Kids Fitness Activities in Libertyville, IL

We moved here nearly a year ago, and started our son shortly after the move. Since then, he has grown in confidence, independence, compassion, trust, and respect. He has the diagnoses of ADHD, oppositional defiance disorder, intermittent explosive disorder, and anxiety. He hasn’t had a single tantrum since his third week with Sam at Hot Ground. He is kinder, more respectful, and genuinely wants to have better and more meaningful relationships with peers. The teamwork and relationship model offered here is unique in that the kids depend on any random group as the class days vary. The outward focus seems to be physical development, but the true focus is mental, social-emotional, and community growth. Sam absolutely loves the kids as they are, wherever they are, and is building up each person as that individual needs to be built up. He is a true gem, and my son looks forward to each class, excited about each one.

Hot Ground Gym provides an awesome physical workout, builds character and teaches teamwork! My 8yo son has really looked up to the instructors and my 4yo daughter wants to follow in his footsteps. From classes, to leadership camp, to birthday parties, I highly recommend!

I was looking for an alternative to martial arts for my son, and learned about Hot Ground. I'm extremely impressed by what they do. In addition to challenging parkour, which he loves, they teach practical life skills that go beyond anything I've seen elsewhere (except possibly the Boy Scouts). My son has been learning first aid and other life-saving skills, survival techniques, and more -- and I'm seeing a big improvement in both his physical confidence and emotional maturity. The coaches are great with kids, striking a nice balance between good-humored and no-nonsense, which the kids definitely respond to! The facilities are very well-maintained, and I like the fact that they take the kids outside when the weather's good. I've decided to try a week of the summer camp this year as well, and we'll see how that goes. Hot Ground isn't inexpensive, but the price (especially for the camp) is in keeping with most other after-school activities.

We highly recommend Hot Ground Gym classes because they offer a fun, physical after-school activity coupled with learning opportunities in social and emotional learning. The kids get to burn energy by climbing, jumping, swinging on ropes, etc. While the kids are "playing" they're also learning about teamwork, confidence, cooperation, responsibility, leadership and problem-solving skills. Hot Ground Gym is owned by veterans who are great role models. We also love the small class size, individualized attention as well as the beautiful new facility and reasonable rates for classes.

We have two daughters, ages five and seven. At Hot Ground Gym they get a good work out but don’t even realize they are exercising because they are focused on the obstacle course tasks. These classes safely challenge the kids to try things they normally wouldn’t get to try: climbing over walls, running up ramps, climbing ropes, etc. Sam does an amazing job breaking down the ever-rotating obstacles into separate skills and then training those skills and muscle groups. My daughters are growing in confidence and resilience. We are so glad to have found HGG!

We found Hot Ground Gym (HGG) by accident because of my daughter’s interest in Parkour or Ninja-type obstacle course activities, kind of like the American Ninja Warrior tv show. There are two aspects to HGG’s approach that made this place a great choice for our child’s after-school activities: 1) classes offer far more than a fun, physical after-school activity where the kids get to burn energy by climbing, jumping, swinging on ropes, etc; and 2) while the kids are “playing” they’re also learning about teamwork, confidence, cooperation, responsibility, leadership and problem-solving skills. That is the backbone of this whole company which is run by veterans—teaching kids very important life skills during the classes through the different activities. Other important details which factored into our decision choosing HHG included: 1) small class size; 2) individualized attention; 3) beautiful new facility that is very clean; and 4) very reasonable rates for classes. We started our child at 1 time per week but are moving up to 2 times per week since she loves it so much.