The pre-teen and teenage years are a pivotal time in a child\u2019s life. They learn more about the world around them and often struggle to establish their own identity. As a parent, you want to set your child up for success, while also giving them the freedom to pursue their own interests.<\/p>\n
During this crucial phase, Life Time can be a key partner as you help your child discover their passions while encouraging lifelong healthy habits that foster confidence and joy.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen a child comes into a Life Time club, they\u2019re exposed to so many different body types, ages, and sizes with each person grinding and working toward their goals,\u201d says Becca Rigg, a group fitness coach at Life Time in Plymouth, Minn., and a mom of five kids. \u201cThey can see that health and fitness are accessible and learn how to make it part of their regular lifestyle.\u201d<\/p>\n
When kids reach the age of 12, they are eligible to use equipment and machines independently on the Life Time workout floor; at 13, they can download the Life Time app and access a digital world<\/a> full of healthy-living topics, workouts, programs, and other wellness offerings, as well as reserve their spot at in-person fitness classes at their club.<\/p>\n To help you guide your child\u2019s transition to using more Life Time amenities independently and safely, we asked Rigg, as well Kristine Fritz (senior director of classes at Life Time) and Shelly Forsberg (director of kids and aquatics business development for Life Time), to share some helpful tips.<\/p>\n If your child is aging out of the Kids Academy<\/a>, they already have a head start on the Life Time club experience. \u201cThey\u2019re familiar with the club building and layout and can recognize team member faces \u2014 all aiding in their comfort level,\u201d Forsberg says.<\/p>\n The Kids Academy also exposes kids to Life Time classes. \u201cIn our Kids Academy, we do our best to offer a different array of fitness-based programming that can tease what they\u2019ll have access to when they age out of the academy,\u201d she adds. \u201cIf a kid really enjoyed a yoga class from our Kids Studio offerings, then they can transition to an adult yoga class.\u201d<\/p>\n From there, a child can find where their health and wellness passions intersect with their fitness goals, she explains. \u201cThis can help provide some more direction when kids start exploring more Life Time offerings.\u201d<\/p>\n If your kid is nervous about attending an in-person class, the Life Time app can offer an intimidation-free foray into a class\u2019s structure, cadence, and intensity level. \u201cWe have a lot of on-demand fitness classes<\/a> \u2014 led by Life Time\u2019s top instructors \u2014 that can give your kid a taste of what happens inside a class,\u201d says Fritz. Her 13-year-old (which is the age when you can download the Life Time app and create a digital account) uses the app for her own workouts.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are also live-stream class options for your children. For example, if my daughter wanted to try out a class that involves lifting weights, she could try it out at home before reserving a spot in a class in the club,\u201d she adds. \u201cBy using the app, kids can really familiarize themselves with the Life Time brand and classes, so they\u2019ll be a little more comfortable when they transition to an in-person class.\u201d<\/p>\n Life Time\u2019s AI companion within the app, L\u2022AI\u2022C (pronounced \u201clay-see\u201d), can also help answer your kid\u2019s questions related to their health and even build workouts that match their goals. L\u2022AI\u2022C learns from information created by Life Time and its experts, including our fitness professionals who design a wide range of workouts. (Learn more: \u201cJust Ask L\u2022AI\u2022C: Life Time\u2019s Health and Wellness Companion<\/a>.\u201d)<\/p>\n At this age, your child might not want to go to a class on their own. \u201cSpeaking as an instructor, it\u2019s very rare that I\u2019m going to get a 13- or 14-year-old walking into class by themselves,\u201d says Fritz, who teaches LIFT<\/a> and MAXOUT<\/a> classes at Life Time in Chanhassen, Minn. \u201cIt\u2019s going to be more interesting and engaging if they can attend a class with a parent, guardian, or a friend \u2014 at that age, it\u2019s all about being with their peers.\u201d<\/p>\n But if your teen is attending for the first time by themselves, Fritz recommends that you encourage them to sign up for a class they\u2019re particularly excited about. That level of excitement can help them overcome any nervousness. (Learn more: \u201cThe Ultimate Guide to Life Time Classes<\/a>.\u201d)<\/p>\n Fritz also suggests they arrive early if it\u2019s their first time and let the instructor know they\u2019re new to the class. \u201cOur instructors are well equipped to help any member who\u2019s walking through the door as a newbie, but they do need a buffer of time to connect with an individual and help them with any concerns, including setting up equipment,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n Another benefit of studio classes for teens is the exposure to the foundational elements of fitness, says Rigg. \u201cYou\u2019re often using lighter weights with basic movements, like hinge, press, squat, pull \u2014 this is helpful for when your kid eventually transitions to the workout floor with bigger weights and different modalities.