If you are looking for healthy fun the whole family can enjoy, the new location of Ms. Carol’s Gymkids is the place.
Ms. Carol, aka Carol Strongoli, recently opened her new 5,000-square-foot gymnastics, dance, cheer and fitness center, at 116 N. Lindsay Road, not far from her previous location. The new gym features a 40-by 40-foot full spring competition floor, two in-ground and one upright trampolines, single and uneven bars, beams, a 30-foot tumble track, and an area for dance, cheer and adult fitness classes.
“Although our focus is on kids, we thought it would be fun to offer 30-minute adult fitness classes during our daily 60-minute classes for kids,” Carol explained. “That way, parents can come and work out, and still have time to watch their children engage in their activities, too. The whole family can participate in exercising.”
Carol has made sure families are able take part in the fun. “Because of our special family discounts, it is much more affordable for parents and several children to be here together. We can even arrange events like birthday parties.”
Carol, who is a certified aerobics instructor, has taught in the area for more than 30 years. Many of her Gymkids coaches are young women who were once her students. “In fact, a lot of my students now are children of my previous students,” she said. “Because my own family lives back East, I have come to think of all my students as my extended family.”
Carol’s family-friendly fun has evolved over time. “At first, I had a mobile business,” she related. “I would pack all my mats and exercise equipment into my truck, and travel around to local gyms and dance studios, conducting fitness classes for kids. We called it Mousercise,” she said with a laugh. “Over time, parents started encouraging me to open my own business just for kids. So, for the last decade or so, I have had my own location. Now, we have an exciting brand new space.”
Even though Carol wants her gym to be recreational, for fun and making friends, in a non-competitive atmosphere, that doesn’t mean you can’t get serious training here, too.
“We train to USA Gymnastics Competition Level 6, and teach all the compulsory routines. If students then want to go on to competition training, they can find the right coaches who will take them on to compete.”
“The same is true for cheer. Cheer tryouts can be very emotional and intimidating,” Carol said. “Our cheer class trains cheerleader hopefuls in all the required basic skills they must master to, at least, be considered in tryouts, such as doing a back handspring. If they go into tryouts knowing they can really do the routines, they will be much more confident in their performance, and have a better chance of making the squad,” she continued. “It’s tough when you have some 60 girls trying out for only 10 or 15 available spots. We want to help them do their best.”
Another unique feature of Carol’s gymnastic school is that it is performance-based. “We put on our own annual shows, and also appear at events like Phoenix Suns games, the State Fair and the Gilbert Days Parade,” she explained. “Our performances serve as a goal for the children to reach, along with all the benefits that go along with performing to an audience.”
To find out more about classes in gymnastics, dance, cheer, performance or adult fitness, stop by the new location, visit www.MsCarolsGymkids.com, or call (480) 777-1033.