When most people think about adult fitness, they picture treadmills, weights, or maybe even a yoga mat. But three nights a week, Monday through Wednesday, at 8:00 p.m., the sound of feet hitting a spring floor has become the normal to many as a very different kind of workout. 

At Gymsport Athletic Center, in Bridgeville, adults are tumbling, flipping, and rediscovering a piece of childhood many never expected to revisit. However, the gym’s adult tumbling program isn’t new. It’s actually been around for more than a decade, but since the Covid-19 pandemic, it has exploded in size. 

General Manager Lauren Bradford says the class once averaged “a core group of five people,” but now regularly draws 15 to 20 adults a night. Some of the attendees include students from local colleges, some from 9 to 5 jobs, and some who were once child gymnasts returning years later. 

Others are complete beginners.

For nineteen-year-old student Ivy Ferrand, she first joined the program three years ago and has never looked back.

“Since day one, I thought it was the best thing since sliced bread,” she said. As someone with autism, tumbling offers relief, comfort, and a place where she feels welcomed. “Being around people who make me feel happy and comfortable is really huge for me.”

For others, the journey began with a single goal. Jack Powell, 31, came in hoping to learn one specific skill for soccer, the flip throw. But stayed for something entirely different.

“In soccer, there's a thing called a flip throw. I always wanted to learn how to do that. And I just was calling a bunch of places and they're like, ‘oh, we don't take adults.’ And I was like, oh, because there were a few places like, hey, do you take like adults? And they're like, no,” he said, “So, I came here and did that for like a week. But then the group that's here is just so inclusive and kind. And like every week it was like, ‘oh, try this, try that.’ And it's just kind of, here we are, like a couple of years later.”

According to the coaches, the sense of belonging is just as strong a draw as the physical challenge. Recreational Director Jeremy Kazmierczak, a parkour athlete himself, says adults often surprise themselves with what they can do. 

“For the gymnasts, things like getting back their back handsprings are huge. For pretty much everyone else, the backflip is the pinnacle,” he said. “Seeing people do it for the first time, and showing them how accessible it is… that’s a great feeling.”

And as the program keeps growing, staff say they hope it expands into even more adult offerings, with the hopes of a competitive team someday. But, at the end of the day, many adults are going to be coming for something deeper.

As Powell said, “It’s always a good time… a flipping good time.”