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Daycare Center and Family Home Forum>Gym Daycare: Licensed and Inspected?
Cat Herder 12:36 PM 10-24-2018
"Yesterday, I dropped the baby off between naps to get a couple more hours of work done without interruption. This afternoon, I’ll go use the gym, steam room, and shower facilities. That way, instead of shoving our screaming son in my husband’s face the second he gets home from work, I’ve already worked out and we can handle the “second shift” together. Other days, my husband comes home to an empty apartment and, when he’s ready, he can join me on a nearby elliptical machine. According to the Mayo Clinic, working out increases energy and reduces stress, which is so important for a new parent. And on days I don’t feel like a workout, I can watch TV while I walk on the treadmill, or just take a long shower in peace."

I spoke to a handful of parents who said that using their gym’s babysitting services—which is typically included in the cost of membership or offered for a small additional fee—is a convenient and cost effective option. - https://www.menshealth.com/fitness/a...ith-childcare/
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DaveA 01:01 PM 10-24-2018
It’s been years since my kids used them with DW, but if I remember right they weren’t licensed in IL. As for inspected- whatever the normal inspection routine is for a gym includes the daycare I think.
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CalCare 01:08 PM 10-24-2018
It's going to be different everywhere. Our YMCA "babysitting" was/is horrendous. I couldn't leave my kids there after observing for a few minutes.
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Cat Herder 01:15 PM 10-24-2018
I was always under the impression that the parents had to be onsite with those types of childcare. That is how they were exempt from licensure, training and minimum core health and safety standards. Maybe that has changed.
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storybookending 01:57 PM 10-24-2018
I used to work for my local YMCA. We had this. It was exempt from licensing because it “operated for 3 hours at a time or less”. At our center it was an extra cost in addition to the membership. I’ve had upwards of 14 kids in there by myself before but it wasn’t licensed so no one cared. Parents had to be on site.. although I know for a fact they weren’t always but no one policed it

Anyways the room was DISGUSTING and dirty and I told parents flat out that I wouldn’t send my own kids there. After a boss or two came and went eventually a chore chart was implemented but there is a zero percent chance people were honest with it. It’s hard to do all those chores and supervise children alone, esp when it’s mostly employed by teenagers that don’t care. I recall once working an evening shift I feel like the day before a holiday and there were no swim lessons or exercise classes. Pretty sure I didn’t have any kids until the last half hour so I took the time to actually do something on the chore chart in sanatizing these huge soft blocks. Chore chart had been initialed by staff claiming to have cleaned them every day for the few weeks prior. There is NO way that that happened and I wiped just one block and my rag was BROWN. It was so gross.
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Blackcat31 04:43 PM 10-24-2018
Originally Posted by storybookending:
I used to work for my local YMCA. We had this. It was exempt from licensing because it “operated for 3 hours at a time or less”. At our center it was an extra cost in addition to the membership. I’ve had upwards of 14 kids in there by myself before but it wasn’t licensed so no one cared. Parents had to be on site.. although I know for a fact they weren’t always but no one policed it
Same here...
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jenboo 05:33 PM 10-24-2018
My son goes to the one at our gym. Max of 2 hours a day total between all locations. Not licensed because parents are on site.
My son loves it! It's never very crowded in the evenings. I love the workers in there with him. He has a blast and I get some time alone. Win. Win.

They do have cameras where you can watch your kid if you are on a machine with the built in TVs.
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hwichlaz 12:28 PM 10-25-2018
I wish mine had one. My 8 year old sits and reads or colors against the wall in my zumba class. :P
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mommyneedsadayoff 12:39 PM 10-25-2018
Originally Posted by Cat Herder:
"Yesterday, I dropped the baby off between naps to get a couple more hours of work done without interruption. This afternoon, I’ll go use the gym, steam room, and shower facilities. That way, instead of shoving our screaming son in my husband’s face the second he gets home from work, I’ve already worked out and we can handle the “second shift” together. Other days, my husband comes home to an empty apartment and, when he’s ready, he can join me on a nearby elliptical machine. According to the Mayo Clinic, working out increases energy and reduces stress, which is so important for a new parent. And on days I don’t feel like a workout, I can watch TV while I walk on the treadmill, or just take a long shower in peace."

I spoke to a handful of parents who said that using their gym’s babysitting services—which is typically included in the cost of membership or offered for a small additional fee—is a convenient and cost effective option. - https://www.menshealth.com/fitness/a...ith-childcare/
I will be judging mcjudgerson over here. She needs to drop her baby off in between naps so she can get work done without interruption. Meaning she only cares for their child when they're sleeping, or during the evening when she has a entire other adult present. Sounds about right for this generation of parenting. And yes, I know I'm being a judgemental prick. But I really don't care today.

As for the gym daycare, heck no. I'll take the baby for a run or walk in the stroller, before I leave them at our gym daycare so I can pound a treadmill and stare at CNN. No thanks.

