Can you still attend group exercise class in a gym, yoga studio or dance studio under the latest government guidelines? 

It’s a question many have been asking on social media since Tuesday, after Boris Johnson announced the rule of six will now apply to indoor grassroots team sports for adults in England. 

The official guidelines on the government’s website state: “Organised indoor sport or exercise classes can take place in larger numbers, provided groups of more than 6 do not mix.”

The wording left us scratching our heads, so we asked the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport to clarify what is and isn’t allowed under the new rules. 

“Gym classes and other indoor and outdoor sports will be able to continue, providing they adhere to the government’s Covid-secure guidance that they had to meet to reopen earlier this summer,” a spokesperson confirmed via email.

“So in an exercise class for instance, you’d have individuals maintaining social distancing alongside all the other technical guidance (one way systems in gyms, for example).”

The spokesperson added that while indoor sports such as five-a-side football, netball and basketball will be limited to a maximum of six adults per training session, exercise classes – be that yoga, spin or dance – can continue with more than six attendees, providing social distancing is possible. 

Supervised activities provided for children, including indoor team sports, are exempt from the rule of six.