When it comes to getting sick with COVID-19, you might be thinking about this, and we have too. Elizabeth Keisling asked: "What's the risk of attending a spin or group workout class or going to a gym?”
We asked the experts: Katie Cary, vice president of infection prevention for HCA Continental Division, and Dr. Nipunie Rajapakse, a pediatric infectious diseases physician at the Mayo Clinic. Their take: Contracting COVID-19 from going to the gym is medium risk.
"The primary way that you might get exposed in a gym would relate to touching a piece of equipment that someone has coughed and sneezed on and then touching your eyes, nose or mouth, or being within six feet of someone who is coughing and sneezing and being exposed in that way," Dr. Rajapakse said.
"There's going to be a much bigger focus on cleaning equipment between use and also performing hand hygiene. So as long as you're doing all of those things and you know, like you're in a spin class and your bike is at least six feet from another person, I would say that the risk is low and the benefit of exercise is important," Cary said.
"It's really important that any gym equipment is wiped down well in between people using it. But there is some risk involved with any place that you enter where there's multiple people using common equipment. And so anything you can do to do your workout outside or within your home and avoid places where there's a lot of people would still be encouraged," Dr. Rajapakse said.
If you have a question about your risk, send a video question to whatstherisk@newsy.com.
