Bottom Line Up Front: Wear your mask to help prevent a second shutdown.
As rumors swirl around the timing of a second “shutdown” of gyms and other local businesses in Maryland (and a step was already taken to close restaurants early just yesterday), I’ve sensed a feeling of inevitability in talking with our members. “It’s just a matter of time,” and “There’s nothing we can do about it, they (the government) have made up their mind.” While those statements could obviously be true — none of us except Governor Hogan’s inner circle could really know — what if they’re not? What if we can still affect that decision-making process by stopping the spread, again? My sense is that the scientists and doctors that are advising our state and national leaders are making their policy suggestions based on data. They don’t want to see small businesses close any more than we do. But when the public stops following general health guidelines like wearing a mask when we’re around unfamiliar people (in this case literally “not family”), and the virus starts to spread again more rapidly, they are obligated to make decisions based on keeping people safe. We can’t fault them for doing their jobs.
I think we still have time to turn this thing around, and not follow the states that have already shut down or severely restricted their gyms for the second time (Washington, Oregon, California, New York, Michigan).
PLEASE wear a mask inside the gym while you’re not working out, and indeed anytime you are around people you don’t live with. I know it’s not the most popular thing in the world, it makes it hard to breathe and you look like a goofball, but if you take a step back those seem like kind of silly reasons not to do something that will positively impact your health. In fact those are the same reasons people give for not doing CrossFit workouts!
In the end, wearing a mask and taking the proper precautions is all about our community coming together to stop the spread and stop the UN-inevitable shutdown. With just a bit of personal sacrifice, we can hold the line and once again be a model state with low virus metrics and open businesses, schools, sports, and all the other things we love to do!
Thanks for being a part of our AWESOME team.
Ryan