Governor Baker has announced that part 2 of Phase 2 in his reopening plan will start Monday, June 22. This allows close contact services to resume, including personal training.
We have a small training area, and much of what we do requires me to be very close to my student. Thus, I have developed my own guidelines beyond Governor Baker's reopening plan. These are based on information from Dr. Chris Moriarty, D.O. Dr. Moriarty is a physician who actively competed in martial arts for many years, and understands the unique challenges posed by martial arts training compared to a typical fitness center.Â
He explains his guidelines in an interview at www.grapplearts.com/openingupbjj.Â
Anyone arriving for a training session must not have displayed symptoms of Covid-19, or been in contact with any symptomatic individuals, for at least 14 days. Symptoms include, but are not limited to new loss of taste or smell, fever, chills, cough, sore throat, shortness of breath, muscle pain, and headache. I'm not ready to welcome students with underlying conditions that make them particularly vulnerable to infection. This includes individuals over 65, anyone with lung or kidney disease, heart conditions, compromised immune system, or diabetes. At this time I am unable to welcome active first responders, or healthcare workers for training unless they can show a negative test result no more than 1 day old at the time of training. I have always tried to be inclusive, but I must move forward with an abundance of caution. Below I have outlined how I hope to gradually move towards fully reopening. All dates are subject to state and local guidelines. Each step requires two weeks of no new cases on island.Â
All sessions will cost $20 per person, payable by cash or check. Sessions will last a maximum of 1 hour to allow proper cleaning time between sessions. Available time slots are M-F 6:30 AM, 6 PM and 8 PM; Sat/Sun 7 AM, 9 AM, 11 AM, 2 PM, 4 PM, and 6 PM. I will meet all students at the front door to check their temperature, and to ask if they have experienced symptoms or had contact with a symptomatic individual in the past 14 days. Students with even a low fever will not be allowed to enter, and the session fee will be waived. Students with a normal temperature will immediately clean their hands with provided hand sanitizer, or soap and water. During a training session I will wear a face covering whenever it is practical, but I will not require participants to do so. I will clean all frequently touched surfaces, the mats, and any necessary equipment before and after each session.
June 22: Training must be scheduled in advance. All programs will be offered as 1 on 1 sessions. 2 students may train together if they share a home. Schedule your session here
July 6: Sessions can have 2 students who are not from the same household. These students will partner for the entire session. I will not be an active training partner in this case.Â
July 20: 3 people can train. Vulnerable individuals may return to training, but they must bring their own training partner.Â
August 3: Up to 8 people can train together.
August 17: Normal class schedule resumes and all are welcome, including first responders and healthcare workers. Individuals who wish to continue personal training will be able to do so.Â
Wishing you health and happiness,
Jules Embry-Pelrine
Founder, Nantucket Martial Arts Alliance
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