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On Valentine's Day we went straight to the weights.

Six fitness studios belonging to the “McFit” chain, which belongs to the RSG Group, are currently open from six in the morning.

These are smaller versions of the actual studios, which are set up in tents in the parking lots in front of the gyms.

“Favorite date of McFit members on Valentine's Day 2021” wrote the company on Instagram and posted a picture of a gym.

In Rostock, Braunschweig, Berlin-Heinersdorf, Magdeburg, Wiesbaden and Mannheim Almenhof you can train despite lockdowns.

According to the company, the rush is enormous, and outdoor gyms are a big topic on social media.

It will be exciting to see how the authorities in the other cities react in the new week - and what the competition from McFit will do.

In Germany there are around 10,000 fitness studios with almost twelve million members.

McFit has around 1.7 million members.

Training with hat and mask

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At the weekend, the group posted photos and videos of members who train in thick jackets, hats and mouth and nose protection.

Employees disinfected weight benches and equipment and gave brief instructions to the exercisers.

McFit puts the "Outdoor" project under the motto: "Train safe, be strong." The group is of the opinion that this outdoor training is an individual sport and not a group sport that is prohibited.

The project has been heavily criticized by politicians.

Health expert Karl Lauterbach (SPD) said “BILD”: “I find this action regrettable.

It doesn't fit in with the time. ”People are asked not to visit relatives.

It is not yet the time for such sporting activity.

“A lot of people come together.

Even when they meet outside.

There are crowds of people, people arrive.

It's just wrong, ”said Lauterbach.

SPD health expert likes to play table tennis - and criticizes McFit's action

Source: dpa / Oliver Berg

After training, members might talk to each other.

The whole thing is a social gathering that is organized commercially.

“At a time when we are actually trying to keep the number of contacts as low as possible overall.

We are in a very critical phase of the pandemic. ”This is simply the wrong signal.

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Saturday afternoon the campaign started with ten studios nationwide.

However, McFit had to close four again quickly.

“Unfortunately, due to an order from the public order office, our outdoor gym was closed again for the time being.

We'll stay tuned for you, ”says the company's website.

It's about the outdoor studios in Hamburg-Steilshoop, Bremen Vahr, Mainz and Neunkirchen.

McFit boss Rainer Schaller said "BILD": "We are in close and positive exchange with the respective authorities on site in order to find solutions as to how we can reopen in a timely manner."

In the federal states of Bavaria, North Rhine-Westphalia, Schleswig-Holstein and Saxony, McFit has refrained from using outdoor gyms due to the corona rules.

Maximum work-out duration: 45 minutes

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Fitness studios in Germany have been closed since November due to the corona restrictions.

At the lockdown summit last Wednesday, hopes of the studio operators and members for an early opening were dashed by the federal government and the prime minister.

McFit had a hygiene concept developed and, according to its own information, also prepared a legal opinion.

For training in the outdoor area, members must book a time slot online in advance.

Maximum length: 45 minutes.

In this way, it can be guaranteed that “the maximum utilization will not be exceeded” and that contact tracking is ensured afterwards, according to the company.

The changing rooms and toilets remain closed due to legal regulations.

Dixi toilets are available at every location.

“It is a fundamental problem when people cannot do sports.

Right now, fitness is more important than ever in order to strengthen physical and mental health, ”said McFit boss Schaller.

In exchange with the regulatory authorities: McFit boss Rainer Schaller

Source: RSG Group GmbH / HOLGER TALINSKI

Of course, it's a struggle for survival even with his chain.

"Too big to fail, too big to fail - that no longer applies," said Schaller.

“It now also affects the big players in the industry.

Studios will disappear from the market.

Numerous operators in the USA have already had this sad experience.

I am sure that this wave will also affect Europe - and the longer the lockdown lasts, the more dramatic it will be. "

The McFit Group cooperates with the hygiene expert Klaus-Dieter Zastrow.

He gave "his blessing" for the project.

The doctor from Berlin developed his own hygiene concept for the outdoor gym.

"If the functional and organizational processes are observed and adhered to, the spread of coronaviruses is excluded," said the professor.