The last 9 months have been hard for you and I. Remember when we first got notice of this novel virus? We were convinced this would be an earth shattering disease that would spread with violent wrath. We were told this would be the worst thing in the history of man. We were sent these warnings with good intentions, to protect us from making the situation worse. Now these warnings are crippling our capacity to return to a “normal life”. Several of the major risk factors found associated with COVID-19 such as obesity, heart disease, lung disease and diabetes are preventable by proper exercise and nutrition. However, only 31% of people in the U.S. returned to gyms post-lockdown. Exercise should not be stopped in fear of the virus, it should be a compass to guide our community to better health, vitality, and longevity.
The warnings that media shared alarmed Americans that the virus is highly contractable, and I have to agree as we have seen these numbers continue to climb. Gyms were targeted early, as claims stated that you were more likely to contract it due to the closed environment and large volumes of breathing by individuals. Media has made gyms sound like the worst place to be, however a recent study shows that the contraction rate from gyms is extremely low. Over three months the study observed 49.4 million member check-in’s across 2,873 gyms and found the infection rate to be 0.0023%.
How could this be?
My experience working in a variety of gyms for the last 4 years gives me insight as to why the confusion has occurred between media and reality. Gyms are enclosed with a large volume of people breathing, sweating, and sharing equipment. What about the individuals who are in the gyms? This is where the media didn’t touch and I would like to, this is my professional opinion. The individuals who attend gyms do so because they want to look, feel, or function better. These individuals are the ones who make sacrifices, perhaps giving up the sweets and doing some extra cardio in order to improve. Gym members have less risk factors than the average person due to the extra attention they give to their health and physique. Everyone who makes exercise a part of their lifestyle learns eventually they need to take days off, especially when they are not feeling well. In all 4 years I’ve worked at a gym I have never seen someone who was sick and still came to workout. If you were sick, isn’t that the first thing you give yourself an excuse to skip? However, 2 years of formerly working as a waiter in a restaurant I’ve personally served several dozens of customers who came in while they were feeling under the weather. I’m not saying you’re more likely to contract the virus in a restaurant, but I believe that the members who attend a gym are at a lesser capacity to spread the virus due to the habits and behaviors of these healthy people.
Exercise should be mandatory. The prevention strategy we should adopt must be proactive in order to rally our community to a quick recovery. Fitness should be the compass as it leads us to reducing our risk factors, improving our immune system function, and even improving our mental health which has suffered greatly since the pandemic began. You may not choose to return to a gym and instead decide to workout at home. This strategy does have some draw backs. Gyms provide the unique external motivation and variety of equipment that you can’t replicate. Seeing others work towards a similar goal right next to you propels you to work even harder. Flex Gym and Fitness here in Colorado Springs is an old school gym that has several large bodybuilding competition photos strung across the walls, along with a crowd of people who are fit and friendly. This environment that I call home (I began personal training privately 1:1 @ Flex) has me training harder than I have been for the past 2 years due to the level of external motivation and the variety of equipment selection. Let’s face it exercise gets boring sometimes, but having a variety of equipment to use makes your workouts change which for me has allowed me to train harder with greater enjoyment. If you do decide to keep your workouts at home try to implement some of these strategies to keep your mind and body interested in continuing to work hard. Hang some motivation photos in your workout area. Save a little money each month to afford to add to your home gym equipment or hire a professional to upgrade your workouts with the equipment you already own. Do whatever necessary to make exercise mandatory for you and your family, staying safe and having fun.
Cantrell Coaching LLC 