People with gym memberships are working out again at Greenwood fitness centers after the state on Monday lifted a COVID-19 stay-home order that closed their doors for five weeks.
John Ray of Itta Bena, a security officer who before the order had been working out four times a week at Snap Fitness for three years, said Tuesday that getting into the gym is a relief.
“It feels good to be back,” said Ray, who added that he happened to have taken a COVID-19 test in Indianola the week before. “The test results came back negative,” he said with a smile.
John Ray of Itta Bena works out at Snap Fitness Tuesday.
Willie Dickson, Snap’s manager, and Chris Wilson, a personal trainer at Advanced Fitness, each said they have been crossing every “t” and dotting each “i” to make sure their centers are exactly following the state’s requirements — and more so. Dickson said the idea is to make the gym “safe — not just feel safe.”
Wilson said that while no one else was there, he was at work.
“I have been cleaning the whole five weeks,” he explained.
They deep-cleaned the gyms and separated equipment for 6-foot physical distancing. Employees on the gym floor are wearing masks and disposable gloves, and the equipment is cleaned every couple of hours, if not more often. Members are being asked to wipe off equipment when they are finished.
“I am doing it, and mostly I am asking people to do it as well,” Dickson said.
Hand sanitizer is available throughout the gyms. Classes, such as aerobics, are not being taught because of physical distancing requirements.
So members are returning. Several were working out at Advanced and Snap during the noon hour Tuesday. At Advanced, Wilson outfitted a spare room to add space for distancing. The room now holds a power rack, dumbbells, a rowing machine and a StairMaster. Wilson also has been constructing a wall for slam balls there, and he put in a new floor using heavy-duty mats.
Gyms can accommodate no more than 30% of their maximum capacity, and they have to close by 10 p.m. Snap stays open until then, and Advanced closes at 6 p.m. The Wellness Center at Greenwood Leflore Hospital, which has a gym, has not yet reopened.
•Contact Susan Montgomery at 581-7241 or smontgomery@gwcommonwealth.com.
