Copper is making its debut in a highly necessary place, your gym and health club! Black Iron Strength® knew the hot spot meter for germs was high on the touch points at the gym and they are using Antimicrobial Copper CuLEAN® on their weight products to go to combat. These areas where you grip are a breeding ground for nasty bacteria, including Norovirus and microbes like MRSA. Read on to see how Antimicrobial Copper in your gym can lead to a healthier YOU.
The Nitty Gritty Grip
How many Americans are going to the gym each day? The Bureau of Labor Statistics states that 58,000,000 Americans utilize a gym 2 or more times per week in one of the 30,500 gyms or health clubs in the US. Imagine how many hands (washed and unwashed) are gripping the same weight-lifting equipment each day across the nation. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases breaks down the rate of incidence of the common cold in adults to 62,000,000 per year, 5,166,666 per month, 1,192,307 per week, 169,863 per day, 7,077 per hour, 117 per minute, 1 per second. 1 adult per second will come down with a cold. 1 each second. The gym is one of the main places where adults spend time. Members walk in with their germs, trek animal/human feces on their tennis shoes, and then walk from feee weights, to machines, to the court. Along comes “Joe” who starts his pre-workout stretch routine on ‘said floor’, finishes, then leaps up and grabs a dumbbell. Hello stomach flu! Yes, health club and gym doors open to many every day; add warmth and sweat, and there you have the ideal breeding ground for germs.
Now that we have thoroughly grossed you out, let’s talk about how CuLEAN® antimicrobial copper can sweep the nation and improve these disgusting statistics.
Keeping it C(u)LEAN® with Copper
Copper use can be traced to ancient Egyptian times where it was used in applications because of its inherent, antimicrobial properties. Copper is the first solid surface material to receive EPA registration through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, proving copper’s efficacy against infectious bacteria. CuVerro®, the nation’s leading manufacturer of copper applications, has joined forces with Black Iron Strength’s patented Antimicrobial Copper CuLEAN® touch point application to reduce germ transfer on major pieces of gym equipment with high use touch points.
With the recent outbreaks of untreatable infections including MRSA, which are often traced back to the work out facility, Black Iron Strength® took the ancient technology of copper and applied it to free weight equipment handles. With this patented technology, Black Iron Strength® is the only equipment manufacturer to offer free weight equipment with antimicrobial copper touch points. Given that bacteria can survive on surfaces for months, Black Iron Strength® prefers to use Antimicrobial Copper CuLEAN® on their products and equipment. It is simply the best material for all surfaces as bacteria cannot thrive or survive on it. CuVerro® shares “CuVerro copper alloys are bactericidal – they kill more than 99.9% of bacteria that cause hospital acquired infections (HAIs) within two hours of contact. CuVerro® is a type of antimicrobial copper, but the term bactericidal is a more accurate description since CuVerro® antimicrobial copper alloys kill bacteria, and do not just inhibit bacterial growth. CuVerro® bactericidal copper surfaces not only kill bacteria, but they are registered with the EPA to make public health claims.” You can find out more about their products and the EPA testing on their website by clicking CuVerro
The POWER of Black Iron Strength CuLEAN® Antimicrobial Copper Gripping Surfaces by CuVerro®
- PROVEN to kill 99.9% of bacteria in two hours or less.
- ONLY EPA registered solid surface grips on free weight equipment.
- WORKS continuously between cleanings–24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and 365 days a year.
- ECONOMICAL and durable. Lasts lifetime of equipment. Easily maintained.
- RECYCLABLE, environmentally responsible, green product.
Lou Quint Jr. Takes Wyoming Athletic Clubs to the Next Level with Antimicrobial Copper Equipment
Lou Quint Jr., the founder and President of Health Club Management, Inc. understands the importance of implementing copper for the health and safety of his members. As the managing general partner of Wyoming Athletic Clubs (WAC), it was crucial to him that when members came to work on their health, that they left healthy. Since forming Health Club Management, Inc. Mr. Quint has been involved with projects ranging from Casino/ Hotel, Sports Clubs, Multi-Unit Club Companies, Residential Developers, Spa Operators, Developers and Business Expansions. Under Mr. Quint’s direction, Health Club Management, Inc. has provided services that produce measurable results nationwide. Mr. Quint is a dynamic, educated, experienced and well-respected figure in the leisure/ fitness industry; he is known for his research based approach and being one step ahead in his early adoption of innovative products, game-changers, if you will. Lou Quint Jr. spent a great deal of time researching products in an effort to offer members free-weight products with germ-free touch points. Learn more about Health Club Management
CuLEAN® by Black Iron Strength® and Lou Quint, Jr. Join Forces
Wyoming Athletic Clubs are the first full service, high-end health clubs in the US to purchase the CuLEAN® Antimicrobial Copper Handles from Black Iron Strength. In their clubs you will find the Poles Apart® Wedge 40s, the Poles Apart® Barbell System, a Kettlebell Set, an Attachment Management System and a set of Triple Threat® Dumbbells. All of the handles are the CuLEAN® Antimicrobial Copper Handles by CuVerro®.
