Cleaning gym gear is a workout in itself! This week, Helpling is flexing its baby muscles in bringing you the easiest cleaning solutions to some of your most common gym issues. Reduce your cleaning and spend more time building that physique!
Stinky Protein Shakers
Imagine the smell of a forgotten pickled jar of cabbage grandma stored before your birth, or the dirty socks worn to a 25-mile mountain trip 6 years ago. As bad as they are, they pale in comparison to the atrocity that is an unwashed, sealed protein shaker.
It’s vital for gym-goers to wash their protein shaker after use, but let’s be honest, who’s doing any washing-up after bicep day?
Our quick tip: Add a couple of tablespoons of vinegar (apple or malt vinegar is fine) to the protein bottle and fill it with hot water from the tap. Leave it overnight and in the morning you’ll have a nose-approved protein bottle.
Smelly Trainers
Cardio bunny or simply a running enthusiast? Either way, smelly shoes are a universal problem. Odour-free trainers may not exist quite yet, but until then we’ve got a top tip in keeping the stickiness out of your trainers: freeze them! We kid you not—freezing your shoes will also freeze their smell.
Put your trainers in a plastic bag, place them next to your frozen veg and leave them overnight. In the morning, you’ll wake up to cool, fresh new trainers!
Sports Bras
In the gym, a sports bra is a woman’s best friend; let’s face it, it knows you better than your trainer does! They’re made with delicate fabrics, so don’t just throw them in the washing machine with your other clothes.
Essential tip: use mild detergent. In a sink or a plastic basin, pour warm water and detergent—don’t forget, show it some love and make sure you’re using the mild kind—and soak your sports bra in the soft, bubbly mix. Gently wash the sports bra, rinse and dry! Voila, the bra has become your ally once again!
Weight Lifting Gloves And Wrist Straps
Pumping iron often? Weight Lifting gloves or wrist straps are hugely popular in the gym. They provide strong grip support and protect our palms from all kinds of bacteria found on dumbbells and other gym equipment. As with any other gym accessory, these gloves need to be washed too. The main issue with these is that no matter how often we wash them, they still retain a… certain odour.
Our tip: soak the gloves/straps in a bathroom sink with a combination of hair shampoo and conditioner, leave them for a couple of hours, and then rinse. As crazy as it may seem, this technique produces fabulous results.
Yoga or Pilates Mats
Buying your own gym mat is the first step to becoming a proper yogi. When practising a mat-based sport, it’s important to keep it fresh. Cleaning a mat with distilled water and essential oils is a pro-cleaning method in avoiding germs and maintaining a fresh smell. Love lavender? Infuse it in your mat!
Here’s how: grab one cup of distilled water and your favourite essential oil (lavender, peppermint, lemongrass, pizza-flavoured oil, whatever you prefer) and mix together. Transfer the potion into a spray bottle and spray onto the mat, then take a damp cloth and wipe it down. Next time you lay on your mat, think happy thoughts and sandy islands!
Namaste!
