Welcome to Our New Normal
Welcome to the new normal. The SARS-Cov-2 virus came on like a wildfire in viral terms, jumping from an animal vector and starting to infect humans. No one has really escaped untouched from this global pandemic. As communities and businesses are starting to reopen, many are concerned that it may not be safe still. It is true that we likely will not be going back to how things were prior to Covid-19 (19 refers to the year that it jumped to humans and outbreak started, not that it is the 19th of its kind). So as we start to venture out and start to consider the gym or the beach, how do we do this safely?
SARS-Cov-2 is very similar in its make up to the SARS-Cov-1, which caused the SARS outbreak in the early 2000s. The disease that it causes is called Covid-19 to avoid confusion and to mark the year it started. Is is mutating and has been found to cause several different symptoms. Information and guidelines changed very rapidly at the onset, because we have not seen this virus before in humans.
The virus appears to travel on smaller respiratory droplets, primarily, and occasionally will be aerosolized, which can cause it to be airborne. As we exhale, we lose water in respiratory droplets, and can shed the virus if infected. One thing that can limit the distance by decreasing velocity of those droplets or ‘catching them’ is to wear a mask, such as a cloth face mask when in public. NO, it will not protect you from getting infected. It protects other people by inhibiting the afore mentioned process. A faceshield will add some protection to the wearer.
Don't forget leg day when going back to the gym. And ease back into exercise if you haven’t been as active during the quarantine.
One thing I know many people have missed during this time is sports and being able to go to the gym. Is there a risk with these actions taking place? You betcha! Gyms are still rated in the higher risk category for spread of the virus, when working out inside. Some places are seeing this and implementing safeguards. Examples include plastic dividers surrounding a weight lighting platform which allow a person to workout ‘in a bubble’. Is this feasible for most places? Maybe not. Wearing a mask or faceshield as you work out may not be too comfortable, at least at first (I wear these everyday and you can definitely get used to them), but they can help prevent the spread. Also, making sure to sanitize the workout station and the weights that were touched is important. While it wasn’t a decent thing to do before, it is unthinkable now for someone to use a machine or bench and leave their sweat all over it…
The risk of spread becomes less as people can spread out and the area is well ventilated, such as the outdoors. An outdoor pool is on the lower risk side and the lap lanes should be spread out. But as we enter summer, outdoor group workouts can be done safely, granted social distancing is still enforced. A mask outdoors if around 6 feet or less to someone else would still be recommended.
Here is a link that gives good information on what kinds of activities bring with it higher risk https://www.wbez.org/stories/from-camping-to-dining-out-heres-how-experts-rate-the-risks-of-14-summer-activities/b1753c65-6832-49ce-ac12-cf100155ab9c
The return of sport will pose some interesting hurdles. Here in Iowa we made it on ESPN as we have our school baseball and softball in the summer and have restarted these seasons and already had a couple of games. Athletes need to remember to sanitize their hands frequently and avoid touching their face as much as possible. Those that have played sports know that is not an easy ask. So again sanitizing is important -including sanitizing the ball which is a high touch surface.
Be safe
When watching a game, socially and physically distancing is still important (this crowd could be doing a better job in the outfield)
Everyone is tired of this pandemic and wants things to go back to normal, but the fact remains that the virus is still in the community and we still don’t have a vaccine for it or an ‘outpatient’ treatment. Vigilance and common sense still need to prevail even as athletics restart and businesses open.
The mask may look funny, but it can help control the spread. Wear it for those around you and hope they do the same for you.
Stay safe out there and keep moving!