Being in the industry for more than 30 years, Mr. Quint understands the importance of creating a clean and healthy environment. The health and wellness of his members and staff will result in more days spent working muscle groups, and less time being treated by primary care doctors.
“In this day and age, you can’t afford not to use Antimicrobial Copper. ” Pia Norup, MD
Want to learn more about what they offer at WAC, click this link Wyoming Athletic Clubs
In today’s busy world, most people are always on the move, and rarely think about what we touch when we are out and about. Imagine the number of places you visit on a daily basis- from daycare to your kid’s school, the local coffee shop, your doctor or dental office, the grocery store, and place of employment to name a few. Chances are, your hands would have touched many counters and objects or even made skin to skin contact with another person at almost every destination or pit stop.
With colder weather approaching, people are bringing their activities indoors along with their bacteria! Places where many people gather become hotbeds of bacteria on every surface. As we pick up our morning coffee and bagel or hit the gym for our daily workout, whatever your morning routine may be, we are coming into contact with millions of bacteria every day. With each surface we come into contact with, we are exposing our defense systems in our body to an overwhelming onslaught of bacteria that want nothing more than to make us sick and shut us down from enjoying this part of the year.
In fact, bacteria are everywhere and can survive on most surfaces for many months. Studies have shown that up to 80% of germs are transferred by touch, resulting in thousands of people getting sick each year- even in places they think are safe (i.e. hospitals). For these reasons, Black Iron Strength® prefers to use Antimicrobial Copper on their products and equipment. It is simply the best material for all surfaces as bacteria cannot thrive or survive on it.
When at the gym, you are working hard to build muscle and lose weight. Whether you’re working hard to fit into those favorite pair of pants hanging in the back of your closet or getting your body in pristine shape for a fitness competition or sports tournament, whatever your motivation or reason may be, you are sacrificing precious time to improve yourself. What rarely crosses our mind is that on every handle, every bar, are millions of bacteria that have been put there by the hundreds or thousands of people who have lifted the same weight weeks and days before you.
The good news is, Black Iron Strength® has figured out a way to help their customers avoid the setback of getting sick by improving fitness facilities throughout the United States with their Antimicrobial Copper strength equipment, which can be found in major universities and fitness facilities. We encourage you to make the smart choice by choosing gyms that care about your overall health and well-being and not just your training results.
A recent peer-reviewed study published in the American Journal of Infection Control adds to the broad clinical evidence base supporting the use of Antimicrobial Copper. It found:
Antimicrobial Copper kills 99.9% of bacteria in less than two hours, and it does this naturally. Many studies have been done on the effectiveness of Antimicrobial Copper (CuVerro®), in fact, Antimicrobial Copper kills bacteria, and keeps on killing it. There is no special cleaning or maintenance to do which improves efficiency for gym owners and businesses. With applications ranging from the hospital to the gym, to schools, to your home, Antimicrobial Copper looks great, and it helps defend our bodies against bacteria and sickness.
Black Iron Strength® is the leading manufacturer of Antimicrobial Copper fitness equipment. To see their line of high-quality fitness equipment featuring CuVerro® Antimicrobial Copper surfaces, click here.
About Black Iron Strength®
Black Iron Strength® products (visit www.blackironstrength.com) are sold by Grace Premier Fitness and Wellness Products, Inc., the leading worldwide distributor for the US Patented CuLEAN® antimicrobial copper touch points on the Black Iron Strength® free weight equipment handles and touch surfaces featuring the CuVerro® bactericidal copper components. For more information about Black Iron Strength® products, email or call Tom Grace, President of Black Iron Strength®: tom@gracefitness.com or 1‐360‐574‐ 6524.
*Laboratory testing shows that, when cleaned regularly, CuVerro surfaces kill greater than 99.9% of the following bacteria within 2 hours of exposure: Methicillin‐Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Staphylococcus aureus, Enterobacter aerogenes, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, E. coli O157:H7, and Vancomycin‐Resistant Enterococcus faecalis (VRE).The use of CuVerro® bactericidal copper products is a supplement to and not a substitute for standard infection control practices; users must continue to follow all current infection control practices, including those practices related to cleaning and disinfection of environmental surfaces. This surface has been shown to reduce microbial contamination, but it does not necessarily prevent cross contamination. 
