We like ASI. I'm the parent of 2 very young children, so this review is from the perspective as such. I'm not a gymnastics expert, nor do I have children competing, so please consider this review exclusively for their group classes for young kids. We have been taking classes for about a year and a half, Tiny Tots and Kids Gym 1.
The facilities are great. The place is huge, and has all the apparatuses I would expect, including a huge foam block pit, lots of beams, bars, a ninja area, and more. I've seen smaller gyms but this one is large and everything seems to be in reasonable condition. When things have been broken or needing repair, it's been dealt with pretty quick.
There are great coaches and there are...meh coaches. They do seem to constantly be training younger coaches and some of them are solid but some of them need a bit more work dealing with little kids, so we have followed the better coaches around through scheduling and wait lists. My girl has done especially well with Coach Chris and Coach Geoff so we try to stick with them, when possible.
Tiny Tots is the mommy & me style of class where stay with your kid and help them with all of the activities. We started at 22 months, I believe you can start as early as 18 months but it really depends on your kid. If you think your kid can stay with the class (to some extent, versus constantly running off) then I'd start as soon as you think that can happen. I spent the first month chasing my girl all over the gym and there were plenty of tears, but I do think she learned a lot about listening to instruction and listening to people other than her parents. With my next child, I'm waiting until I can at least get him to "come here" before we start. The activities include a trampoline, some musical activities, a foam ball pit, and a "floor" routine where they go through stations. That station part is the hardest for kids to pick up and they definitely take some time to teach them how to move from one activity to the next. But since the NEXT level class has them do similar without their parent, I think Tiny Tots was a great place for us to start.
Now in Kids Gym 1, it's the same activities but without the parent...so it's a true test of listening skills....for 3 year olds. It can be amusing to watch the coaches try to herd cats...and the kids that are the most successful are the ones that either can listen, or took the Tiny Tots class for awhile.
I intend to continue bringing my children here as long as scheduling and preferred coaches are available. read more