Given the ever-changing landscape of the Coronavirus, the latest government recommendations and the impact that all this has on our small business, we thought it would be best share with you in a blog post format exactly how we plan to tackle it and maintain a safe and healthy training environment for you. As new information comes out we can update this blog and you can come back here to see what we're doing to keep up with the latest. Before I get into the importance of hand sanitising, I'm going to be completely open, raw and honest with you. As a small business owner it has been a very uncertain, scary and nerve-racking past week. Every new piece of new information or government announcement has the potential to completely erase everything we've worked for and everything we have created over the past decade, and we have no control. Which is such a weird and unsettling feeling. I appreciate the government is doing their absolute best to protect the community, ease the pressure on the healthcare system and minimise the risk to the vulnerable, but at the same time, when we have an incredible team of coaches, a community of amazing members and a very young family to think of, each day brings a new level of stress and a bigger demand for us to be courageous and adaptable.
And that's what we plan to do.
WHAT WE ARE DOING?
To begin with we (along with many other small businesses) have stepped up our cleaning 10fold.
- Each team member has undertaken the coronavirus eLearning course to ensure we know the facts around how to deal with infectious diseases At each facility we are cleaning daily with disinfectant spray and anti-bacterial wipes. The team are cleaning after both the morning and evening sessions
- We have placed hand sanitiser within the facilities for you to use before and after
- We had and dryers installed at Bayside
- We have asked our cleaners to increase the vigilance also
- You will notice posters around the place to help ensure everyone wash's and sanitises correctly
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
**IMPORTANT** For those attending our Euroa gym or our Bayside facility for a solo session. I must emphasis point #4! For the interest of everyone health, please wipe everything down after you use it.
Some other tips from WHO:
Earlier this week (18th March 2020) the government released some new guidelines in regards to physical distancing. Following PM Scott Morrison’s statement earlier today, communication from the Department of Health has confirmed “Gyms, indoor fitness centres and swimming pools do not need to close at this time — as long as they follow social distancing advice and have good cleaning routines in place”*. ["The Department of Health website also provides clarification around the 100-person limit for indoor gatherings, advising that an indoor gathering takes place in a single enclosed areas ie a single room or area. Therefore, this limit will not apply to the whole facility but rather gatherings, including workouts and classes taking place in a single enclosed area of the gym. Based on today’s Government announcement regarding these additional measures for social-distancing and to ensure the each facility is able to maintain a distance of 1.5 metres between people, we recommend reducing or capping class sizes to limit internal number and ensure more space between members, creating more space between treadmills and other equipment by either removing or switching off every second piece of equipment."]
Given the size of our facility we feel the 1.5mtr recommendation will be very easy to accomplish.
OUR NEXT STEPS
However should there be further tightening of these recommendations or concern from our members here's what we plan to do next:
- Removal of communal drink fountain
- Separated training squares for Boot Camps - You will have a 2x2mtr training square which will be spaced 1.5mtr apart within the facility. You will then have your own equipment to use for the entire session which you will help us wipe down before and after.
- Limited class sizes - To ensure everyone has the flexibility to train, we would then implement an altered training schedule with more/other training times and with time in between to clean equipment. - Temperature checking as you enter - This has been utilised in other countries and something we are considering to help everyone feel confident that we have a healthy community of people training here at any one time. This has been a recommendation from Fitness Australia for those facilities that have the capacity to do so. As we don't have reception staff, if we were to implement this, it would be a self - assessment (hand sanitising before and after using the thermometer of course). All patrons, contractors and staff would be required to have their temperature checked upon entering the facility (individuals that read over 37.3oC are isolated for 5 minutes then rechecked) if the individual remains above 37.3oC they are denied entry to the facility. This is a 'only if we have to' measure as it is a logistical nightmare. (plus fining thermometers is proving very difficult).
- Daily floor cleaning/spraying with a disinfectant
- Offer 1:1 30min sessions for those that wish to train away from others - Coaches would also be encouraged to take a less 'hands-on' approach.
- Online coaching - IN the form of live boot camps for you to do at home and personal training sessions via FaceTime. We have already put together some equipment packs to make this happen.
Finally, as a small family business, it's vital that we are adaptable and remain open throughout this, we know it will pass and we will be stronger for it. In the meantime, we can't thank you enough for your continued support, it really does meant the world to us.
Thank You! Brad, Carley & Team.
