Sacramento yoga studio shrugs off COVID-19 regulations. Will health officials bend rules?

Yoga emphasizes flexibility and breathing. It’s a healthy combination in normal times, but it’s a potentially deadly one during a coronavirus pandemic spread by respiratory droplets.

That’s why Zuda Yoga’s decision to break Sacramento’s public health rules by reopening during the COVID-19 pandemic is so appalling. “It’s time to reopen,” the midtown yoga joint declared in an email earlier this month.

Sacramento has remained in the worst tier for coronavirus infections, but Zuda’s owners — Anne Marie Kramer and Chris Cuevas — apparently think the rules don’t apply to them. With public health officials hesitant to punish scofflaws, they may be right.

Zuda’s owners say there’s no evidence that fitness centers can spread COVID-19, but that’s twisted logic since California’s fitness studios have been closed for months. Power yoga, which involves lots of heavy breathing, is unquestionably dangerous indoors. But scientific arguments seem unlikely to work on this yogic duo, who take a more woo-woo view.

“We don’t get sick when we’re in love,” Kramer said in one video that was posted online.

That’s quite a stretch. The families of the 205,000 Americans who have died of COVID-19 would undoubtedly bristle at the notion that love provides a vaccine for illness.

Zuda’s reopening sparked outrage after one Sacramento resident tweeted a photo of yoga students in the studio. Indoor fitness studios are supposed to remain closed in Sacramento, but enforcement is weak.

“Our goal is not to shut down any businesses, but to get them to operate safely,” said Peter Lemos, code and housing enforcement chief for the City of Sacramento.

Lemos said the city prefers an “educational” approach to recalcitrant businesses. For example, Lemos says the city received a complaint about Zuda on Sept. 11 and immediately dispatched an officer to provide informational material. But Zuda continues to vinyasa in violation and Sacramento residents continue to call 311 in vain.

“People have sent us their schedule,” Lemos said. “We are still doing follow-ups with them to try to get them to comply … and we have referred them to the state strike team.”

There seems to be some tension between city and county officials over enforcement. Lemos said city officials realized at some point that the “county wasn’t going to be a resource for us.” So, Lemos has now reported Zuda’s violation to the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, also known as Cal/OSHA.

I had initially called the county to ask about Zuda. A spokesperson connected me to county Public Health Director Dr. Olivia Kasirye. She said the county emphasizes education over enforcement but added that she was studying ways to crack down on persistent violators with help from the state.

Hours later, county spokesperson Kim Nava wrote to say the county is not responsible for enforcing the rules against Zuda because it’s within Sacramento city limits. This seems logical, but why didn’t Nava say that when I first called?

Zuda’s owners declined an interview request. In a statement, they claimed that other gyms have also reopened against public health rules.

“We continue to be inspired by other gyms and studios that have opened safely in our area and in the surrounding areas,” they said. “It is unclear why the Sacramento Bee is giving our studio so much attention given that multiple fitness centers in the area are also open.”

This is true. Other gyms quietly reopened months ago. I quit one, Sacramento Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Martial Arts Academy, after the owner reopened in May. Instagram photos suggest the place remains packed with people grappling, face-to-face and unmasked, in a hot room.

Apparently, these fitness studio owners know something most people don’t: Public health officials don’t care.

It’s a frustrating situation. Studio owners are under intense financial pressure, but all of us suffer when they selfishly break the rules and prolong the pandemic. Many fitness studios have transitioned to online or outdoor classes, proving that it’s possible for fitness instructors to act responsibly.

Though coronavirus cases are falling in many parts of the state, we must remain cautious. Countries that had begun to reopen — like England, Spain and Israel — are facing new shutdowns as the virus spreads again. Downward trends can quickly become upward surges if we let down our guard.

Zuda’s owners may believe that “vibration and vitality” will save them, but what happens if someone gets sick or dies? Does Zuda’s liability insurance policy cover gross negligence? What entitles them to risk the health of our entire community?

Neither yogi responded to written questions.

They haven’t responded to the city, either. Why should they? If public health officials continue to bend over backward to avoid enforcement, irresponsible business owners will continue to shrug off the rules.

Zuda’s owners should reconsider their reckless actions and put students first by holding only online or outdoor classes until it’s safe.

If not, public health officials should move to close Zuda. They need to show some spine before their lax enforcement results in a free for all — and before any Zuda students or their family members or neighbors end up lying in savasana (“corpse pose”) for real.

This story was originally published September 29, 2020 at 5:00 AM.