The world today can be a difficult place to be working or working out in the fitness industry:
- Last week there was an advertisement in the Toronto Globe and Mail Newspaper. It was a plea to keep Fitness Clubs open during the pandemic lock down. The advertisement was sponsored by Orangetheory, Movati Athletic, and Life Time. https://www.getmovingagain.ca/
- In Ottawa, an Anytime Fitness is challenging a city lock down ordinance. The manager claims that they supply a place for the disabled and injured to perform therapy exercises and should be considered an essential service.
- Two other Ottawa Fitness Clubs are defying lock down orders and racking up multiple fines in the process. https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/two-ottawa-gyms-fight-fines-for-defying-public-health-orders
- Big box stores such as Wall Mart and Costco stay open while many local stores remain closed. As a compromise, some regions now make the big box stores cordon off all sections deemed non essential.
- Liquor stores and beer stores remain open.
- Cannabis dispensaries are open. Their line ups are always populated by many just legal age aficionados who might be healthier going to a fitness center to work out.
- Are a few stoners passing around a reefer actually safer than people with masks in a fitness center with controlled entry numbers?
Do you really believe that a trip to the pot dispensary is better for the mental health than a trip to the fitness center?
- Last year, when fitness clubs reopened after the first wave, 15 people from a spinning class in Hamilton, Ontario tested positive for COVID-19.
- This seems to be where the idea that Fitness Centers are hot zones came to be.
- Working out on your own would logically be less risky than a group exercise class.
- Fitness clubs that practice social distancing should be relatively safe.
- Working out at a club could be a respite from being cooped up at home.
- The mental health of the population is at stake!
Little Bobby Strong
