YMCA NSW

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Time And Cost Barriers To Family Fitness Need To Be Broken

Wednesday, 26th September 2012

A combination of cost and time constraints and a lack of available “family friendly” fitness options today is seeing many families miss out on spending quality, active time together, according to the YMCA.

The high cost of putting kids in organised sport is a key reason why over a million children aged five to 14 in Australia do not take part in outside school sport today.   And for those that do, time constraints mean parents are less likely to be active themselves, as they transport their children and watch from the sidelines.

“The reality is that families know how important it is to stay fit and active, but for many the high cost of participation makes this near impossible and finding time for everyone to be active is also a challenge,” said Phillip Hare, CEO, YMCA of Sydney. “These barriers to access need to be broken.”

In line with the start of Spring, the Y has introduced new family-focused Centre Timetables across more than 35 YMCA-owned and managed health and fitness centres in NSW. The new Timetable encourages family participation by including more programs the whole family can do together, while also making it easy to identify separate programs that family members can do at the same time.

“This is a unique proposition in the health and fitness industry and we believe a vital one,” said Hare.

“Family programming at the Y is all about making it easy for families to come down to the gym and take part in a range of activities together, such as a family Zumba class, or simultaneously. So mum could be in a group fitness class, her teenage son in our Teen Gym program and there could also be a child doing gymnastics.

“We’re saying to parents, don’t sit on the sidelines, get fit and healthy with your children at the same time. It just makes sense and we’re seeing many families benefit from this model.”

The Y’s Family Membership also makes it more affordable than ever for families to be healthy and active. Until October 31, families can sign up at their local Y on a Family Membership for $1.

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