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Health safety tips for using the gym and in outdoor exercize.

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Coronavirus is likely to shrink the gym and fitness industry and promote home fitness equipment. 

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"As you know I am 5 foot 10 on the outside and I was way too fat" says the British prime minister about the time he was admitted to hospital for the coronavirus. The British prime minister now goes for a run with his dog first thing in the morning. He says about his life after the coronavirus recovery that he is steadily building up his fitness. He has good things to say about the run, the exercize in the morning. After the run says Boris everything for the rest of the day is a breeze. A quite gentle run in the beginning that is getting faster and faster as he improves his fitness.  One does not have to go to the gym to lose weight. There is always the great outdoors, space outside the home. As part of the effort to get Britain to cut all that unnecessary fat which is ruinous for healthy living, Britain will now ban all buy one get one free deals on unhealthy food products. All food in restaurants and pubs will soon be required to post the calories count on menus, starting with the bigger chains. Boris Johnson says he is supporting the NHS and the national campaign for fitness and cutting out all the unnecessary calories that have crept into people's food habits and intake. He never intended this but Johnson like others have learned from one experience that has compressed several lifetimes of experience trying to recover from the virus without the fitness of body that is needed.      ...

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In an astonishing contrast to other European countries, including neighbors Norway, FInaland and Denmark, the Swedish government decided to not impose a lockdown, keeping bars, restaurants, hairdressers, gyms, primary and middle schools open. Secondary schools, museums were closed, sports gatherings, gatherings of more than 50 people were not allowed. Social distancing was not enforced, and entirely voluntary. Sweden now has 29000 cases according to Statista and its death rate of 358 per million population is higher than in the U.S. which is 267, and Denmark 93, Finland 53.  Critics such as Lena EInhorn, a virologist, say the Swedish government did not set up a broad testing program, and let a problem develop for elder care in nursing homes. She says a 14 day quarantine of household members of a person infected with the virus would have made a difference. Most action we take for granted was not taken in Sweden. Restaurants that were not required to close spread airborne transmission. Einhorn also says that the government officials have denied it but under their breaths they have acknowledged working on a herd immunity strategy. Denmark has opened schools with social distancing and other measures and reopened its economy. Sweden is in reverse with calls for stricter action and an ongoing debate. No reopening as there was no lockdown, yet considerable and nagging uncertainty. The speed of transmission of coronavirus is the biggest danger, as it can let the numbers grow very quickly if the wrong decisions are taken or something is left out. ...

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WSJ looks at how businesses are coping and how the government and the financial institutions are trying to make handling the stress of coronavirus easier and recovery easier. Bedrock is one of the financial firms that is forgiving rent for small bookshops, retailers, restaurants, gyms and other stores in Detroit, Michigan. Bedrock owns 50% of the leasable commercial real estate space in Detroit's 1.4 square mile downtown business district. In all it covers about 40% of downtown Detroit and retail. A similar program is underway in Seattle with help from Amazon. This story shows how Mr. Cullen who is Bedrock's CEO is doing this. He reports to Mr. Gilbert, a billionaire, who is also owner of Quicken Loans lender, Cleveland Cavaliers sports team. Mr. Gilbert is recovering from a severe stroke he had this year. This makes the job harder for Cullen as he has to seek approval from Mr. Gilbert and show this is something that will also benefit Mr. Gilbert. This will make recovery in Detroit easier. He says Detroit suffered badly in the 2008 economic crisis, and he does not want to see this happen again. Fortunately Mr. Gilbert, who is in therapy, has approved the action of Mr. Cullen. Cullen has to show that out of work local people in Detroit and empty storefronts hurts Mr. Gilbert as well as Detroit. So both come out winners from forgiveness for rent for a couple of months.   ...

