The COVID-19 pandemic has put the majority of our plans and day-to-day routines on hold as it continues to spread across the globe.
However, with the world slowly making its way to a state of normalcy, authorities have established gym reopening guidelines. Training facilities can operate again without compromising both clients’ and staff’s health and safety.
These gym regulations for reopening are the new reality training centers, and fitness enthusiasts have to face.
1. Disinfect your training center’s equipment and machines after each use
Gym regulations for reopening include sanitation measures to prevent the spread of the virus. Because of this, you need to disinfect your equipment and machines each time they’re used.
To make disinfection swift and successful, pick an excellent electrostatic sprayer that can easily and rapidly spray and coat your apparatus in a thin yet even layer of disinfectant. You can also ask your customers to do their part in obeying these gym reopening guidelines by telling them to wipe equipment after each use.
2. Face masks are a must
The fitness industry amid COVID-19 has turned to classes and digital transformation to stay afloat. That’s why it’s important to follow fitness center reopening guidelines to ensure your establishment keeps thriving despite the pandemic, and this includes mandatory mask-wearing.
When your patrons aren’t actively working out, make sure they’re wearing face coverings within your facility. This is especially important since individuals tend to breathe heavily post-workout.
We know enforcing this rule can be tough on some clients, which is why you need to have a plan when they don’t want to adhere to these fitness center reopening guidelines so that the rest of your team and customers can remain safe and healthy.
3. Observe social distancing
Six feet apart is the new norm when working out. In fact, it’s written in almost every measure on fitness center reopening guidelines and proven to be effective by thorough research and case studies in countries such as South Korea.
Make sure your patrons are using equipment and machines positioned at this distance. Individuals should also be situated as such and required to wear face masks in group classes. When moving about in other facilities such as restrooms, make sure your patrons are also standing six feet away from each other.
Have a staff monitor these movements to ensure that your customers comply with your gym regulations.
4. Support or conduct a research on the impact of COVID-19 on fitness industry
Plenty of training centers think the pandemic is a roadblock in the gradually expanding fitness industry. Although it’s easy to say so, these pressing times can also offer a massive opportunity for the sector, especially in the mastery of pertinent knowledge and skills.
Your key findings will help you devise a strategy that can reel in more customers for your gym. A business strategy based on research will motivate you and plant your feet firmly on the path of success.
In addition, a well-researched strategy also enhances employee morale and keeps them aligned with company goals. Research shows that only 68% of employees are engaged in their work worldwide. While that’s already over a half, much work still needs to be done for organizations to accomplish maximum employee engagement that eventually leads to enhanced productivity.
If you don’t have the time and resources to conduct a study of your own, feel free to support and look up other works to help you craft your business plan alongside gym reopening guidelines.
5. Think about automation
Many gyms suffered losses at the impact of COVID-19 on the fitness industry, that the idea of reopening is both tedious and daunting.
There are so many things to do to get back on track. Gym owners need to craft new marketing campaigns and strategies to boost their sales, manage their employees and ensure their health and safety, establish new classes, and make sure everything’s smooth sailing as lockdown restrictions are slowly lifted.
Such significant increase in day-to-day workload requires a helping hand. Luckily, platforms offer automation to help gym owners cope with the impact of COVID-19 on the fitness industry.
Now more than ever, everyone in the fitness industry needs tools that can empower them to persist during these difficult times. Besides having the capacity to automate routine work, today’s technology can also rise to meet the primary demands of training centers in terms of management, profit, marketing, and customer retention and acquisition. In fact, Forbes recommends making automation an ally to achieve optimum productivity and spur unprecedented growth.
Take Arbox, for example. We offer a cloud-based club management system that encourages you to power through the pandemic and grows your business by automating daily tasks and taking a few tons off your workload. We do all this while helping you abide by these new fitness center reopening guidelines.
6. Acquire a club management software
You might also consider onboarding tools for your operations. A robust gym administration platform can be just what you need to achieve your entrepreneurial objectives in the new normal.
To explain this, let’s give you a rundown of the advantages of a good club management software by exploring what features are available:
Scheduling made easier
Since classes are at the core of your fitness center, you need a scheduling system that easily allows you to arrange, view, and modify your classes’ timetable.
Setting up classes is a cakewalk
Every gym owner wants the best training experience for their patrons. Your club management platform can help achieve this by allowing you to configure class settings to open registrations for all members or implement restrictions to narrow down class participants.
This feature can also help establish the minimum and a maximum number of attendees per class, which is useful since you need to regulate the number of students according to fitness center reopening guidelines.
Your club management software can also dictate class frequency, so when you have recurring sessions, you don’t have to keep setting up your classes repeatedly.
Time management and efficiency are guaranteed
Your club management software doesn’t only take care of your customers. It also helps your workforce cope with their assignments by organizing and overseeing them. For instance, you can connect new tasks related to gym reopening guidelines to your sales professionals or staff members and monitor their progress. You can also arrange functions according to their classifications.
Keeps your staff in check
Most systems come with functions for shift management and reporting and a time clock so that your employees can successfully punch in their working hours.
Managing payroll is also easier since most of these software solutions come with configurable payment options for your coaches and staff.
Grow with reports and analytics
Discover your enterprise’s weak and strong points through real-time data and use them to gain more patrons despite the impact of COVID-19 on the fitness industry. Your platform should make this easier with automated tools, smart filters, and sorting solutions.
Presenting information to coworkers and stakeholders is also easier since most systems allow you to export files easily to common work platforms such as Microsoft Excel.
To start searching for a suitable platform, browse this list of club management software examples from FinancesOnline.
7. Get in touch with the experts and fellow gym owners
There’s nothing wrong with asking for help during these challenging times. Many gyms have been affected by the impact of COVID-19 on the fitness industry, so seeking advice that can help you get back on your feet is not a sign of weakness. Instead, it shows how much you care for your customers, and for health and well-being in general.
For instance, if you’re keen on onboarding a club management software upon reopening and don’t know where to start, you can ask around forums regarding which platform is the best to work with. You can also approach providers to ask them about the features of their products.
Making well-informed choices for the health and safety of all
You’re running your fitness center out of passion for health and wellness, which is why keeping customers and staff safe should be your top priority for reopening your establishment. The risks will never be reduced to zero. However, you must be well aware of what you can do to mitigate these risks to continue promoting the physical and mental benefits of working out.
This includes adhering to gym reopening guidelines and encouraging your patrons to do the same by reminding them how and why they need to sanitize and follow the rules in your fitness center’s new normal.
