"Exercise Here" Gym Closing, 'Home Gym' Rentals Popular... Any Infection Concerns?

Extension of COVID-19 'Social Distancing' Measures Halts Indoor Gym Operations
Popularity of 'Home Gym' Rentals Designed Like Private Fitness Rooms
Experts Advise "Thorough Disinfection Needed Due to Infection Risks"

Posts offering home gym rentals and posts expressing a desire to use home gyms are being uploaded on secondhand trading applications. Photo by secondhand trading application capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Young-eun] "Home gym rentals available. Lots of exercise equipment.", "Home gym 8,000 won per hour, daily passes also available."

As the government extended social distancing and special quarantine measures due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), continuing the 'gathering ban' on indoor sports facilities, people have started renting 'home gyms'?spaces set up like gyms at home?to enjoy exercising.

The term home gym combines 'Home' and 'Gym,' referring to a space inside the house equipped with various exercise machines arranged like a fitness center. However, concerns about COVID-19 infection risks arise since exercise equipment is shared in a confined space.

On the 2nd, the government announced it would maintain the current level of social distancing for two more weeks and continue the special quarantine measures through the year-end and New Year holidays to curb the spread of COVID-19. Accordingly, the 2.5-level restrictions in the metropolitan area and 2-level restrictions in non-metropolitan areas, which were scheduled to end on the 3rd, along with the special year-end and New Year quarantine measures, will continue until the 17th.

According to government measures, all private gatherings of five or more people are banned nationwide, and operations of indoor sports facilities such as gyms, indoor golf practice ranges, and billiard halls are completely suspended. As a result, some people have started sharing and renting so-called home gyms as an alternative to using gyms.

These home gym rental transactions mainly occur through secondhand trading applications or websites, where users visit the renter's space equipped with various exercise equipment, work out for the desired time, and pay accordingly.

Home gym rental prices usually range from 8,000 to 10,000 won per hour, mostly operated on an hourly basis, with some offering daily passes. Posts offering home gym rentals on secondhand trading sites have gained great popularity, with reservations often closing within less than a day after posting.

A 26-year-old university student A, who usually enjoys exercising, said, "My hobby is fitness, and I love working out, but these days, I can't go to the gym because of COVID-19, so I'm interested in home gym rentals. My dream is to set up my home like a gym with my favorite exercise equipment and work out comfortably regardless of the situation. However, since it's impossible financially and spatially, especially in times like these, home gym rentals are popular among those who want to exercise."

On the first day of raising the social distancing level to 2.5 in the Seoul metropolitan area on the 8th of last month, a notice informing of a temporary closure was posted at a sports center in Seoul city. Photo by Yonhap News

However, concerns about COVID-19 infection risks related to home gym rentals have also been raised. Even if individuals disinfect and follow quarantine measures, the risk remains because many unspecified people come and go and use the same exercise equipment.

On the other hand, home gym renters and users say they will share the home gym as cautiously as possible while following quarantine rules, believing this is acceptable given the inability to use gyms.

One renter who posted a home gym rental listing on a secondhand trading app emphasized following quarantine rules, saying, "Wearing masks and using personal towels are mandatory. Please wipe the equipment once with wet wipes and once more with a dry towel after exercising." Another user wanting to use a home gym wrote, "I will strictly follow quarantine rules. I can adjust the time, so please contact me if you sell a daily pass."

Regarding this, an expert emphasized that since there is a risk of infection, quarantine rules must be meticulously followed.

Professor Eom Jung-sik, an infectious disease specialist at Gachon University Gil Medical Center, said, "Even if people do not gather in one place and use the equipment separately, sharing the same exercise equipment in one space and having contact itself can be problematic." He added, "The possibility of infection varies depending on how thoroughly individuals manage contact and disinfection, but the risk cannot be ruled out," and urged strict adherence to quarantine rules such as disinfection and ventilation to prevent infection.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.