New studies from CDC suggest that gyms can be the hot spots for COVID-19 outbreaks if people dont wear face masks, even if social distancing guidelines are followed.

The CDC released results from outbreaks at gyms that had a high attack rate during summer of 2020. In Hawaii, 21 people were reported to have caught COVID-19 infection in July after a cycling instructor infected with COVID-19 taught classes for 3 days and later tested positive. While the cycling stations were placed at a distance of over 6 feet from one another, none of the individuals wore masks. One of the participants was another instructor, and later taught kickboxing classes and conducted personal training sessions without a mask, leading to many COVID-19 cases.

In Chicago, 55 out of 81 individuals attending high-intensity fitness classes during the last week of August contracted COVID-19. The classes had only 10-15 people, and they were stationed over 6 feet apart. People were required to wear masks while entering the gym, temperature checks were conducted, and people were screened for symptoms at the facility. But, the people were allowed to remove the masks while exercising.

The CDC stated in the Chicago report that there is increased respiratory exertion in the enclosed spaces of indoor exercise, which assists in the transmission of the virus… (Medscape)