Fitness Chain Bans Cable News

Good news for all you fitness enthusiasts looking for a break from the stresses of the daily news: Life Time Fitness has blacked out all 24-hour cable news channels from TVs at its 128 locations. Gym members will still be able to watch USA and A&E and ESPN while they run on the treadmill and lift weights, but CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, and CNBC are no more, ABC News reports. The goal, Life Times said in a statement posted on Twitter, is to provide members with "family oriented environments free of consistently negative or politically charged content" and that reflects "our healthy way of life philosophy."

Since the announcement, the gym has received mixed feedback, says Life Time spokesperson Natalie Bushaw. “We have received both messages of support and others seeking more detail around the decision,” Bushaw told the Chicago Tribune. Life Time isn't the first gym to ban the noise of the 24-hour news cycle. Back in March the Greater Scranton YMCA stopped airing cable news after flaring tensions among members nearly led to a fight that had to be "broken up by another member before it got to that point." (More gym stories.)