PUNE:
Gyms and
fitness centres in the city are gearing up to reopen with new norms after a gap of seven months due to the pandemic.
The state government had ordered gyms to close down in mid-March to prevent spread of Covid-19. The establishments finally got a go-ahead on Saturday.
“It’s going to be a big task for us. We will have to start from scratch now,” said Nilesh Kale, president of Pune Fitness Club Association (PFCA), who has been pursuing the matter with the government for the last few months.
“Right from cleaning the floor, servicing the equipment, providing sanitisers and towels, sanitizing the floor and equipment, and allocating space to maintain social distancing norms have to be done properly to keep
coronavirus at bay,” said Kale, who runs a gym at Bibwewadi.
Gyms have permitted to offer weights and exercise machines. However, many other group exercise facilities have not yet been given a go-ahead. Indoor pools, Zumba and Yoga classes have not been allowed to reopen due to a high risk factor.
Many gym owners are stated they will have to engage more people for floor management. “Earlier, two housekeeping staff members were enough to maintain a 2,000 sq ft area but, with new norms in place, we will have to rope in more employees. With closure of business for over seven months and no new subscribers, it would be financially challenging for most of us,” said an association member.
Most gym owners are worried about getting the business back on track. “We will need at least four months to get the business to the normal stage,” said Abdul Ansari, 2012 Mr India champion.
“We will have to see how people return to gyms during the pandemic. Since many people work from home nowadays, we hope they will find time for their fitness goals and join us as per their work schedule,” said Ansari, who runs a gym at Dhanori in Vishrantwadi.
Many fitness studio owners don’t expect capacity crowds. “A number of people have subscribed to online classes. So, it would be difficult to get a new crowd soon,” said Kale.
Owners also said that they do not have enough capital to restart at full swing. Paying the rent, electricity bills, trainers’ salaries, providing high standard housekeeping service, among others, are going to be a very expensive affair.
“I have been paying the rent and managing my family expenses without earning a penny for the last seven months. How can I afford to invest more immediately? So I have decided to reopen the gym with limited number of customers so that I can run it smoothly. I am at present not looking for profit. I just want to pass this phase with minimum capital investment,” said Vilas Shinde, gym owner from Dighi.