For fitness enthusiasts across the Hudson Valley this past Monday was long-awaited, as gyms across the area were allowed to reopen but with a few restrictions.

What You Need To Know

  • Gyms are allowed to open at 33 percent occupancy

  • Members and staff must appropriately wear approved face coverings at all times

  • Staff are required to disinfect the facility and equipment with electrostatic sprayers

“We need to make sure we do our due diligence to safeguard our staff and our members,” says Damola Akinyemi, owner of Ayo Fitness.

All gyms are allowed to open with 33 percent occupancy, and members and staff must appropriately wear approved face coverings at all times. Bandanas and gaiters are not considered acceptable masks.

“We understand this is a tough time right now, it's very difficult to wear masks and these things. We kindly, politely go up and remind them,” says Cody Michaels, regional operations manager for Planet Fitness.

To make sure members are wearing the right mask, Planet Fitness in Middletown will provide them with a disposable one. Ayo Fitness, also in Middletown, is going a bit further to make sure their gym remains safe by requiring everyone to wear gloves.

Akinyemi says he finds in his gym that, "if you have gloves on, and the amount of particles and dirt that you touch, you tend not to touch your face as much."

Members are asked to wipe down the machines before and after use, but gym staff must also disinfect the facility and equipment with electrostatic sprayers.

“We want to keep our doors open, ultimately, and safety and health of all our members, including our team members," says Michaels. "It's pretty easy to adjust our standards according to the guidelines.”

Officials are making sure that gyms are following the guidelines, as both locations have already received inspection visits.

“We’ve had emergency services, we've had the Town of Wallkill, and we've had the police, personally pay us visits, even though we've only been open for 48 hours,” says Akinyemi.

And it seems like the new measures are proving to be effective as one gym caught a potential threat before the person entered the facility.

“Two people yesterday, as we were checking on the door, had temperatures of 102. That's too much to let them in,” said Akinyemi.

Gym owners and managers say that members are actually coming together to make sure that everyone follows the rules, so that the gyms can stay open.