the videocameras, too, which is cool. Ours also has a rule that they only allow enough "babies" (non-walking) as staff. One time I went in with C, who had *just* started walking and they asked me if she could walk because they were at their 1:1 limit for the little ones. I was like, "Yeah...see...she can walk...(walk baby walk)!" Thankfully she took a few steps and they let me go!

[okinawama]

We go 5 times a week and at first it was tough, my little guy cried and cried (so much so that I was called back to the childcare room every.single. time for almost two months straight!), however I knew I was leaving him in a safe and clean environment, so we continued on knowing that both he and I needed time away from one another. I go just as much for my mental/social well being as my physical well being. All the hardwork and tears paid off because he loves it now. As soon as we pull into the gym parking lot he's signing and saying play, he LOVES it!

[awoodm]

We just joined a gym last week (SAHM here as well), and I do use the childcare if DH is working when I go. DS1 loves it- DS2, not so much. He is not used to being left with anyone but us though, so I am hoping it will grow on him.

[ehf]

See if you can find out the staff schedule. If you leave your DC there 3 mornings a week, they aren't strangers anymore!

I tried to leave my DD there this summer, though, and after 5 times, she was still pitching enough of a fit that I didn't follow through. Their staffing schedule was really erratic, so I couldn't count on leaving her with the same person each time, which made it hard.

My issue is that I work mornings and some afternoons. I don't feel like I can pick her up at daycare and then drop her off at the gym babysitting. I'd love to just join a gym near where I work so I can leave my DD at her regular daycare for an extra 1.5 hours 3 times a week, but I work far from home and wouldn't get the benefit of using the gym on weekends, holidays, etc.

[SunCB]

Love it and hate it and I can go 5 days a wk (playcare not open on wkeds) if I actually made it that often. DD has her days when she is totally fine in there and then days when she will have nothing to do with it. I like it bc I know the staff is always the same and if she steps out it is pretty much always the same people who go in to help out for the short period of time. My older ones really do not care who is there and have fun.

The staff knows when to come get me now since they know when my youngest is really fussing or not along with they can get her to calm down most of the times very quickly and if they cannot someone immediately comes to get me. Yes, it was harder at first given I did not know these people but I knew getting back to my old self (still working on that) is better not only for me but for them and it is not like I was leaving the building/area (you can walk the track outside).

There may be some adjustment time for your LO especially if not use to being around a lot more people and there is heavy traffic in and out at the time you go. GL