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you\u2019re in a class, you have an instructor you can look at for visual cueing and you\u2019ve got people next to you doing the same movement \u2014 you have all these reinforcements of how to perform a movement,\u201d she adds. \u201cThis is an invaluable environment for a kid learning about fitness.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s all about belonging, says Fritz. \u201cUltimately, what kids are looking for at this stage of life is community, and that\u2019s what\u2019s so special about Life Time. We offer this immediate ability for anyone at any age to be a part of a community and to feel like they have a place and are valued.\u201d<\/p>\n In addition to tagging along the first few times your child navigates the workout floor, parents might consider signing them up for at least one session with a Dynamic Personal Trainer<\/a> \u2014 especially if they want to use strength or cardio machines. \u201cFor smaller bodies, a lot of adjustments have to be made for a movement to be safe and effective, which can be easily demonstrated by a Dynamic Personal Trainer,\u201d Rigg says.<\/p>\n When she was a full-time Dynamic Personal Trainer, Rigg recalls being booked often by parents for a one-on-one session with their child. \u201cWhen a kid had graduated from the Kids Academy, I would walk them through the workout floor and show them how to use the machines,\u201d she says. \u201cMy favorite place to start would be at the TRX, since it\u2019s versatile and can be easier to learn.\u201d<\/p>\n A session can also offer a helpful introduction to gym etiquette<\/a>, says Rigg. Kids can begin to learn and adopt good habits, such as not hoarding a machine or dumbbells, wiping down equipment after use, and showing respect for other members. A one-time complimentary Dynamic Personal Training session is available to all Life Time members \u2014 including junior members.<\/p>\n Encouraging kids to adopt a healthy lifestyle starts with exposing them to that way of life, which can then empower them to make healthy behaviors an essential part of their own lives, says Rigg. \u201cAt this age, your kid might start pushing back on a lot of things, but health and fitness is worth investing time and energy in, because the results can lead to so much confidence.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s also important to help kids build a positive relationship with health, she adds. \u201cIt\u2019s about building a habit versus seeking a result; it\u2019s not about just building healthy, strong kids, it\u2019s about building confident kids, which can bleed into every other aspect of their lives.\u201d<\/p>\n Persistence and patience are key at this age. \u201cI would say to parents, \u2018Be patient and continue to keep pushing,\u2019\u201d she advises. \u201cFind ways to get them involved with their own healthy-living goals and encourage them to keep showing up, because it\u2019s worth it to see them make this a part of their lifestyle.\u201d<\/p>\n The post Growing in Health: Advice for Kids Transitioning to Tweens and Teens at Life Time<\/a> appeared first on Experience Life<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The pre-teen and teenage years are a pivotal time in a child\u2019s life. They learn more about the world around them and often struggle to establish their own identity. As a parent, you want to set your child up for success, while also giving them the freedom to pursue their own interests. During this crucial […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":33151,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[43],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33150","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-life"],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-10-25 19:14:47","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpnewswire.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33150","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpnewswire.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpnewswire.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpnewswire.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpnewswire.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33150"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gpnewswire.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33150\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpnewswire.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33151"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpnewswire.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33150"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpnewswire.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33150"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpnewswire.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33150"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}1. Encourage your kid to lean into their Kids Academy experiences.<\/h2>\n
2. Leverage on-demand and live-stream classes on the Life Time app as a precursor for studio classes.<\/h2>\n
3. Attend a class with your kid or suggest they bring a buddy.<\/h2>\n
4. Sign your kid up for a Dynamic Personal Training session.<\/h2>\n
5. Promote a positive relationship with healthy living.<\/h2>\n