OTTAWA -- Many people who have been missing the gym these past four months will finally have a chance to get back to their regular routines come this Friday.
GoodLife gave CTV News a sneak peek at what members can expect to see when they walk in, use the change rooms, lift weights, and use the cardio machines.
"Familiar, but different." That is the best way to explain it. GoodLife has put many measures in place to help keep their members as safe as possible while still allowing them the freedom to exercise properly.
You now have to book your workout in one-hour time slots on the GoodLife website or app. There are 30 minutes in between each time slots where the gym will be closed for deep cleaning. Walk-ins are also available, but you might be waiting a while.
"As a member you can log on to the GoodLife website or using the GoodLife app, you can select the club of your choosing and then pick the time slot that you want to come workout," says Nicole Hennessey, GoodLife Divisional Manager of Operations.
"You show up early, you wait in line. As soon as your time slot opens, you come into the club. Then you’re allowed to work out for 60 minutes. At that 60 minute mark all of our members leave, and we start an in-depth 30-minute cleaning and reset of the entire club, and then we’re open for the next block to come in."
Hand sanitizer is everywhere, along with sterilizing wipes for equipment. Showers, saunas, tanning machines, and the day care are all closed right now for safety. Some of the lockers in the change room have been blocked off in order to promote physical distancing.
"We’ve had to decrease the amount of lockers available," says Hennessey. "So, when you come in you’re going notice that there is a sticker that says, 'closed lockers are sanitized for use.' So, when we’re doing our cleaning, we’re going to clean everything and then we’re going to close the doors. So, we’re actually asking members to leave the door open if they recently just used it. You’ll also notice that a number of other lockers are blocked off to promote social distancing. And then you’ll see another locker at least two metres away that is also available for use."
Face masks will be mandatory when entering and exiting the club and in change rooms. Masks are not required while working out.
Like all fitness clubs, GoodLife is allowed to have no more than 50 people inside at the same time, but it is asking the government to allow more, while keeping people physically distant.
Every second cardio machine is taped off as well, making sure people are far enough apart while running on the treadmill or using the elliptical.
They have also taped off rowing machines and assault bikes because of their fans.
"So, if you think about a rower, it has a fan on it so it has the ability to move around bacteria and dirt and dust and we don’t want that to be the case," says Hennessey.
Making sure the club is spotless is their number one priority. GoodLife has hired several new people just for that reason.
"There are going to be plenty of people walking the floor, cleaning every piece of equipment that they can, encouraging members to social distance," says Hennessey, "Making sure that everyone is working out in a safe way, but also making sure the club is clean and tidy at all times."
If you plan to sign up for a class, that will be slightly different too. Everything will happen in the same room.
"You’ll notice that all of our cycling bikes are now inside our large studio. So, all classes are going to be conducted inside our largest studios inside our clubs right now. Whether it's a yoga class, a cycling class, or a body pump class, you’re going to come to this studio to do it. This is just a great way of making sure we can stay very efficient and detailed with our cleaning between each class," says Hennessey.
GoodLife officially opens its doors this Friday at 6am.
