Gyms In South Korea's Capital Barred From Playing Fast Workout Music

Bad news, fans of Hyperpop, ABBA, Maroon 5, and basically any type of music that isn't a slow, romantic waltz best suited as the soundtrack to a late 1800's period drama – it seems a good chunk of songs your workout playlist staples, from Psy's “Gangnam Style” to "Work Bitch" by Britney Spears have officially been banned in gyms in and around South Korea's capital of Seoul. Earlier this week, officials in the East Asian nation enacted new guidelines requiring that gyms refrain from playing any song above 120 beats per minute during workout classes in an attempt to curb the country's fourth wave of Covid-19. The logic? According to the nation's Health Ministry, “harsh breathing from intense activities can spatter a lot of saliva.”

"When you run faster, you spit out more respiratory droplets, so that’s why we are trying to restrict heavy cardio exercises,” Son Young-rae, a spokesperson for the government agency explained during a radio interview earlier this week, per The Korean Herald.

Although Covid-19 cases in South Korea have recently reached record highs, hitting 1,440 new daily infections on Tuesday and prompting the need for further social distancing measures, some are questioning just how effective this measure is at preventing the spread of coronavirus, and how exactly these new rules will be enforced. "Playing cheerful tracks like BTS songs is to cheer up our members and the overall mood, but my biggest question is whether playing classical music or BTS songs has proven to have any impact on spreading the coronavirus," explained Kang Hyun-ku, who owns a gym in Seoul. "Nothing has been clearly proven yet."

Despite this skepticism, officials maintain that this is a necessary measure in slowing the spread of Covid-19. “We are now faced with the worst crisis since Covid-19 pandemic started here,” President Moon Jae-in said on Monday. “I am so sorry to ask the people to bear with the situation a bit longer."

Hey, at least we still have “Eye of the Tiger?”

Top Image: Shutterstock

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