Fitness & Exercise

The coronavirus has gyms shuttering all across the country -- but several trainers are pivoting to a Prohibition-style method of business ... which might be in everyone's best interest.

TMZ spoke to a handful of high-end personal trainers in and around the L.A. area -- and they all say they're going to keep working one way or another ... to keep themselves financially afloat, obviously, but mostly for the health and wellness of their clients who need it most.

Fact is ... while some people can afford to take the next few weeks off their gym game, we're told several others simply cannot -- for health-related reasons and otherwise. The trainers we spoke with say many of their clients MUST keep working out, and to meet the demand amid mass shutdowns throughout California, speakeasy gyms are becoming the go-to locale.

It's not as seedy or clandestine as it might sound. Basically, we're told a lot of these trainers -- who work with very affluent people, BTW -- have access to studio gyms ... which are way smaller than your run-of-the-mill LA Fitness joint. It's more intimate and personal, and can normally accommodate 4 to 5 people max at a time, trainers included.

Other trainers are making house calls, while some bigger names are actually making people come to them ... like celeb trainer Mike O'Hearn, who tells TMZ his own clientele is swinging by his pad for their regular 1-on-1 services. He says he's got a home gym, which is fully equipped and constantly being cleaned and sanitized to avoid any risks.

That said, Mike tells us he's encouraging people that are actually feeling ill to stay home. But, if not, he thinks exercise is a good way to keep the immune system strong in these contagious times.

When there's a will ... there's a way to break a sweat.

With gyms across the country closing their doors due to the coronavirus pandemic, gym rats are determined not to miss a workout ... and it's a gold rush for home gym retailers.

Home fitness companies across the country are telling us the same thing ... their products are selling like hotcakes and sales figures are setting records.

Grant Hayes of California Home Fitness Tells TMZ ... they've sold in record numbers over the past 4 days, and the weekend figures were 10 times above normal. We're told the phones are literally ringing off the hook, and it got really crazy Monday after local governments called for gyms to close.

California Home Fitness already hired 3 different delivery crews to meet demand ... and we're told folks are buying everything -- dumbbells, benches, treadmills, bikes, ellipticals, even the equipment that had been collecting dust. Dumbbells have been selling like toilet paper.

The demand is so crazy, CHF tells us they're having inventory issues because the manufacturers are running into issues getting products in from the ports.

Another retailer, New Life Cardio, tells TMZ ... sales are so unbelievable, their 10,000-square-foot retail warehouse, which was full last Sunday, is now half empty. The biggest sellers are treadmills and exercise bikes, and demand is causing them to switch to bi-weekly shipments instead of bi-monthly.

Meanwhile, folks at California Fitness tell us ... weekend sales were 15 times greater than normal, and the hottest items were treadmills, bikes and free weights. Things are so backed up, there's a 2-day delay on deliveries.

Another home gym retailer, Fit 4 Sale, tells us the company says weekend sales were 6 times higher than average ... everything was selling, but mostly dumbbells, benches and bikes. Fit 4 Sale says demand is also delaying deliveries.

And finally, Johnson Fitness & Wellness Store tells TMZ ... sales traffic is getting ridiculous -- non-stop calls and around 5 times more business than usual. Same thing here -- we're told folks are buying free weights, treadmills and ellipticals.

Gym rats have a safe haven amid the growing coronavirus pandemic -- a lot of their go-to facilities don't seem anywhere near to shutting their doors. They will, however, do a few more wipe-downs to put people at ease.

TMZ spoke with a number of big-name gyms in Los Angeles -- including 24 Hour Fitness, Equinox and TriFit ... and they all tell us they haven't gotten instructions to keep their members out over COVID-19. What they will do, in short, is step up their cleaning game.

An employee at TriFit in Santa Monica tells TMZ ... their gym has replaced a few small bottles of hand sanitizer with 4 big ones, placing one in each locker room and two in the main gym area. They've also provided more hand wipes and paper towels with the hope members use them to wipe machines down. TriFit's also encouraging folks to wash their hands, etc.

