Fitness enthusiasts return to gyms with caution in NCR

After months of working out at home, fitness enthusiasts in the city were finally able to head back to their gyms from Wednesday. As per the Ministry of Home Affairs guidelines for Unlock 3.0, gyms and spas were allowed to resume operations starting August 5. While Delhiites will have to wait a bit longer to go back to gyms, people in Noida and Gurgaon were seen sweating it out on the first day that gyms reopened.
We visited BOMISO Gym & Spa in Gurgaon and saw various measures being taken. Anubhav Rai, owner of the gym, tells us, “The SoP (Standard Operating Procedure) mentions that there should be at least six feet distance between people at the gym. People above 65 years, pregnant women and children below 10 are not allowed now. If someone has an outdoor area, then that should be used and the windows should be open at all times for better ventilation, along with regular sanitisation and maintaining social distancing.”

Rita Dagar, a resident of Sushant Lok, Phase 1, says, “Gymming is my first love, and gyms reopening felt like getting my life back. At the entrance, we were asked to sanitise our hands and there was one person who was sanitising the equipments after each use. There was no physical contact at the gym, people were also taking precautions and even personal trainers were keeping a safe distance. I think people will get used to the new normal, but we all will have to tweak our schedules and make changes ourselves.”
Annu Marbaniang, another fitness enthusiast, adds, “There were less people on the first day, and everyone was working out with their masks on. Sanitisation and social distancing was also being strictly followed.”

Ritika Singh, a resident of Golf Course Road, tells us, “I went to the gym for the first time in months when it reopened and it was a whole new experience. Wearing mask, maintaining social distancing –_it will take some time getting used to it, particularly the fact that you can’t have a trainer or spotter help you with your workouts for a while. But it is for our own safety. And I am just happy that we can all go to the gym again, even if it is with restrictions.”
Tushar Puri, owner of Health Planet, Sector 17 in Gurgaon, says, “We are doing thermal screenings, there’s partition between treadmills, no group classes are being organised and everyone is maintaining social distancing. Our regular customers are coming but new people are still not sure of joining a gym until there’s a vaccine.”
While many gyms have reopened in Gurgaon, a few gym owners are still waiting before reopening. Sanjay Kumar, owner of Measure Gym & Spa, who has not opened his gym yet, shares, “We might wait 10 or more days to reopen our gym. We will ask our trainers to get a corona test done beforehand and will help those who cannot get it done. At the end of the day, it is about the safety of our clients.”

While many gyms have reopened in Noida, a few gym owners are still waiting. Anvita Agarwal, Fitness Coach, Gold’s Gym, Sector 104, says, “We have not yet reopened. We might reopen by Monday but that is also tentative. Apart from the sanitisation process, everyone in the gym would be in masks, gloves and the entry would be on the basis of thermal screening. If any client will have their temperature above the normal then they would not be allowed to workout at the gym.” She adds, “We will permit members to workout only by booking a slot on the app, workout time would be limited to 60 minutes and all members would have to exit the gym after the stipulated period ends.”
Fitness enthusiast Dr Mridula, a resident of Greater Noida, who has started working out in her society gym, says, “I carried my own towel, fitness belt and water bottle. The equipment was being sanitised at regular intervals. I think people will get used to the new normal by taking precautions because your safety is in your own hands.”
(With inputs from Abhimanyu.Mathur@timesgroup.com)