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About a third of coronavirus cases in France of three or more cases are in schools and universities as France tackles a second wave in October 2020. France has decided to keep schools open as a priority over closing schools as soon as there a couple of cases and there are no uniform rules across schools for masks to be worn. In France mask requirement begins in junior high with exceptions for lunch and gym class. In Italy the mask requirement is present for all grades until they take seats in class. Some schools ask children to keep masks on in the classroom. UK has no mask requirement in schools. Spain requires masks for all school children over age 6 years. Parents in lower income households lack the flexibility to keep children home while they go out to work. Many parents look forward to keeping their children in school after the long lockdown.

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Schools, shops, restaurants, cafes and offices are reopening and people are getting back to work and outdoors. What are the ways to reduce chances of getting the coronavirus and what is the latest advice from public health experts.  More attention is now being given by CDC and other experts to the aerosols, the smaller particles that are airborne that can spread the virus to people unawares in breathing, talking and singing activities. larger droplets come down to the ground, smaller droplets can be airborne for hours. This makes masks wearing very important, call it essential protection. Air filtration and proper ventilation is also important. What about social distancing? Experts now say 6 feet is good, 10 feet is better. This is from Joseph Allen director of the Healthy Buildings program at Harvard School of Public Health. No magic number but 6-10 feet or more is good for safety. Can one start expanding one's social circle? The fewer contacts the better says Dr. Allen. You can he says expand the circle but this depends a lot on how serious the other family is in taking precautions. Are elevators risky? If one can one should take stairs but do not board a crowded elevator unless the lobby is more crowded. Do not touch buttons, if you do use elbow or use sanitizer from your shirt pocket after pressing. This is where mask is essential. Here a tip is useful. Talking does not help as talking emits 10 times the particles than when you are quiet and this is true for small spaces such as elevators. Continual talk is not a good idea such as a long time spent talking, here watch that habit of getting into long conversations face to face.  Is it good to take a summer vacation. Here the answer is yes, as no one really knows how the winter will be. And remember outdoors is good for renewal of health, and one can look for places that are not crowded where the 10-12 feet or more can be easily done. One tip here is to take your own food and supplies from home so there is no need to go to crowded restaurants. Swimming in a lake or ocean is fine. Camping outdoors is fine and actually a good idea if you are with your own family. Try to use an empty restroom and one that is clean and wear the mask. While camping keep the 6-10 foot rule with people outside your immediate family, do not share food and drinks and try not to touch each other's supplies, and sanitize your hands or wash if you do. When hiking keep the mask in your pocket so you can wear it when you see others passing on trails. In hotels skip the cleaning service, in a rented property ask the owner to keep the windows open before you arrive, and put a day or two between your coming and the last person who rented the place. Renting a car is tricky allow a couple of hours to elapse between you and the last rental, open windows. Public restrooms. Always wear a mask many are poorly ventilated. Open the door without use of hands if possible,or use a paper towel to open and discard. Do not use air dryers. Is it safe for your house cleaning person to return. Keep the windows open to let in fresh air. Make sure your cleaner wears gloves. And all should wear masks. How to visit grandparents? Experts advise keeping visits outside and wearing masks when not 6-10 feet apart. Anyone not feeling healthy should avoid the visit. And bathrooms should be sanitized after people leave even wait a day if there is another bathroom. Experts advise against sharing food and buffet type meals. Ten feet distance is better than six feet. Can one use a gym? Here the advice is to exercize outdoors or at home if one can. It says be cautious unless your gym is limiting the number of people or spacing the equipment adequately. Ask about open windows, air filtration systems, ventilation.  This is excellent advice from experts with the latest information. Over the last few months from March to May most of the information was during lockdown, and a lot can be forgotten or seen as not necessary as things return to normal, as shops schools and cafes, office reopen, and cases remain steady and under control. Being vigilant is good for safely navigating this period through the summer and into winter till a vaccine is found. It is also about being a good civic minded person aware of one's own responsibilities, as when all take safety seriously and practice it everyday, it builds another layer of protection for everybody- because it creates a safer environment for all.     ...