Dear Citizen

We are  FitnessONE representing from Fitness Industry placing this request petition to Govt of India to allow Gyms in India to resume operations with our justification for same in detail. we request to go through and support Gym industry by signing this petition to draw attention of Ministry of Health & family welfare Govt of India to allow gyms to resume..

Government of India has come out with the guidelines for phased Reopening (Unlock 1), we find that gymnasiums are clubbed along with cinema halls, entertainment parks, theatres and other similar places.

While we understand that the safety of citizens is of paramount importance and researches have shown that Gyms do carry an element of risk where communicable diseases could spread.

We would like to draw your attention to the fact that some countries have re-opened the gyms post lockdown we haven’t heard any adverse reports about the risk of spreading disease post opening of such facilities. Like shops, salons, gyms could be a place to visit with due precautions.

There are many steps that we can and would take to minimise the risks. Some of them are part of the standard procedures recommended by the Government and ICMR.

The suggested steps are listed below:

1.   The facility would be completely sanitised before opening

2.   Our employees would be wearing masks and gloves

3.   Hand sanitizers would be placed at the entrance and also inside the facility for our members to sanitize at the point of entry and also during work out

4.   Gyms do have facility for hand wash, we would educate and encourage our members to use the facility

5.   Check temperature at the point of entry

6.   We already maintain a register to capture entry and exit time of the members. We would continue to maintain and share the data whenever necessary. We assure you that we would fully co-operate with the authorities

7.   Every session would be restricted for 45 minutes and we will have 20 minutes gap between 2 sessions to ensure the space is sanitised

8.   Facilities like steam room would not be allowed

9.   Number of members would be restricted based on the availability of floor space which will ensure appropriate social distancing as prescribed by the government

10.Provide disposable gloves to our members

11.   In addition to the above we would educate and encourage our members

a.    To wear masks while they travel to and from the gym

b.    Not to visit the gym if they have any symptoms of cold, cough or fever and also encourage them to consult the doctor for diagnosis

c.    To bring their own water bottles and towels

d.   To maintain social distancing at all times

 

We would like to bring to your attention to certain facts:

1.   Regular exercise is one of the pillars of healthy living. It improves our strength and protects us from variety of diseases

2.   Studies have shown that regular exercise increases the immune system activity, increasing the number of white blood cells and immunoglobulin in the blood, which acts to reduce a person’s susceptibility to disease. 

3.   The findings suggest that regular exercise can reduce a person's chances of catching a cold, and/or reducing its severity if they do catch it.

4.   As a general rule the healthier you are, the easier you'll find it is to fight off infections.

5.   Exercise makes one feel healthier and energetic. It can help one feel good about self.

Exercise is one of the best preventive measure against many diseases and infections. As a nation with a relatively younger population, fitness can go a long way in building a healthy and happy society over a period of time.

Gyms do play a critical role in helping and harnessing the preventive measures. Ideally Gyms and Fitness studios could be categorized under preventive healthcare.

Further, we would also like to draw attention that on June 21 every year we celebrate International Yoga day and we had numerous campaigns on Fit India movement stressing on the importance of health and fitness.

It’s an industry that is fragmented with most of the players are MSMEs and in fact many of them are self-employed young professionals.

We do have thousands of professionals whose life and family are dependent on opening of gyms. We request you to allow gyms to be opened and restore the livelihood of thousands of health & wellness professionals.