Gym Mats: Protecting Floors, Patrons, and Facility Owners

by Lisa Hammond

Health and fitness is a multi-million dollar industry that is expansive as it is lucrative. From chic spas to multi-vitamins and fashionable lycra garments, the health and fitness industry has exploded since the middle of the 1900s and shows no signs of slowing. With this increase in physical exercise and health awareness comes the concern for safety. Many suffer from exercise-related injuries each year, sometimes leading to liability claims against facility owners and managers.

While participants must exercise at their own risk, fitness facility owners and managers are wise to take proactive measures that create a safe environment for their patrons. The most common and highly effective means of doing so: gym mats.

Gym mats perform a plethora of functions in the facilities in which they are installed. These heavy-duty rubber mats are suitable for a variety of exercise areas including free weight spaces, weight machine sections, underneath cardio equipment, and stretching areas, to name a few. Regardless of location, gym matting serves to fulfill three main goals: floor protection, patron protection, and liability protection for facility owners.

The first goal of gym matting is to protect the floor spaces of fitness facilities. It is easy to see how this goal is important in free weight areas. Free weights come in many shapes and sizes, with weights climbing as high as 110 pounds per dumbbell in some facilities. Such heavy weights may easily crack, chip, or otherwise damage floor spaces that are left uncovered. It is important to note that carpeted areas are not exempt; carpeting is merely a thin layer of material that is covering an underlying hard surface, typically concrete. Carpet cannot absorb forceful shock like rubber gym mats, exposing the underlying floor surface to potential damage over time. Damage to floor spaces underneath carpeting is particularly bad as it cannot immediately be identified. Rather, the damage remains hidden below the carpeting and may worsen over time to create a tripping hazard to patrons.

Gym mats serve another important purpose. The shock-absorbing property of these matting products allows patrons to perform a variety of movements while experiencing minimal stress on delicate areas like ankles, knees, hips, and shoulders. What’s more, gym mats may increase the range of activities in which patrons may engage. Unused floor spaces may be lined with stand-alone mats, for example, to create a gymnastics area where patrons may safely jump, tumble, and roll.

Rubber gym mats deliver a final benefit: liability protection. Facility owners are legally bound to take reasonable measures that create a safe and accessible environment for their guests. Gym mats do just that. Failing to cover appropriate areas with gym mats may expose facility owners to liability claims that may arise from patron injury, an unfortunate but common occurrence.

Article submitted Friday, September 09, 2011 & read 26 times.

Lisa Hammond is a facilities management and gym mat installation specialist. This article has been produced and distributed on behalf of those interested in commercial floor mat installations, products, and advice.

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