I don't have kids so

[jenm2878]

maybe I just don't get it?

I go to a very nice rec center to work out. The rec center has not only a men's and women's locker room, but a large family locker room as well. The women's locker room is two large rooms - one with rows of lockers, and the other with bathrooms and showers. My husband tells me the men's locker room is much the same. The family room has this with the added bonus of nice size changing rooms that lock. (Could easily fit 5 or 6 people in these changing rooms)

That being said, today I go to the ladies locker room to change. I came right from work, and was wearing a dress, so I had to change nearly everything. Mid-dress, two women came in with three little boys. These kids had to be between 6 and 8. Of course they picked the same row of lockers I was in to get changed, and of course the little boys were staring the whole time. Why on earth would they bring their boys into the women's locker room when there is a very nice family room available? Unless they wanted their kids to get a free anatomy lesson, I don't see the sense in it. I don't care if people bring toddlers in, but 6 and 8 year olds? They have to pass the family locker room to get to the ladies room, and the signs are pretty big so I doubt they "didn't know."

Again, I don't have kids so maybe I don't "get it." Am I being unreasonable?

 

[pearlieq]

No--you're not being unreasonable at all.

Our gym has specific rules that children over the age of 2 must use gender-appropriate changing rooms. Our club also has nice family changing rooms with private spaces for mixed gender groups.

 

[CheshireVal]

That would have bothered me, too.

 

[Tina]

I agree. They should have used the family locker room.

But now that you've brought up the topic of public locker rooms....
DH and I have recently begun going to a public gym. We were surprised and a bit shocked at the sheer number of naked people just sort of 'hanging out' in both the men's and women's locker rooms. I'm not talking about people changing, I'm talking about just HANGING out. We found it to be a bit weird. For example, to get to the pool, you have to walk through the room where the showers are and right before you go out to the pool, there's a hot tub. I noticed several naked women just lounging around the hot tub. DH noticed the same thing in the men's locker room. Now before any of you male readers get excited about this, these were NOT ATTRACTIVE naked women. As a matter of fact, they looked like they spent most of their time just walking around naked rather than actually EXERCISING. Does anyone else find this weird???

 

[kimmikayb]

I have kids, 4 last count. I don't think you are being unreasonable and I think I would have pointed out the lockable family changing rooms.

 

[luvmydogs]

It would never have even crossed my mind to bring my ds in a women's locker room at that age! Mom was out of line and should have used the Family room.

 

[Castlebound]

I have kids and I hate it when people do this. My poor DD who is 6 took swim lessons at the YMCA last year. Every week a woman would bring in an 8year old boy who was in my DD's class and have him change in the woman's dressing room. I usually ended up holding up a big beach towel for my DD to change behind. She was so uncomfortable while changing her clothes. I know that the boy got an eye full of a couple of totally naked women walking around the locker room. There are signs right on the women's and men's locker rooms that state that any child over the age of 6 must change in the correct room. We do not have a family locker room and I know that they have the lifeguards walk through the locker rooms during class changes. My DS said that in the mens there is always someone who works for the YMCA. I wish that they would put in a family locker room at our Y.

 

[Ava83]

Our gym does not allow children of another sex in the locker room period. I have never seen a boy in the womans locker room.

Oh an we have a family locker room.

 

[Beth76]

Our gym has signs posted that no opposite sex kids allowed over age 5. I would complain at the front desk and ask them to make a new rule.

 

[pixiepower1971]

Completely out of line! We go to a gym that does not allow opp. sex in dressing rooms-that is what the family dressing rooms are for. I would drop a note to the manager.

 

[RadioNate]

I agree. They should have used the family locker room.

But now that you've brought up the topic of public locker rooms....
DH and I have recently begun going to a public gym. We were surprised and a bit shocked at the sheer number of naked people just sort of 'hanging out' in both the men's and women's locker rooms. I'm not talking about people changing, I'm talking about just HANGING out. We found it to be a bit weird. For example, to get to the pool, you have to walk through the room where the showers are and right before you go out to the pool, there's a hot tub. I noticed several naked women just lounging around the hot tub. DH noticed the same thing in the men's locker room. Now before any of you male readers get excited about this, these were NOT ATTRACTIVE naked women. As a matter of fact, they looked like they spent most of their time just walking around naked rather than actually EXERCISING. Does anyone else find this weird???

No I don't think you are being unreasonable. In fact our gym rules state that parents with opposite sex children must use the family locker room.

I also wanted to comment about naked people. Our locker room is full of them too. Even walking from the showers to the lockers and then just standing there changing. No towel covering parts, nothing. Naked sitting on a towel in the sauna. I must look like a total prude slipping my undergarments on before removing the towel I'm wrapped in after the shower.

 

[Castlebound]

I agree. They should have used the family locker room.

