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Many gyms remain open. Should we continue to attend them?

Most gyms are expected to close in the next few days, but many spaces remain open. The Association of Gymnasium and Gym Companies of Portugal (AGAP) has developed a contingency plan to be implemented by all members, and these measures have already been adopted in several gyms. But the truth is that there are still open spaces and the question is whether they should be closed – and whether we should continue to attend them.

To Expresso, Teresa Leão, a researcher at the Institute of Public Health at the University of Porto, says that this assessment “must be made on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the risk of contagion”, that is, if cases were detected or cases are suspected in these spaces or in the geographic areas where they are located. “If the evidence appears in other countries, or even here, that gyms are places of transmission of the disease, then closure will be a reality.”

Still, caution is needed, he says, calling attention to the importance of measures such as “increasing the distance between people, ventilating the various spaces with physical activities, reducing the number of people in the same room, sensitizing people who are sick or with symptoms not to go to the gym, and make liquid soap, wipes and alcohol solutions available to disinfect your hands ”. This will help to “reduce the risk”, and it is also up to “each of us to make an individual assessment”.

Alexandre Abrantes, from the National School of Public Health at Universidade Nova de Lisboa, has a different opinion. “It doesn’t seem very wise for me to continue going to gyms,” he tells Expresso. “We must avoid going to places where we will be in close proximity to other people, as is the case with gyms. Many people use the same surfaces, namely machines, which may or may not be cleaned. Transmission is easy ”. The keywords, for the specialist, are “social distance”. “The fewer people we have to contact, the better”.

Swimming pool measures and ‘jacuzzis’ can be extrapolated to gyms

To Expresso, the Directorate-General for Health clarified that “there are no specific measures for gyms”, only “general recommendations and the contingency plans adopted by them”. AGAP issued this Friday a communication in which it informs about the elaboration of a contingency plan to be implemented by all its associates, having adopted “all hygiene and disinfection measures”.

At preventive measures included in the plan include “washing your hands frequently”, “systematically cleaning and disinfecting places easily accessible by hands, namely the equipment used in the gym and the material available in the studios for group classes”. “All common areas must be disinfected at least every hour”, the plan also establishes, and “areas where people put their hands” must also be disinfected, such as “door handles, keyboards and turnstiles”, among other surfaces. THE AGAP position is that all gyms should be closed, with the association asking the tutelage for “more guidance”, since the Government only advised, on Thursday, “limiting the frequency of users in the fitness and gym clubs”.

Teresa Leão draws attention to the importance of these measures and states that, although there are no specific guidelines for gyms, the DGS recommendations for swimming pools and ‘jacuzzis’ “can be extrapolated” to these spaces. “The danger in these places is that they are used by a large number of people, and these people may be infected.” Thus, and taking into account that the “most frequent mode of transmission of Covid-19 is through coughing or sneezing”, it is necessary to guarantee “frequently the hygiene of the surfaces, through a cleaning that will already allow to remove a large part of the microorganisms that exists”.

The disinfection of surfaces “with alcoholic solutions and bleach” is also important. “People who go to the gym should avoid doing so in times of great affluence. They must not touch potentially contaminated surfaces or bring their hands to their faces if they are not washed ”. In the case of pilates classes, for example, “the rugs must be cleaned frequently and, ideally, each user takes their rug from home”, says Teresa Leão, also specifying the case of swimming pools. “In terms of evidence, the DGS ‘recommendations regarding the amount of chlorine that must exist in the pools are sufficient to inactivate the virus”, thus not being a major concern.

Even so, “all surfaces of access to the pool must be sanitized just like those of the gymnasiums”. Stresses that people, despite the social isolation to which they were advised, “should continue to do physical exercise and exercises that enhance respiratory function”. Running outdoors “is a good idea”, and exercises can also be done at home, in the bedroom. “People who are better prepared in cardiovascular terms are those who have a better response to the disease, being affected but in a less severe way.”

Case detection leads to the closure of some gyms

To Expresso, José Carlos Reis, president of AGAP, said that “there are already City Councils that have closed gyms, such as Torres Vedras”. The government of the Azores also closed all sports facilities, including gyms. The gyms where cases of infection or suspected infection have been detected have been closed in the meantime, as is the case with the Breathe Sport Fitness gym, in Porto, and another in Vizela. There are also other spaces in Porto that closed their doors, due to a purely preventive decision, as well as the Ginásio Clube Português and two units of The Code, in Lisbon.

Fitness Hut reported the case of a positive test in one of the gym’s customers, who attended it until last Tuesday, March 10. For this reason, the space in question, on Avenida Alexandre Herculano, in Lisbon, is now closed. Fitness Hut has another closed unit, in Carcavelos, but this one is part of the Nova School of Business & Economics campus, which, like all universities, closed by government decree. The Solinca group also announced, in the meantime, the closure of its spaces, in a brief statement published on its page on Facebook.

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