A woman stands in front of a shuttered SoulCycle on August 24, 2020, when Governor Cuomo announcedgyms across the state could reopen. Mayor de Blasio pushed this date to September 2nd for city-based gyms.While NYC gyms can reopen, group fitness cannot. This prompted Freeman and her peers to mobilize and form the Boutique Fitness Alliance.
“We can be just as safe as regular gyms and we’re urging the mayor to reopen every studio and business under the Boutique Fitness Alliance,” says Freeman, who spearheads the group. She plans to add plexiglass barriers between equipment. “All the boutique gyms offer such unique disciplines, so there’s no one size fits all when it comes to adding an extra layer of safety but we can all follow the same basic guidelines as gyms.