Getting back to the gym in Phase 3

The phrase “It’s time to get back to the gym” has taken on a whole new level of meaning as gyms prepare to reopen on Monday, nearly three months after being forced to close down under COVID-19 public health orders.

Brendan Mackenzie is a part-owner of Level 10 Fitness in south Regina. After working from home to lead online fitness classes for months, he was very happy to set foot inside the gym on Tuesday.

“We’re super excited to get to see people face to face in person again and also we know one of the big parts about our gym is the environment, so to get people back in the environment is going to be great,” Mackenzie said.

While Mackenzie knows not all of the clients will feel comfortable returning to work out in person, he wants to assure those who do that staff are taking many steps to keep people spaced out with a limit of up to 10 people per class.

In addition to cleaning and disinfecting all equipment between each use, Mackenzie pointed out the now-familiar tape lining the floors.

“We’re making sort of two-metre boxes essentially so that each person can maintain two metres from the person next to them in all directions so we’re making big grids across the gym essentially,” Mackenzie explained.

Equipment like dumbbells, weights and balls may be slightly limited from what people are used to, but the cleaning protocols will be strict as everything will be cleaned and sterilized before and after each use.

While reopening the gym will take extra work, Mackenzie said everyone is just excited to be reopening.

“We can’t obviously service people in the exact same way that we could before. We’re used to running classes with groups of 10 or more people and that’s something that’s really fun,” he said.

“It’s big groups, big energy and awesome music, so that’s something that has obviously been put on hold for us for the next little bit. But we’re hoping we can still service those people in other ways and keep them engaged.”

The gym will continue offering online workouts and zoom classes as options for people who prefer to stay home.

Level 10 Fitness has already opened some services like massage and physiotherapy under Phase 2 and while the staff members weren’t sure what to expect at first, Mackenzie said appointment bookings have actually been quite busy.