A collective of D.C. gyms and fitness studios has requested an exemption from the reinstated mask mandate, asking Mayor Muriel Bowser and DC Health director LaQuandra Nesbitt if they can operate in a vaccinated-only capacity instead. The DC Fitness Alliance, a group of 16 gyms that organized last year, penned the letter Thursday.

The cohort — which includes Solidcore, Barry’s Bootcamp, OrangeTheory, and Vida Fitness — wrote that “it seems counterintuitive for our clients who on a Saturday night can stand literal inches away for other individuals in a crowded bar with a drink in their hand without a mask on, but who on Monday morning — even in a fully vaccinated fitness class or gym — are required to exercise with a mask on.”

The latest mandate requires dining patrons to wear a mask at bars and restaurants while they’re not actively eating or drinking. A growing list of restaurants, bars, and theaters have added a requirement for guests to show proof of vaccination.

In an emailed statement Friday evening, DC Health told DCist that waivers for the mask mandate will not be granted to gyms or fitness facilities.

“The guidance in the District is all people over the age of two must wear a mask indoors, regardless of vaccination status,” the department said.

It’s not much different from the guidance Nesbitt offered during a Thursday press briefing, held before the gyms sent their letter: “We do not have an exception for any type of indoor venue,” Nesbitt said.

And on a weekly call between the D.C. Council and the mayor’s office Friday, the mayor’s office told At-Large Councilmember Christina Henderson that DC Health is not granting waivers at the moment.

“I asked what metrics we need to meet to rescind the mask mandate,” Henderson wrote on Twitter. “They are hesitant to tie to any particular metric.”

“If we look at the fitness industry, we know the spread of droplets is the way we spread infection,” assistant city administrator Jay Melder said during the call, according to the Washington Post. “In fitness facilities, where you are exercising vigorously, it’s more likely that there is greater spread.”

The gyms, however, say that the mask mandate places an undue burden on their businesses.

“Our businesses are disproportionately impacted by mask mandates, as clients are put off by the idea of working out with a mask, potentially limiting their ability to breathe easily while they do physical activity,” the letter reads.

At least one gym plans to go forward with a vaccination policy of its own. Vida Fitness president David von Storch sent a letter to the gym’s members saying that it will soon require proof of vaccination upon checking in to any of its six locations.

“We are working with our software provider to integrate vaccination confirmation status into the check-in process, so it is going to take a little longer to finalize the logistics,” von Storch wrote in the letter that has circulated social media. “Please stay tuned for another update and keep your COVID-19 Vaccination Record Card handy.”

He added that 98% of the gym’s members are vaccinated, according to a survey, and that the gym hasn’t been a source of community spread of coronavirus.

In the past year, fitness companies have butted heads more than once with city leaders and expressed confusion over coronavirus restrictions they believed to be unfair. For instance, in November, when Bowser instituted an order banning all indoor group exercise classes and limited outdoor classes to 25 people, boutique studio Solidcore openly defied the order. The gym temporarily shut down a few days later.

The gym owners are now saying that allowing vaccinated members to go maskless would help with vaccination rates in the city. The gyms say they would implement a “strict documentation” policy if granted a waiver.

“We are an industry that hasn’t really received the support that other industries have had,” von Storch, of Vida Fitness, told WTOP.  “And the thing that really is sort of frustrating for us is that we are, of all the industries, we are the industry that is most closely aligned with health and getting past the pandemic.”

Correction: This story has been corrected to show that Urban Athletic Club is not a member of the fitness alliance. This story has also been updated with a statement from DC Health and a letter from Vida Fitness.