After a cryptic teaser shared by the OswegoFit Instagram page, the students were received on the SUNY Oswego campus with the message that fitness centers were opening. The ice arena at the Marano Campus Center was converted to accommodate fitness equipment for the campus community. With the opening of this facility, SUNY Oswego is taking a step forward to offer students a “normal” or at least a similar semester.
That’s a good idea.
With COVID-19, the fitness centers were closed so students can no longer go to workouts. Personally, I’ve never been to the fitness center before it closed, but I would imagine it’s not a huge space. Putting the equipment on the hockey rink would make it possible to spread things out and train people in a socially distant way. Obviously, people would still need to wear masks and things should be disinfected more often, but it would still allow people to exercise.
It would also be a good idea to limit the number of people who can enter the hockey rink. Even with all that extra space, you can’t get people right next to each other to exercise. I’m not someone who goes to a proper gym so I don’t know the limits that are set there. However, since this is the case in a school fitness center, the limits may be different than in an actual gym.
As testing increases on campus, positive COVID-19 cases are being intercepted earlier than last semester, and positive cases have remained relatively low. I don’t think allowing students to train, especially in an open area as large as the hockey rink, would negatively affect COVID-19 numbers as it isn’t an activity every student on campus won’t every single SUNY Oswego student will train, no matter where they are. If the capacity of the students is limited to a certain number, it would also make the work easier.
Overall, I think if the COVID-19 level doesn’t rise on campus, the new fitness area at the Marano Campus Center will offer students a positive space to improve their mental and physical health. In my opinion, we have to do everything we can to keep everyone safe on campus and stop the spread of COVID-19, but neither can we shut things down forever and we need to figure out how places like the fitness center can open up again safest way possible.
Abigail Connolly | The Oswegonian
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