Gyms, fitness centers to re-open in Georgia

Georgia governor Brian Kemp announced earlier this week that several small businesses, including gyms and fitness centers, are allowed to re-open its doors under certain conditions on Friday.

Joining gyms and fitness centers on Kemp’s re-opening list are bowling alleys, barbers and hairdressers, nail salons, body art studios, and massage therapists, according to a report from Fox 5 Atlanta.

Kemps added in his address to Fox 5 Atlanta that these businesses “would not be business-as-usual” and would require heightened sanitation mandates while maintaining social distancing recommendations.

“Georgians who are small business owners, those people have good common sense and we’re trusting them to use it, but if they abuse it, we will take further action,” Kemp said. “But I believe they can do it as part of this measured approach.”

This comes as the White House released criteria to re-open America in three phases and Kemp said the Peach State is on track to meet the criteria for the first phase by testing adequately and ensuring hospitals are not working above capacity.

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Student-athletes have to be excited about the news of gyms preparing to open its doors after nearly a six-week closure. All across the nation, including in Georgia, collegiate student-athletes have been keeping up with their workouts through Zoom or other video-conferencing technology with their respective trainers and coaches. Often times during the coronavirus pandemic these student-athletes used makeshift home gyms and used resistance bands or body weight to stay in shape.

The re-opening of gyms and fitness centers is the first of many steps in the direction of getting back to some sense of normalcy in the world of athletics.

To read the full report from Fox 5 Atlanta on Georgia beginning to re-open businesses, including gyms and fitness centers, click here.