The one thing Tri is closing down ... their saunas and steam rooms, out of precaution.

Equinox is doing something similar, except it sounds like the burden of cleaning falls on the staff. We're told Equinox employees have been told to ramp up their cleaning efforts with hospital-grade cleaning solutions -- which are to be used for mid-morning and mid-afternoon wipe-downs ... in addition to their usual cleaning schedule.

Gold's Gym, where none other than Arnold Schwarzenegger beefs up, tells us they're wiping down areas more frequently and giving their members tips on how to stay clean and healthy -- including staying home if they're sick. That's pretty much it.

As for 24 Hour ... they too are following that same principle of extra cleaning -- telling TMZ their staffers are wiping down just about every touchable surface they can get to with disinfectant solutions. They also say they're encouraging members to use cleaning stations around their facilities before using a machine and, obviously, afterward as well.

24HF does not though ... their 24GO app does offer over 2,000 workouts people can do from home -- so they're suggesting members use that if they can't make it in.

Bottom line ... gyms out here are doing what they should already be doing in a space where germs run amok -- namely, cleaning ... just way more of it. So if you're brave and not worried about catching something, go and get your lift on. Coronavirus ain't shutting it down.

Arnold Schwarzenegger's showing us his completely empty fitness expo venue -- shut down due to coronavirus fears, and it's a pretty eerie scene.

Arnold joined us on "TMZ Live" Friday from inside the massive 750,000-square-foot convention space in Columbus, OH. It was supposed to be packed right now with a quarter of a million people for the country's biggest health and fitness expo ... before coronavirus, that is.

As you can see in the video, it's a ghost town because Ohio shut it down out of health concerns. Arnold gave us a quick tour -- no displays, no booths, just emptiness.

As we reported ... the Arnold Sports Festival coincides with the expo, and it's going on as planned nearby even though the government closed it to spectators.

Arnold says he still doesn't understand why the sporting portion -- which draws no more than 4,000 fans to a single event -- is not allowed to host spectators when bigger sporting events in Ohio are still business as usual.

Ultimately, Arnold says health is more important than money ... but it's still crazy to see how coronavirus is disrupting things.

Arnold Schwarzenegger wants fans at his Sports Festival in Ohio to be safe from coronavirus but doesn't understand why the Governor is shutting them down while allowing much larger sporting events to continue.

The Arnold Sports Festival, which begins today in Columbus, will have very few fans in attendance after Governor Mike DeWine announced they were closing the event to spectators out of concern for the spread of coronavirus.

As we reported, Arnold fully agreed with shutting down the expo associated with the event. It's a massive trade show that draws 250,000 people each year.

After the Governor's announcement, Arnold fired off a letter to him, saying, "Health will always be more important than money to me." However, he also pointed out in the letter several other huge events were continuing without any government limitations.

For instance, he says, "March madness games in Cleveland and Dayton will go forward as planned with tens of thousands of attendees." In addition, Cleveland Cavaliers and Columbus Blue Jacket games -- which have nearly 20,000 spectators -- are also being played. Not to mention several other upcoming conventions in Columbus.

While Arnold agreed with closing the much larger expo for his festival ... its sporting events have no more than 4,000 fans at a single event.

Bad news for health freaks planning to hit up Arnold Schwarzenegger's Sports Festival this weekend ... the event has been terminated due to the coronavirus. For now.

The event in Columbus, OH is the country's biggest health and fitness expo ... where a quarter-million people gather every year to check out all the new equipment, apparel and nutrition booths.

While there has only been one reported investigation into coronavirus in Ohio, Ah-nold wasn't willing to take any risks -- after all, it is a HEALTH expo.

Schwarzenegger made the announcement via speakerphone at the Ohio Statehouse on Tuesday ... saying he hopes to reschedule the expo when the disease is under control.

"The Coronavirus is dangerous and there are health risks involved," Arnold said. "We have biggest and best health and fitness festival in the world but we would never choose making money over people's health."