Issue link: http://www.wacmagazine.com/i/117128
Mealtime is full of anticipation at WeeWACs. Parents also may want to start planning for WeeWACs��� popular spring and summer minicamps, four-hour programs that focus on topics such as exercise, exploration, dance, photography and cooking. ���We do a boot camp that���s the most darling thing you���ve ever seen,��� Shawn says. ���They set up obstacle courses and relay races, and the kids have cards and check off all the things they���ve accomplished.��� Another camp, dubbed WeeExplore, expands on WeeWACs��� regular Friday field trips with excursions to the aquarium, zoo, Smith Tower, Seattle Art Museum, and other fun places for kids. ���If there���s some kids attraction in town, we���re probably going,��� Shawn says. Then again, WeeWACs is quite the attraction in its own right. Play with purpose t hey may be young, but the WAC���s junior athletes are getting fit at the Club these days. On Saturdays, you can find them swimming in the pool, running up and down the basketball court, grooving to sweet beats in a hip hop class, or embracing their inner Gabby Douglas or McKayla Maroney in kids gymnastics. ���Kids don���t mind exercising as long as it���s a fun and social environment,��� says WAC Athletic Programs Manager Darin Barr. Basketball remains the most popular Saturday program for kids, he says, which comes as no surprise considering there are more than 300 players in the adult league. ���The WAC has one of the largest in-house leagues, and that flows right down into the kids,��� Darin says. ���The guys who are playing competitive league basketball at the WAC are the ones whose kids are coming into the junior program.��� Providing an avenue to fitness and fun But b-ball is hardly the only game in town. A Junior Fit program launched by trainer Will Hicks has been quietly gaining momentum. Designed for kids ages 12���15, Junior Fit runs as a four-week series with classes on Saturdays and Wednesdays. A high-energy fitness class, it offers a cross-training experience that incorporates cardio and strength training. ���They do all kinds of exercise routines,��� Will says. ���Everything from balance training to rope training to pull-ups to agility drills. We try to keep it as different as possible. The whole point is to get them acclimated to staying in shape and caring about their body. I want them to see the value of fitness in everyday life.��� A little competition can be fun, too, which is why the WAC is again holding its popular Kids Triathlon. MARCH 2013 | Washington Athletic Club Magazine | 31