Misguided priorities

When NCR Plus was placed on a heightened general community quarantine (GCQ) status from May 15 to 31, many waited for the guidelines from the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) as to what business establishments and activities will be allowed to operate and at what capacities.

The IATF guidelines authorized the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to issue a so-called negative list of industries which shall remain prohibited even in areas under GCQ, and  the determination of on-site operational capacities.

On May 14, among the business establishment, persons or activities allowed by the DTI, pursuant to the IATF resolution to operate onsite in the NCR Plus under GCQ with heightened restrictions, are food preparation establishments such as restaurants and eateries – with their indoor dine-in services limited  at 20 percent of capacity and at 50 percent for al fresco or outdoor dining; and personal care services, including beauty salons, barbershops, medical aesthetic clinics, cosmetic or derma clinics, nail spas, wellness and holistic centers at 30 percent capacity, provided that they shall provide only services that can allow the wearing of face masks at all times.

Notably absent from the list are gyms and fitness centers, again.

Last Wednesday, after more than a year of absence, I had the chance to visit my favorite salon which was located inside a mall, for the works – hair cut, color,  treatment (which would involve of course shampooing and drying my hair afterwards), spot massage, manicure/pedicure plus foot spa. In total, I spent about five hours inside the salon without removing my face mask, of course.

This particular salon was located just across a gym, a franchise of one of the renowned chains of fitness centers in the country, which remained closed.

After my salon visit, I had to take my super-late lunch at 4 pm. I dined in at one of the restaurants inside the mall. I had to take off my face shield and mask, of course. So did other diners at that time.

A number of studies say that people who test positive for COVID-19 were more than twice as likely as those who tested negative to report eating in a restaurant. Talking with someone who has COVID-19 for 30 minutes or longer while eating out more than doubles the odds of catching the virus, the same studies show. And since there are reports which say that the virus is airborne, the chances of infection increase when someone positive with the virus happens to be also in the same restaurant dining at the same time as you.

To put it simply, when dining inside a restaurant, you just have to pray and hope that nobody who is positive, but asymptomatic leaves his/her virus inside the establishment while you are also inside.

It is, therefore, my conclusion that it is safer to go to a salon and the gym than to eat inside a restaurant.

The negative view which the IATF has against gyms and fitness centers may be due to a so-called “serious outbreak” of COVID-19 at one gym in Metro Manila, forcing the LGU concerned to close all gyms, spas, and internet cafes in the city from March 15 to 31. No details were released as to where this gym is. Maybe the gym is one of those friendly, neighborhood gyms. So why should all gyms suffer? Then came the decision of the Metro Manila Council to keep such establishments closed until after Holy Week in order to control the spike of COVID-19 cases in Metro Manila. Gyms and fitness centers remain closed to this day.

There are responsible and irresponsible restaurant establishments, beauty salons, and gyms. But the sin of one should not result in the whole industry suffering.

In an article published last March 23, Mylene Mendoza-Dayrit, president and CEO of Gold’s Gym, noted at that time that only one-fifth to one-fourth of the normal daily traffic was back in the gym, with gym hours shortened to balance operating expenses with the shortage of demand.

Dayrit said that some operators have reported retrenching one-third of their workforce, while those working do so at a third of their regular hours. Group exercises were cancelled since one year ago, she said. This means that instructors who are paid per class are out of work, and some now have to rely on conducting online classes or looking for other sources of income.

In the United States, several large brands have filed for bankruptcy since the pandemic started. These include Gold’s Gym, 24 Hour Fitness, and Town Sports International – all of which filed for Chapter 11 restructuring. Meanwhile, Flywheel filed for Chapter 7 and closed all of its studios.

Unfortunately, even if our government allows gyms to resume operations, the damage has been done. Many have adopted a sedentary lifestyle, with lots of work from home, no community, no travel, no exercise, and  those with existing gym memberships either suspending or cancelling their memberships.

Bloomberg.com, in an article, noted that for some people who have continued some kind of exercise routine, virtual fitness has been key. Even Apple has rolled out a virtual fitness subscription service called Fitness+ which is built for the Apple Watch, but is compatible with other devices like iPhones and iPads. In the same article, it was revealed that since the start of the pandemic, some 80 percent of fitness consumers livestreamed workouts compared with seven percent in 2019.

In the Philippines, many are either investing in home gym equipment or resorting to doing exercises (including dancing) available free on YouTube. There are those who subscribe to on-demand and livestream group workouts, as well as individual trainings online, conducted by enterprising individuals and gym operators who have to operate virtually to survive.

But not everybody can offer their services online. Let us not forget many gym instructors and personal trainers, utility people, locker attendants, cleaners, boxing trainers and assistants have been unemployed for some time now just because one gym failed to observe health protocols.

Going to the gym to workout is safer compared to dining in. It is about time that the IATF reviews and rethinks its definition of what is truly essential – a haircut or one’s physical fitness – and that the task force listen to and address the plight of gym owners and workers who have been suffering for more than a year now.

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