But now that you've brought up the topic of public locker rooms....
DH and I have recently begun going to a public gym. We were surprised and a bit shocked at the sheer number of naked people just sort of 'hanging out' in both the men's and women's locker rooms. I'm not talking about people changing, I'm talking about just HANGING out. We found it to be a bit weird. For example, to get to the pool, you have to walk through the room where the showers are and right before you go out to the pool, there's a hot tub. I noticed several naked women just lounging around the hot tub. DH noticed the same thing in the men's locker room. Now before any of you male readers get excited about this, these were NOT ATTRACTIVE naked women. As a matter of fact, they looked like they spent most of their time just walking around naked rather than actually EXERCISING. Does anyone else find this weird???

They must be in every gym even the Y! The women I talked about in my post just walked around the locker room naked. One of them even hitched her leg up on one of the benches as my DD and I walked by! My DD said, "Mom I just saw ALL of that woman!"

 

[DisneyMommyMichelle]

i don't think you are out of line. you should call and mention what happened or mention it at your next visit. If you don't alert the manager they will never know what is happening.

 

[tiggger1]

At the gym where my daughter takes swimming they also have a family/handicapped changing room. If you have a child of the opposite sex you must you these bathrooms. I dont understand why you wouldnt want to. It is alot better than the womens locker room. It has 4 private changing rooms with toliets and showers (all are handicapped, but 2 are wheelchair acessible) there are also 2 reg changing rooms and a separate toliet. Plus there is a nice bench to sit on while you get the kids dressed.


What bugs me that even though they are big they get used by a ton of families( especially during mommy and me swim) so there is usually about 15 parents trying to get 15 babies and toddlers dry and dressed.
2 minutes before we get out of the pool, 25 homeschooled gym and swim kids ( i have nothing against these kids, its just someone should have planned better,) show up in the locker room to change and now you have almost 40 people trying to change in this one locker room and 15 of them are cold toddlers and the other are 25 kids that all have to shower before getting in the pool.... its a little crazy! we learned quick to spend an extra 15 minutes in the pool to avoid the crowd....

 

[Allison]

You are not out of line. I have kids and I don't think it is appropriate either. Our gym (YMCA) doesn't allow it and has family changing rooms. It would make me uncomfortable enough but my daughter shouldn't have to worry about a boy coming into the locker room while she is changing clothes. She would be mortified.

 

[Cool-Beans]

It isn't that you don't have kids. Those women who drag their boys into female-only areas are rude beyond belief. Our YMCA has rules against it, too. They actually hung a sign on the door to the ladies locker room.

But there are still "I'm more important than everyone else" moms who drag their 6-10 year olds into the locker room. Even the KIDS know they shouldn't be there and don't want to go.

It'll serve those women right if some grown woman takes off her clothes in front of those boys.

Yup, it annoys me.

 

[Robinrs]

You don't have to not have kids to get THAT... you just have to be devoid of common sense. That was ridiculous...

I remember going to lunch with my son when he was in the 3rd grade and he and his little male friends were giggling and talking about parts of the female anatomy... ages 7 and 8. Of course they were staring!

 

[jenm2878]

I have kids and I hate it when people do this. My poor DD who is 6 took swim lessons at the YMCA last year. Every week a woman would bring in an 8year old boy who was in my DD's class and have him change in the woman's dressing room. I usually ended up holding up a big beach towel for my DD to change behind. She was so uncomfortable while changing her clothes.

This was my first thought. As a 28 yr old woman it's annoying, as a little girl trying to change it must be mortifying. If I had a daughter trying to change I would probably have been livid.

We're lucky enough that there aren't alot of naked women walking around, at least during the times I go. In two years I've only seen one naked woman walking around. It was somewhat humorous actually. An elderly woman came out of the shower area in a towel, looked around, and very dramatically dropped her towel. I'm generally an "eyes on what I'm doing" person in the locker room, but it was hard to miss this woman walking up and down the aisle buck naked.

 

[Beca]

They must be in every gym even the Y! The women I talked about in my post just walked around the locker room naked. One of them even hitched her leg up on one of the benches as my DD and I walked by! My DD said, "Mom I just saw ALL of that woman!"

EEEEWWWWWW!!!!

Where's a barfing smiley when you need one???!!!!

Your poor dd....she has been stained for life!!!



Beca

 

[arielsleepingbeauty]

That's great that they have accomodated a need for everyone, and with that being said, that is an odd choice for a mother to do with her sons and especially at those ages, especially since they have one specifically for families. Maybe they are very open at home or maybe she was new that she didnt know about it? My daughters are 4 and 6 and if my gym had a family locker room that is where i would bring them into. I feel that would be the most appropriate for our family. My gym has only the standard male and female locker rooms and my children stay in the daycare with a female daycare provider. When any of the children have to go to the bathroom, the male owner will take the boys in to the men's locker room and the daycare provider will bring the girls into the women's locker room. A family room is interesting concept. I know the gym owner would never even consider it due to the size, but that is awesome. I never even thought about that.