Before you train

House rules & safety

A small gym with 24 hour access only works if everyone follows a few sensible rules. Please read this before your first session — especially the part about training when nobody else is in.

Last updated: 15 August 2026

Draft — not yet in force. This page is complete except where a business detail is marked [to be confirmed]. Those gaps are real facts about the business that could not be established, and have deliberately not been guessed. Once they are filled in, remove this notice by setting LEGAL_PAGES_ARE_DRAFT to false in src/lib/business.ts.

This document is a starting point written to reflect how the website and gym actually work. It is not legal advice, and it has not been reviewed by a solicitor.

What’s missing from this page

The rules below marked [to be confirmed]could not be found anywhere — not in the website, not in the codebase, and not written on any wall in the gym photography. The motivational wall text (“Challenge your limits”, “One day at a time”, “You versus you”) is the only writing visible in the photos.

The structure is ready. Ryan needs to supply the actual rules, and they should be checked against what the gym’s insurer requires.

1. Training during unstaffed hours

ODAAT Fitness is open to members 24 hours a day, and for much of that time there is no member of staff on the premises. That is the single most important thing to understand about training here.

When you are training alone or out of hours:

Do not lift to failure without a spotter. Use the safety arms on the rack, and leave a rep in reserve on anything heavy over your chest or back.
Tell someone where you are. Let a family member or friend know you are at the gym and roughly when you expect to be finished.
Keep your phone on you— not in a locker or bag on the other side of the room.
Know where the exits and the first aid kit are before you need them.
If something goes wrong, call 999 first, then let us know.

[to be confirmed: whether the insurer places conditions on lone/unattended training — for example a minimum age, a ban on lone free-weight use, a check-in system, or a requirement that members train in pairs out of hours. This determines whether the rules above are sufficient]

[to be confirmed: what emergency equipment is on site and where — first aid kit, defibrillator, emergency call button or alarm, fire exits]

2. Age

[to be confirmed: the minimum age to hold a membership, the minimum age to train unaccompanied during unstaffed hours, and whether under-18s must be accompanied by a parent or guardian]

Note for Ryan: the About pageadvertises personal training for young people aged 11–16. That is a supervised, one-to-one service and is a different question from whether a 16-year-old can hold a 24 hour membership and let themselves in at 11pm. Both need answering, and the answers should match what the insurer requires.

Until this is confirmed, please contact us before joining if the member would be under 18.

3. Using the gym

These are the rules we would expect any gym to have. Ryan should confirm them.

Put your weights away. Dumbbells back on the rack, plates back on the tree, bars stripped.
Wipe equipment down after use.
Share the kit.Let people work in, and don’t sit on a machine between sets on your phone.
Wear proper training shoes and appropriate clothing.
Don’t drop or throw weights unnecessarily, and control the bar on the way down.
No food on the training floor. Drinks in a closed container only.
Don’t let anyone in behind you.Your access is personal to you — every person in the building needs to be a member for insurance reasons.
Report anything broken so it can be fixed before someone gets hurt.

[to be confirmed: Ryan's actual house rules — the list above is a sensible default, not a copy of anything the gym has published. Also needed: policy on chalk, photography and filming in the gym, guests and day passes, and bag/locker arrangements]

4. Pre-exercise questions

Before you book your first class we ask you to read these questions and consider them honestly. They are the standard questions used across the UK fitness industry to help people work out whether they should check with a doctor before starting.

Has a doctor ever said that you have a heart condition, or that you should only do physical activity recommended by a doctor?
Do you feel pain in your chest when you do physical activity, or have you had chest pain when you were not doing physical activity in the last month?
Do you lose your balance because of dizziness, or have you ever lost consciousness?
Do you have a bone or joint problem that could be made worse by a change in your physical activity?
Is a doctor currently prescribing medication for your blood pressure or a heart condition?
Are you pregnant, or have you given birth in the last six months?
Do you know of any other reason why you should not do physical activity?

If you answered yes to any of them, please speak to your doctor before training with us, and let us know so we can adapt what you do. Answering yes does not mean you cannot train — it usually just means getting the right advice first.

We do not record your answers. You self-assess: nothing about your health is sent to us or stored on this website. All we record is that you confirmed you had read the questions, and when. Our privacy policy explains why we have deliberately built it that way.

These questions are not a medical assessment and are not a substitute for advice from a doctor or other qualified healthcare professional.

5. Acknowledgement of risk

When you book your first class you will be asked to confirm that you understand and accept the following:

I understand that exercise carries a risk of injury, and that I am taking part at my own risk.
I confirm I am not aware of any medical reason why I should not exercise — or, if I am, that I have spoken to a doctor and been cleared to train.
I understand the gym is not staffed at all hours, and I have read the house rules about training during unstaffed hours.
I will train within my own capability, use equipment as intended, and stop if something does not feel right.

This is an acknowledgement, not a waiver of your legal rights. It does not remove our responsibility to keep the gym and its equipment in a reasonable state, and it does not limit our liability for negligence — see section 8 of our terms and conditions. It is also not a substitute for the gym holding proper public liability insurance.

6. Personal training and nutrition

Personal training at ODAAT Fitness is exercise coaching. Where a membership includes nutrition support, that means general healthy-eating guidance and help with habits such as tracking what you eat — it is not dietetic, medical or clinical nutrition advice, and it is not a prescribed diet plan.

If you have a medical condition, are taking medication, are pregnant or have recently given birth, or have a history of disordered eating, please speak to your GP or a registered dietitian. We will happily work alongside their advice, and we will say so if something is outside what we can responsibly help with.

[to be confirmed: Ryan's personal training qualification (awarding body and level), and whether he holds any separate nutrition qualification. The site should name the qualification it relies on rather than implying one]

7. In an emergency

Call 999. Give the address: Unit 12, West Bowhouse Workshops, Irvine, KA11 1PR.
Then contact us on 07958 198 961.

[to be confirmed: what to do about fire — alarm point locations, assembly point, and whether there is an out-of-hours emergency contact other than the main mobile number]

See also our terms and conditions and privacy policy.