Reopening Gyms - w/ Distancing

To reopen gyms across Scotland

Why the contribution is important

Some people find it very difficult to exercise outside of a gym due to either rehabilitation of a serious physical injury / having too small a home to workout / not living near a greenspace / having a lack of specialist equipment.

Reopening gyms and ensuring they conform to distancing rules is vital for physical and importantly mental wellbeing.

by itsmechrissyd on May 05, 2020 at 12:59PM

Current Rating

Average rating: 4.1
Based on: 24 votes

Comments

  • Posted by Garywall8787 May 05, 2020 at 13:04

    Agreed that gyms need to be opened or our nation is going to become completely unhealthy it is not possible for some people to exercise from home

  • Posted by Teacher2020 May 05, 2020 at 13:05

    Absolutely

  • Posted by gordon1663 May 05, 2020 at 13:05

    I support this motion. The physical and mental health of the general population is suffering and likely (over the next few years) to show more lives lost as a result of lockdown/restrictions than were saved.

  • Posted by vl3092 May 05, 2020 at 13:22

    Support this. Prior to lockdown, had never seen so many people cleaning down the machines before and after use, and the constant monitoring of it by staff. Implement social distancing and increased hygiene practices. I was at a PT session when they announced the closure of gyms and I burst into tears as the gym was the only thing I had left given that I had just left my job. Going to the gym is greatly important to mental health, as well as physical, and mine (and likely a lot more of the population) is now suffering because of the closure.

  • Posted by CityScot May 05, 2020 at 13:26

    Gyms need to reopen with social distancing etc but people should be encouraged to take individual responsibility for the safety of themselves and others and not expect staff to hold total responsibility. Everyone should clean equipment before AND after use . Cleaning stations by each piece of equipment. Also numbers could be limited by an online booking system with time slots to ensure the spaces aren’t overwhelmed

  • Posted by Clayton41 May 05, 2020 at 13:46

    NO

  • Posted by pauldundee May 05, 2020 at 15:13

    Gyms are also a large part of the economy and lots of gym employees are self-employed, so keeping gyms closed will put a lot of people out of work, aside from the effect on mental and physical health..

    Suggestions for opening gyms could include: installing hand sanitisers are entrances/exits; required number of cleaning stations depending on the size of the gym; reduce the number of treadmills etc. to allow greater distance between items of kit; temporarily cancel group sessions; open for 1-2-1 sessions only; encourage gyms to continue to put workouts online (as they have been doing); monitor the number of people in the gym at any one time (most gyms use social media apps, perhaps they could send out text warnings when the gym is full.

  • Posted by hunter_jim May 05, 2020 at 15:40

    A feature of smaller gyms is that they have staff on hand to properly manage the premises. Many, if not all, are individually owned and run as small businesses. I draw this comparison to the large corporate gyms which can often be unmanned and where the policing of social distancing and implementation of full hygiene measures will be much more difficult to achieve. I suspect (although do not know) that the gym industry bodies will have guidance or made submission to the authorities on the safe resumption of gym activity and this should seriously considered. Given that gyms have to be licensed (at least in Glasgow) there is clearly scope to quickly use enforcement should this prove necessary where it was identified that rules are not being fully applied.

    There is scope for gyms to further minimise risk by taking out of commission equipment such as running machines that may have an increased risk of enabling virus spread. However the use of free weights and static equipment, possibly with separating screens would be easily managed both for use and cleaning.

    Small gym use can be achieved safely with minimal risk and could be a significant boost to mental health and general well-being. The lockdown may prove increasingly challenging to maintain as people become negatively affected, depressed or start pushing back the boundaries. Allowing a relatively safe release, increasing daily exercise and enabling safe social contact will have significant benefits and help maintain support for the current approach.

  • Posted by scottishlad May 05, 2020 at 21:48

    Unfortunately I have seen other people clean equipment after use, and based on what I have seen could not trust using any equipment someone else has been on. Also with everyone sharing a disinfectant bottle that in itself would be unsafe. Really not sure how you get around this and ensure it is monitored safely

  • Posted by Asterix123 May 06, 2020 at 14:07

    The main gyms: pin code entry 24h types already have an easy system to limit max numbers and people will have to adapt and go early / late but this is infinitely doable.
    I weight train to alleviate back pain. I would happily go at 4am to a gym with a temperature check and staff cleaning/ mandatory wiping of the kit post use.
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