Working out at home is great. If you have the equipment, you reap the benefits of going to the gym without inconvenience. You would not have to drag yourself to your car and drive to the gym early in the morning. You would not have to deal with strangers who use the same tools. Most importantly, you are safe from the germs that proliferate on surfaces that dozens of other people have touched.
Having a home gym is convenient, and it may even increase the frequency of your workouts. The past year has also cemented the advantage of working out at home because, when fitness facilities across the nation closed, those who already own exercise equipment could continue doing their routines.
There is, however, one disadvantage to working out at home: the smells. Gyms do not smell all that great, especially when there are many people around. Sweat has a scent that is not pleasant. If you do not do something about it, the smell will linger and grow even worse. Imagine how it would smell now that it is summer; the stench would not motivate you to work out.
So, how can you keep your home gym and, by extension, the entire house, from smelling like sweat?
Invest in Smell-Busting Tools
Smells are inevitable when you work out. While sweat is, by nature, does not have a scent, the bacteria on your skin breaks down its molecules, a process that is behind bad body odor. Odor does not stay on the skin, too; it wafts around you and spreads across the entire room.
What you need to do is to invest in devices that can remove the stench from your home gym. A popular option nowadays is a generator that produces ozone which targets and removes the cause of odor from the air. It leaves the air clean and fresh without adding any scent, whether pleasant or unpleasant.
An air purifier is also a good option, but choose one that has an efficient filter. Those that use a high-efficiency particulate absorbing (HEPA) filter will prevent sweat from spreading within the room.
Using a scented air freshener will work, but temporarily. It will only mask the smell of your home gym. It will not target the source of the stench. With that said, you can still use essential oils like lavender and lemon so that the room smells nice in case you have guests over.
In addition, air out the room as frequently as you can. Open the windows and let the fresh air in to remove any odors.
Nospan> to Carpeting
A carpet has no reason to be in a gym. If you want to protect your hardwood floor from scuffs caused by constant and extraneous movements, do not use a carpet. The fabric will only soak up your sweat which will be harder to remove and create unpleasant odors.
To protect your home from smells or scuffs, as well as to save your joints from aches and pains, get yourself a thick yoga mat. They are soft without absorbing liquid (i.e., your sweat), and they are grippy, which means that you would not be sliding across the floor. Just make sure to wipe it down after every use and wait for it to completely dry before rolling it back up. Otherwise, it will smell.
Clean As You Go
Just like in the gym, you have the responsibility to wipe down and clean every piece of equipment you use as a courtesy for the next user: you. Although you would not be sharing equipment with a stranger, it is still good hygiene to wipe the bench press, stationary bike seat, and the weightlifting bars after use. You would not want these surfaces to be the breeding ground for germs, especially those that create smells or cause illnesses.
It will take up time when all you want to do is rest, but it will also prevent your house from becoming stinky. Use a spray bottle filled with 70 percent rubbing alcohol to spritz and kill bacteria from your home gym. It will also remove any bad smells from your fitness tools.
After that, do your laundry. Your clothes also carry the bacteria that cause bad body odor. You have to drown them in soap and water to get rid of them and, therefore, any unpleasant smells.
Your home gym is great because it keeps your body healthy and strong even when fitness facilities close down. However, it can also cause unpleasant smells. You need to make an effort to clear the smell from your home gym by buying odor-busting devices, cleaning your equipment after use, and not using carpets.
