“The Struggle to Pump some Iron”

After a year in which people spent months at home getting very little exercise, 2021 has taken pumping iron to a whole new level.

The coronavirus pandemic caused paranoia about gyms and fitness areas being high-risk environments for the transmission of the virus. Just the thought of breathing heavily in a poorly ventilated space and focusing mainly on the ability of the virus to spread easily, caused this paranoia to grow daily. Though gyms reopened in Texas in May 2021, many in the Rio Grande Valley still wonder if it is safe to return to the pre-pandemic gym lifestyle. 

The answer is yes. Sorta. Some gyms adapted to the pandemic by creating a stricter system to safeguard peoples health. For example, at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, the University Recreation Center (UREC) has implemented a system called “IMLeagues” where the UTRGV community can schedule their preferred workout time in a three-hour block. According to the UTRGV UREC website, opening hours are between 10 a.m. – 1 p.m., 1:30 – 4:30 p.m. and 5:00 – 8:00 p.m. The UREC will also close at designated times for cleaning and disinfecting. The disinfecting times are between 1:00 – 1:30 p.m. and 4:30 – 5:00 p.m. This helps maintain safety, success, and overall an enjoyable experience as stated on their website. 

In an interview with Kimberly Rottet, Director of the University Recreation Center, she said “At the time of re-opening, UREC re-arranged much of our facility to account for social distancing needs. Because we tend to breathe harder when exercising and push air further, we re-arranged our facility to account for machines to be 10 feet apart. UREC worked quite diligently to maintain not just a high level of service, but a clean and safe environment as well.” Additionally, Rotett said, “To accommodate the increase in cleaning and sanitation practices, we adjusted our hours of operation to account for intentional blocks of time throughout the day for sanitization.” 

However, now that there is a higher number of students and staff coming back to campus, how is the UREC planning on adjusting the amount of the UTRGV Community inside the facility?

Rottet states, “UREC has worked in conjunction with the University Task Force to progressively bring back some of the normal activity that we had pre-COVID since we re-opened in June 2020. Having said that, UREC still recognizes that there will be some students and patrons who might not be comfortable returning. Where we are able, we are still offering hybrid and virtual content. In a sense, we are creating a new normal.”

How does the community feel about the UREC’s efforts? 

Pulse magazine conducted an anonymous online survey regarding this. Over 150 UTRGV students shared their thoughts. Of this number, 68.5% have gone or will eventually go back to the gym soon, now that the UREC has provided safety protocols. However, 53% believe things will not go back to the way they were. Seventy-three percent are still interested in continuing their gym lifestyle cautiously.

One participant said, “Even before the pandemic, I’d always been cautious about germs in gyms because you never know if the person before you had clean hands. So I would always clean the equipment I used before and after a workout.” 

Another participant said, “I loved that UTRGV UREC has gone above and beyond on their cleaning and disinfecting. Even though the hours were not the regular hours, I appreciated that they took charge of making sure that cleaning was the top priority.”

However, not all gyms are taking safety precautions. Some gyms are following little to no protocols at all. One participant in the survey said, “I went back to a local gym for less than a month and I ended up getting COVID.” According to the New York Times, the CDC traced several positive COVID cases to gyms in Hawaii and Illinois. The outbreaks described in the C.D.C. studies were caused by inconsistent mask use and other lapses in behavior. As stated in the New York Times article, researchers believe this was a cause of inadequate ventilation in the buildings. In addition, the article states that this leads to gym enthusiasts suffering with a high risk of contracting COVID. 

Overall, when it comes to working out, your safety is in your hands. According to the CDC, to maximize protection from the delta variant and prevent spreading it to others, wear a mask indoors in public if you are in an area of substantial or high transmission. However, this goes to show that although things are slowly coming back together and whether you are vaccinated or not, no matter what the reason may be, make sure to maintain a safe and healthy lifestyle.                                                                       

As the CDC states, if you decide to engage in public activities, continue to protect yourself by practicing everyday preventive actions. Try to always look out for the positive outcome from the worst situations. Who knows? You might end up working out.       

For more information on the UTRGV Recreation Center, visit its website at https://www.utrgv.edu/urec/