Health and safety are important in a fitness environment, the same way health and safety are important in every other environment. A fitness environment is a training facility, i.e., personal or public such as a gym designed to help individuals strengthen their bodies, keeping them in shape to fight off illness and prevent it from becoming flabby and weak.
But Why Is Health And Safety Important In A Fitness Environment? This is what you will find out in this blog post. In as much as the fitness environment is to sustain a healthy body, hazards still abound within the environment.
Hazards in the Fitness Environment
Some of the hazards that could be spotted in a fitness environment are:
1. Facilities hazards:
a. Slippery or uneven floor surfaces
b. Obstructed floor areas
2. Equipment hazards:
a. Broken or improper technical use of fitness equipment
b. Running cables lead.
3. Working practice
a. Inappropriate exercise type
b. Wrong exercise intensity
c. Improper exercise technique
d. Poor lifting pattern/handling
4. Hygiene-related hazards
a. Cross-infection
b. Contact with hazardous products
anything that may cause harm.
Above are just a few hazards that could be spotted in a fitness facility.
Note also that, all fitness facilities have employees who have the right to be protected under the Health and Safety at Work Act.
2 Major Reasons Why Is Health And Safety Important In A Fitness Environment?
When thinking about why health and safety are important in a fitness environment, never forget these two (2) reasons:
- To obey statutory health and safety requirements (Like the worker’s health and safety rights) and
- To manage hazards/risks within the facility thereby preventing accidents in the process.
NOTE: A hazard-prone fitness facility will surely lose patronage. This can result in a lost of business value and the business may shut down; This is the economic reason why a fitness facility owner should make health and safety important in his business.
How To Ensure Health And Safety In A Fitness Environment
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Carry out a risk assessment:
To determine the kind of risk your staff or customers could be exposed to. Determine who is at risk and how they could be exposed; check the available controls and determine if additional controls are needed, manage the risk. This risk assessment should be documented and reviewed when needed.
2. Provide training for your staff:
This training should cover health and safety training, first aid and CPR training, facility and equipment training, emergency management training, etc.
3. Draw out an emergency plan for the fitness facility:
The emergency plan should be communicated to competent persons and all staff/visitors inside the facility at any time. This communication can be achieved during induction, or through posters pasted at strategic locations.
4. Ensure user induction:
Induction could cover – Health and hygiene information, emergency plans, safe use of fitness equipment, etc.
5. Ensure user supervision
6. Plan routine equipment/environment inspection and maintenance.
7. Enforce good housekeeping within the gym
General Importance Of Health And Safety In A Fitness Facility:
- Protect clients and staff
- Ensure the provision of safe and effective equipment,
- Ensure safe and hygienic premises, to meet health
and safety requirements and industry standards.
I believe this topic has been well covered, for questions and contributions, contact us via our contact page or comment box.
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