Gotta love it: "Sarah Bregal, 33, of Baltimore, Maryland, belongs to her local YMCA, where, for $40 a month, she can use up to ninety minutes of childcare a day. “Honestly,” Bregal says, “the thing that motivates me to go to the gym most is getting a break from my kids!”
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Blackcat31 12:47 PM 10-25-2018
Originally Posted by mommyneedsadayoff:
I will be judging mcjudgerson over here. She needs to drop her baby off in between naps so she can get work done without interruption. Meaning she only cares for their child when they're sleeping, or during the evening when she has a entire other adult present. Sounds about right for this generation of parenting. And yes, I know I'm being a judgemental prick. But I really don't care today.

As for the gym daycare, heck no. I'll take the baby for a run or walk in the stroller, before I leave them at our gym daycare so I can pound a treadmill and stare at CNN. No thanks.


For clarification purposes.... NOT laughing at you... but I am laughing with you. I'm pretty sure everything you just posted floated through my mind while reading the original post too but sadly (or not sadly depending) my personal goal at this moment in life is to just keep my mouth shut and my finger on the scroll button verses the post button so...um yeah.

Have to say I agree with you but what do you know...you're just a babysitter. McDonald's employees get paid more and have better benefits.
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mommyneedsadayoff 01:01 PM 10-25-2018
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:


For clarification purposes.... NOT laughing at you... but I am laughing with you. I'm pretty sure everything you just posted floated through my mind while reading the original post too but sadly (or not sadly depending) my personal goal at this moment in life is to just keep my mouth shut and my finger on the scroll button verses the post button so...um yeah.

Have to say I agree with you but what do you know...you're just a babysitter. McDonald's employees get paid more and have better benefits.
Just saying what I think we may all have been thinking, but I added to my previous post because this mom hits the nail on the head..."Sarah Bregal, 33, of Baltimore, Maryland, belongs to her local YMCA, where, for $40 a month, she can use up to ninety minutes of childcare a day. “Honestly,” Bregal says, “the thing that motivates me to go to the gym most is getting a break from my kids!”

At least she is honest!
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DaveA 02:26 PM 10-25-2018
Originally Posted by mommyneedsadayoff:
Just saying what I think we may all have been thinking, but I added to my previous post because this mom hits the nail on the head..."Sarah Bregal, 33, of Baltimore, Maryland, belongs to her local YMCA, where, for $40 a month, she can use up to ninety minutes of childcare a day. “Honestly,” Bregal says, “the thing that motivates me to go to the gym most is getting a break from my kids!”

At least she is honest!


Could be worse- considering some of the triathlon/ marathon/ cycling groups I've seen I'm not surprised they don't have "kiddy gym" with mini treadmills, machines, and weight benches. Maybe with some 5 year old "personal trainers" to run spin class on big wheels.
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daycarediva 11:28 AM 10-26-2018
Originally Posted by mommyneedsadayoff:
I will be judging mcjudgerson over here. She needs to drop her baby off in between naps so she can get work done without interruption. Meaning she only cares for their child when they're sleeping, or during the evening when she has a entire other adult present. Sounds about right for this generation of parenting. And yes, I know I'm being a judgemental prick. But I really don't care today.

As for the gym daycare, heck no. I'll take the baby for a run or walk in the stroller, before I leave them at our gym daycare so I can pound a treadmill and stare at CNN. No thanks.

Gotta love it: "Sarah Bregal, 33, of Baltimore, Maryland, belongs to her local YMCA, where, for $40 a month, she can use up to ninety minutes of childcare a day. “Honestly,” Bregal says, “the thing that motivates me to go to the gym most is getting a break from my kids!”
I’ll take it a step further- why bother having them? For Instagram worthy family photo shoots? Most of my dck’s are lucky to get 10 hours of parent time M-F. Then weekend sitters, evening activities, grandmas. Nope. No parenting going on here.
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MarinaVanessa 12:41 PM 10-26-2018
I used to work at a gym a long time ago and sometimes I'd be asked to sub in the "kid's club" center (aka on-site daycare) because I already had my CPR certification etc. That was the gym's requirement but it wasn't required to be licensed or inspected since the parents were on site.

The gym that I worked at was actually pretty good. They always had 2 people on hand always. When someone had to go to the bathroom they'd ask another person to step in while they went. A couple of things about how that gym works:
- they have two "shifts". 9-12pm & 1-5pm.
- never took more than 12 kids at once
- parents could only bring their child to one shift per day.
- parents can't leave the gym
- always had one person on hand that had CPR
- no babies under 2 years
- no diapering, parents always have to either be able to hear the intercom or have their phone on them. If a non-potty trained child soiled their diaper we'd call the parent first on the intercom and then try their cell number. The parent would come and change the diaper.
- the toys and space were cleaned after every "shift" with bleach/water solution, swept, mopped etc.
- no food was allowed
- it costs extra for the on-site daycare but it was cheap. Something like $5 per shift or you could buy a punch card with 10 days on it for $40.

One similarity about the gym daycare and regular daycare is that the gym daycare staff also complained about parents picking up late. The two shifts are so that the gym daycare staff could take their lunch and parents always showed up right at 12pm to get their kids, the time that the staff was supposed to clock out. Our manager at that point had to step in because he hated when that happened (labor laws, staff had to clock in exactly an hour later so it made the next shift open late etc). Parents will always wait the very last second to pick up their kids no matter what type of child care it is I guess
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