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3 | W aterloo C hronicle | T hursday,July 9,2020 w aterloochronicle.ca Your Summertime Treat! LIMITED TIME OFFER. SOME RESTRICTIONS APPLY 65 UNIVERSITY AVE. E WATERLOO (519) 725-5252 2lbs of W ings & Onion R ings the Waterloo club. People can exercise at a distance and leave without ever having to touch any- body else or be within six to eight feet of anyone else, he said. "You take that, plus us providing sanitizer and increased cleanliness and wearing masks as well, it becomes a much safer en- vironment than some of the others out there for shopping and all kinds of stuff." In the absence of official guidance from the provin- cial government, the Fit- ness Industry Council of Canada released its own guidelines for fitness cen- tre operators. This framework urges reopened fitness centres in the province to: -Limit the number of pa- trons allowed inside at any given time -Screen patrons for CO- VID-19 symptoms upon ar- rival -Limit or prevent access to locker rooms -Close drinking foun- tains -Enforce physical dis- tancing in group classes, limit class sizes and space classes out to allow for san- itization between classes In a document on its website, the FIC states it hoped the province would allow gyms and fitness cen- tres to open as part of Phase 2. Brian Fehst is a member of the Ontario Society for Health and Fitness Board of Directors and has worked in health management and fit- ness for 14 years. He said the organiza- tion supports the prov- ince's phased reopening timeline, but recognizes fitness operators will have many hurdles to face as they work to bring clients back while also complying with public health proto- cols. He suggests centres es- tablish trust with clients by offering outdoor fitness classes throughout the sum- mer, so clients are confident going indoors with their fa- vourite trainers when the weather turns cold. "Establishing that com- fort level is going to be key," he said. Mark Wolf, who opened stronger Forever on Weber Street North last Septem- ber, was also forced to close back in March. He's cur- rently operating at about a quarter of normal capaci- ty, teaching outdoor func- tional fitness classes focus- ing on both upper and low- er body and core muscle strength. Classes consist of no more than nine people and himself, for a maximum of 10, which is a permitted gathering under current pandemic rules. The equipment that's used, from boxes and battle ropes, to cones, pylons, skipping ropes and TRX pulley is sprayed down af- ter every use. Participants maintain distance and there are Lysol wipes on hand. But when it comes to re- opening his gym, Wolf is taking a wait-and-see ap- proach. Many of his classes in- volve groups with partners who travel from station to station using a variety of equipment. "You can wipe down and sanitize, but I'm not going to be the first gym to jump into it from day one," Wolf said, referring to COVID-19 outbreaks that have infec- ted numerous employees at other businesses right here in Ontario. "I don't want to be in the news for those reasons or hurt our members," Wolf said. STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Fitness instructors and business owners in Waterloo Region are wait- ing for word from the prov- ince on when they will be allowed to reopen, and reporters Bill Jackson and Megan DeLaire wanted to know what the future holds for fitness centres like theirs. NEWS Continued from page 1 GYM OWNER TAKING A WAIT-AND-SEE APPROACH Stronger Forever, 420 Weber St. N in Waterloo, will be taking a wait-and-see approach to reopening. Facebook photo