Lockdown taking the Zest out of life

The manager of Zest Health and Fitness Club has said the loss of gym and pool facilities, particularly over dark winter months, is negatively affecting members’ physical and mental health - more so than during the first lockdown when the weather was fine and the evenings bright.

Gayle Anderson, who manages the leisure facilities at the Cavan Crystal Hotel, said that, realistically, restrictions need to ease to Level Three at least to enable them to reopen facilities.

“The dark evenings and cold weather means that it was more difficult for people to get out and keep active depending on where they live, their age and physical ability,” she told the Celt.

“You can’t recreate a swimming pool at home so regular swimmers are missing out on their exercise. Many would use the pool for rehabilitation and joint mobility as water provides easy resistance training, which is very beneficial. For others, the gym is also great to start getting back to light exercise after an injury,” added Ms Anderson.

Some members also use the pool prior to hip replacements and also following the procedure as part of their rehabilitation.

“Our members are also missing the social and community side of using Zest. Many of our more senior members are really missing their aqua aerobics classes. For many, it was a morning out followed by coffee and a scone in the hotel bar afterwards. This is particularly important for members who live alone,” continued Ms Anderson.

“For other members they are missing the time spent with children and grandchildren in the swimming pool. Swimming is a great multi-generational activity and a lot of members are saying that they miss this time so much. Others who had started swimming lessons, both adults and children, have not been in a position to complete their courses,” she added.

All membership packages for Zest have been frozen for the period of lockdown“so no one is losing any time on their memberships”, outlined Ms Anderson.

The team at the award winning Zest Club are looking forward to re-opening in line with government guidelines and welcoming back their members and hotel guests.

“We would like to thank all our members for their support during this particularly difficult period as we implemented operational changes for the safety of our members and staff,” concluded Ms Anderson.