{"id":1582,"date":"2020-03-13T13:05:55","date_gmt":"2020-03-13T06:05:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/illume-emag.com\/?p=1582"},"modified":"2022-01-12T16:58:57","modified_gmt":"2022-01-13T00:58:57","slug":"safe-go-gym-work-novel-coronavirus-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lavyon.com\/en\/safe-go-gym-work-novel-coronavirus-pandemic\/","title":{"rendered":"Is It Safe To Go To The Gym To Work Out During The Novel Coronavirus Pandemic?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Exercise is good for you, but you need to take some precautions for gym workouts.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-1583 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/lavyon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Gym-safety.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"650\" height=\"648\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lavyon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Gym-safety.jpg 650w, https:\/\/lavyon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Gym-safety-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/lavyon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Gym-safety-300x299.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 650px) 100vw, 650px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">It\u2019s been drilled into you a zillion times: There are scientifically proven benefits of exercising regularly. Among other things, it can help reduce anxiety and boost your mood\u2014things we all could really use during the age of the novel coronavirus.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cWe know about the mental and physical benefits of exercise for the brain, and that it aids with sleep,\u201d says Jordan Metzl, MD, a sports medicine physician at Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City. \u201cWhen people are ruminating about something, exercise helps.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">That said, health experts keep talking about the importance of social distancing right now to help lower the odds that you\u2019ll contract the novel coronavirus, a.k.a. COVID-19. That raises a huge question: Is it safe to go to the gym right now?<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">If you belong to a gym, you\u2019ve probably gotten an email from someone there about the special precautions they\u2019re taking to keep you and other members safe. The YMCA of Greater New York, for example, released a statement to WomensHealthMag.com noting they&#8217;ve &#8220;significantly increased&#8221; how often they clean high-traffic and high-touch items like door knobs, exercise equipment, locker rooms, phones, banisters, tabletops, and handrails. They&#8217;re also making sure that disinfectant wipes are available for all YMCA equipment.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Look: This is a really weird time and we\u2019re in uncharted territory here. But experts stress that, while tempting, holing up in your home and staying there isn\u2019t the way to handle this. And, if you want to go to the gym, you should\u2014just use caution.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cI think going to the gym is okay,\u201d says Rajeev Fernando, MD, an infectious disease expert in Southampton, New York. \u201cYou have to live your life.\u201d Suzanne Willard, PhD, associate dean of Global Health at the Rutgers University School of Nursing, agrees. \u201cAs long as it\u2019s clean and you take certain precautions, you should be fine,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Of course, there\u2019s a little more to it than that, and experts say you\u2019ll probably want to alter your standard gym routine a little. (For starters, obviously do not hit the gym if you feel sick!) Keep these things in mind before you head to your next workout.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>You\u2019re probably okay if you use the weight room.<\/strong><br \/>\nYes, people are constantly touching weights and other objects there and you are, too. But there are a few ways to make this situation pretty safe for you:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\">Wash your hands well with soap and water before and after you work out. Per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), that means lathering up for at least 20 seconds, i.e. the amount of time it takes to hum the \u201cHappy Birthday\u201d song twice.<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\">Wipe down equipment before and after you use it. Gyms usually have disinfectant wipes located throughout the space\u2014and if not, you can always bring your own. \u201cUse them,\u201d Dr. Willard says.<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\">Keep your distance from people. Social distancing is important for preventing the spread of COVID-19, Dr. Fernando points out. So, if you don\u2019t need to be on top of the person next to you while you\u2019re pumping iron, don\u2019t.<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\">Stay away from anyone who appears to be sick. Same deal as above. Coronavirus is transmitted through respiratory droplets that you can then breathe in or get in your nose, mouth, or eyes. Those droplets are thought to be able to travel up to six feet, the CDC says. So, ideally, you want to keep at least that much distance between you and someone who is coughing and\/or sneezing.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Maybe rethink group fitness classes for now.<\/strong><br \/>\n\u201cIt\u2019s a good idea to avoid group classes at the gym,\u201d Dr. Fernando says. Why? People are usually in close proximity during group classes (generally less than six feet apart) and that makes it really easy for COVID-19 to spread if the person on the indoor bike next to you happens to be infected and is coughing or sneezing.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">There\u2019s no evidence right now that the novel coronavirus can be transmitted through sweat but, again, if you\u2019re packed into a class with plenty of other people, there\u2019s the whole coughing\/sneezing thing to consider.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Instead, consider sweating outside now that the weather is getting better, try one of Women&#8217;s Health&#8217;s many indoor workouts you can do at home, or stream a workout from our All Out Studio app.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Swimming is probably okay.<\/strong><br \/>\nBut again, it depends on a few factors, including how crowded your local pool is. Some places have people share lanes and, if you\u2019re regularly coming face to face with a fellow lane swimmer during laps, it could present a less-than-ideal situation.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Also, plenty of pool water gets into other people\u2019s noses and mouths during swimming and comes back out into the water you\u2019re swimming in, where it can also travel into your nose and mouth. That&#8217;s worth considering.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">There\u2019s been some debate online about whether chlorine kills coronavirus, but it\u2019s unclear at this point. \u201cWe don\u2019t have that information yet, but there is a lot of chlorine in those pools,\u201d Willard says.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The World Health Organization (WHO) recently posted on their website that chlorine \u201ccan be useful to disinfect surfaces\u201d but it needs \u201cto be used under appropriate recommendations.\u201d However, they stopped short of saying that chlorine can actually kill COVID-19.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">If you&#8217;re thinking of hopping into your community pool, Dr. Willard recommends paying attention to local health alerts. \u201cIf I know in my community that there are several cases of novel coronavirus, I\u2019m not going to the gym or pool,\u201d she says. \u201cYou\u2019ve got to be smart about it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Again, it\u2019s understandable that you might be freaked out about the novel coronavirus these days, but experts stress that you don\u2019t need to avoid the gym entirely. Just pay attention to local health alerts and do your best to follow good prevention steps. And wash your hands\u2014please.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: right;\">Source: Women&#8217;s health<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Exercise is good for you, but you need to take some precautions for gym workouts. It\u2019s been drilled into you a zillion times: There are scientifically proven benefits of exercising regularly. Among other things, it can help reduce anxiety and boost your mood\u2014things we all could really use during the age of the novel coronavirus. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1583,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13321,13318,17],"tags":[1087,947,1233],"class_list":{"0":"post-1582","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-green-life","8":"category-mind-posivity","9":"category-wellness-tips","10":"tag-coronavirus","11":"tag-gym","12":"tag-workout"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lavyon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1582","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lavyon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lavyon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lavyon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lavyon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1582"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lavyon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1582\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lavyon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1583"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lavyon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1582"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lavyon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1582"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lavyon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1582"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}