By Rachel Steffan, GANT News correspondent
An unexpected trend is emerging in local gyms and fitness centers—members are taking responsibility for their role in maintaining safety standards amid the novel coronavirus pandemic.
“People are just more aware of cleaning up and wiping down equipment,” Philipsburg SNAP Fitness owner Miles Fenton said. “It’s a show of respect to other members.”
It has been two months since gyms and fitness centers in central Pennsylvania got the green light to re-open, following Gov. Tom Wolf’s March 16th order for all non-essential businesses to close.
Keeping equipment disinfected and safely spaced has been the most integral change for gyms and fitness centers. Other important modifications include the addition of more cleaning stations and closing down water fountains.
Due to this inconvenience, the Moshannon Valley YMCA offers free bottles of water to its members. Hand-washing stations are now located throughout the facility.
The staff have made it easier for members to wipe down equipment. And the YMCA fitness director regularly cleans the space throughout the day.
Clearfield BodyMatrix Owner Stephen Confer said, “Areas where people normally congregate, such as coffee pots or places to sit and write in workout books, have been taken out.”
Communities are adapting to the “new normal”—living within an active pandemic. Part of this means collaborating to keep communal areas, like gyms and fitness centers, operating safely.
“We are happy to be back open, and hoping to stay open,” Fenton said.
Local gym owners and directors are echoing each other’s observations of their members.
Enthusiastic gym-goers are gleaning the benefits of contributing to gym and fitness center standards. It has become a communal activity.
“Members are being more over-the-top conscious with keeping everything clean,” Fenton said.
“It’s more than just physical health for a lot of people. It’s mental health too—the workout provides an important release.”
The mask policy has been tricky in fitness scenarios, as they can make breathing difficult. But wearing them is integral in controlling the spread of the novel coronavirus.
Mo-Valley YMCA Executive Director Mel Curtis said, “We ask that our members wear masks downstairs and when socializing. If they are working out or taking part in a class, however, they do not have to wear a mask because of breathing issues.”
The YMCA accommodates all ages, with youngsters in childcare, many senior members and every age group in between. “We have a wide range of people here, and this makes it much harder,” Curtis said.
Within society, there are wide-ranging, and sometimes controversial, opinions about the effectiveness of mask-wearing. People do not always know who or what to believe and how to interpret the steady stream of often conflicting information.
“The mask ruling has been the biggest challenge we have faced because people understand that, by nature, it is not law,” Curtis said. “Therefore, you have some who don’t like it, or just do not want to wear them.”
All of the new safety standards have made people more conscious of the way they are doing things, and how they affect others.
“The biggest thing in all of this is the social responsibility of what we are facing,” Curtis said.Â
