Why Gymnastics is Perfect for Boys and Girls!

When the United States women’s gymnastics team won nine medals this past summer at the Rio Olympic Games, little girls by the thousands signed up for gymnastics classes this fall. With the spotlight shining so brightly on the women’s side of the sport, it’s easy to forget that the U.S. also fielded a men’s team and that a male U.S. gymnast, Alex Naddour, won a bronze medal with his pommel horse routine. It may be hard to get boys interested in this sport that seems to focus so much on the girls, but there are compelling reasons for boys to get involved.

Benefits of Boys Gymnastics

The greatest benefits of participation in gymnastics programs apply equally to boys and girls. Boys gymnastics classes teach social skills, improve strength and coordination, and build confidence, just as classes for girls do. The trick to selling boys on a program is in making the focus reflect what boys want. For boys, gymnastics classes should focus on gaining strength and improving coordination. Studies have shown that gymnastics is a great foundation for other sports as well as a great cross-training sport for kids who are already involved in another sport such as hockey or soccer.

As a parent, you may appreciate that gymnastics offers boys an opportunity to demonstrate their strength and coordination without hitting anybody. Boys and girls learn both self-control and body awareness as part of a gymnastics program, skills that transfer to other sports and enhance an athlete’s performance.

Mental Discipline

By participating in gymnastics classes, children learn the mental discipline necessary to practice the same skills and routines over and over until they can practically do them in their sleep. These skills are so essential to success not only in sports but also in school, where practicing math and spelling skills is tedious but absolutely important. Laying the foundation for mental discipline at an early age will make it possible for your child to employ it throughout his life.

Overall, girls and boys gymnastics programs are great places for your children to learn a multitude of skills that will benefit them in sports now, transfer to academic growth through college, and foster career success as an adult.

What Kids Learn From Climbing

Kids are natural climbers. You probably know this already from years of pulling your own kids off of bookcases, dressers, and fireplace mantels. There is a solution: rock wall climbing. Rock walls designed for kids are safe and size as well as age appropriate. Since your kids are going to climb anyway, you might as well let them do it in a safe and healthy environment.

Confidence Booster

First, keep in mind that when your children climb up everything in sight, it isn’t just a trick to drive you crazy. Children reap a multitude of benefits from climbing that go far beyond having fun. One of the most important to a child’s development is the huge boost in confidence that comes from facing and conquering fear. It is a natural part of the human experience to fear falling. It hurts. Overcoming that fear by climbing with appropriate safety equipment adds to a child’s self-confidence immeasurably.

Problem Solving

Along with boosting confidence, successfully climbing a wall engages a climber’s problem solving skills. Tackling a rock wall is rather like solving a puzzle. A climber has to figure out where the next hand hold is and where to put his left foot. Problem solving skills are a key component of academic success, so regular climbing sessions may help your child navigate through the years of school.

Physical Gains

Rock wall climbing forces a climber to use all of her body, improving strength, flexibility, and coordination. Your child’s balance and body awareness will likely grow as well. The benefits of climbing also help kids who enjoy team sports such as soccer and baseball.

Ultimate Climbing


Are you ready to give climbing a try? The Ultimate Climbing Gym in Greensboro is a great place to start. We offer classes for kids as young as 4 years old, private lessons, and extensive open hours all week long. Belay training is available for a small additional fee; come and learn all about our brand-new auto belays. Join in the fun yourself and make it a family activity. It beats chasing your kids around the house to keep them off the furniture!

Planning the Perfect Birthday Party for your Active Child?

Planning birthday parties for active children can be a challenge. Those high-energy kids just aren’t satisfied with sitting through a movie or interested in the traditional games at a home-based party. A terrific alternative is a gymnastics party at Tumblebees Ultimate Gym with lots of physical activity and fun.

The Ultimate Gymnastics Party

Our Ultimate Gymnastics birthday parties are available for all ages, from toddlers on up through high school. Most of our party time slots offer 90 minutes of non-stop fun on weekend afternoons, although we do have an option for a 2-hour version available at selected times.

What makes our gymnastics parties special? The first hour or so of the party is devoted to games, obstacle courses, jumping on a trampoline, and navigating the swinging bridge, all under the watchful eyes of two trained coaches. You won’t find this level of supervised activity at many other popular party venues and the kids are universally tired out after all this activity. The last portion of the party is devoted to refreshments, cake, and opening gifts.

We provide the fun, supervision, and cleanup, along with special party invitations and a Tumblebees Ultimate Gym Birthday T-shirt for the birthday child. You bring the food and decorations.

Introduction to Gymnastics

Our parties are open to all kids, whether they are enrolled in a class at Tumblebees or not. One of the great benefits of Ultimate Gymnastics birthday parties is the introduction to gymnastics that the kids get through our planned activities. If your child has expressed interest in a gymnastics class—the recent success of the U.S. Women’s Gymnastics team at the Rio Olympics has been inspiring—this is the perfect way to see what gymnastics is all about. Our party activities are a bit different from a regular class, but your child will be able to decide if she feels our gym is a comfortable environment.

Regular participation in gymnastics has been shown to improve strength, coordination, and performance both in other sports. Children learn self-discipline and social skills while their confidence grows, which can all lead to greater success at school as well.  An Ultimate Gymnastics party may just turn out to be a terrific birthday gift.

The Ultimate Climbing Gym Parties

For those kids who are climbing up the walls, the Rock Climbing parties at our Ultimate Climbing Gym may be the perfect fit. Your child will receive the Ultimate birthday experience from some of the most entertaining birthday staff around. Whether your kid is an avid climber, or a little shy, climbing is a great way to build confidence and there is no better time to build confidence than at a young age. The first hour will be filled with top rope climbing (our staff will help with harnessing and belaying the children) and the last 30 minutes will be for cake and opening presents. It's sure to be a party they won't forget!