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How to Smell Good While Working Out: Deodorant Spray that Works With Your Sweat
The gym is for smelling bad and stinking to high heaven. That’s what we’ve always thought, right? The truth is, it doesn’t have to be that way.
Sweat often causes body odor, yes. Sweating is almost inevitable when you have a good workout. But there are ways to work with your sweat to keep your body smelling good and your skin as radiant as ever. It does take some preparation, but having pleasant odors waft in your nose while you’re getting those gains can help take your workout sessions to the next level.
Below, we’ve compiled some actions you can take before your next trip to the gym so you can smell good while working out.
How to Smell Good at the Gym: Come In as Clean As Possible
If you want to smell good at the gym, it is important to start smelling good before you walk in the door. Sounds simple, right? It is once you know what areas to focus on before getting sweaty.
Shower before your workout.
What’s the point of showering right before you go to the gym? Besides getting an opportunity to put on a great foundational scent, you can remove dirt, grime, bad bacteria, and oils that may prevent you from sweating like you need to. Clogged pores can prevent sweat from getting through the skin, which amounts to hindering a natural body process.
OffCourt offers Exfoliating Body Soap in three attractive scents. The primary goal of this product is to remove dead skin and bacteria that mixes with sweat to cause body odor. Shea butter and olive oil help your skin stay hydrated and nourished. We believe this is one of the best bar soaps for athletes. If you sweat, we believe you’re an athlete who deserves the best skin care.
To keep smelling fresh as long as possible after your workout, use different towels for drying off post-shower and for drying off post-workout. Using a towel in different settings can foster bacteria growth.
Exfoliating Body Soap - Fresh Citron + Driftwood
Use a deodorant that works with your sweat.
A quality deodorant is essential for smelling good at the gym and well after your workout concludes. OffCourt’s signature Performance Body Spray is designed to work with your sweat while you work out. It’s a two-in-one aluminum-free deodorant-cologne that helps promote good bacteria growth and squashes bad bacteria.
Remember: deodorant is not the same thing as antiperspirant. Our Body Spray won’t clog your pores to keep sweat away; instead, it counteracts the factors that make your sweat stinky. Because we believe it’s important to target odors at the source, not prevent your body from sweating as it’s meant to.
Performance Body Spray - Coconut Water + Sandalwood
Dress the Part: Choose the Right Clothes
The right clothes for your next workout are not the clothes you wore to the last one. Odor-causing bacteria love to hang out in sweaty clothes, and you’ll get an even more intense smell when the dried sweat gets wet again.
Now that we know what not to wear, here are some clothing suggestions that may help you smell like you want to during your next gym visit.
Choose anti-odor workout clothing.
Conventional wisdom is that athletes who want to maximize their good smells should wear cotton or other breathable fabrics. You want plenty of ventilation for your sweaty body, right?
Cotton shirts can be ultra comfortable and allow you a greater range of motion relative to nylon clothing. Recently, though, clothing companies have begun making anti-odor workout clothes infused with antimicrobials and other substances that are designed to tamp down on bad gym smells. Over time, these anti-odor properties may wane after a certain amount of washes.
Opt for moisture-wicking fabrics.
Some athletes prefer wearing clothing that wicks moisture—in this case, sweat—away from the body and to the outer surface of the garment, where it can evaporate more quickly. This can help you feel cooler during workouts, but the shirts can get extra stinky because they are designed to absorb as much sweat as possible. You may want to change moisture-wicking shirts mid-workout if you notice too much of a stench.
Don’t forget about your shoes!
As much as bacteria love your armpits and sweaty clothing, they cannot pass up a good, sweaty shoe. Your feet have more than 250,000 sweat glands, and shoes are not often well-ventilated.
The first step in cutting down on the sweaty-feet smell is to let your shoes air out at least 24 hours before your next workout. Putting them in direct sunlight can help kill bacteria and fungi that like to hang out in warm, moist places. Washing your shoes once per week can also help.
We can’t forget about the socks, either. Wash them after every use. Many athletes use shoe deodorizers, moisture absorbers (like baking powder), or disinfecting sprays to keep the soles clean and dry.
How to Smell Good for Men: After the Workout
Smelling good for your next workout starts immediately after your current one. Knowing how to wash your gym clothes the right way will help them last longer and smell better at the same time.
After hitting the gym, your clothes will probably be a little damp. Let them get air as much as possible so they can dry as quickly as possible. If you have to stuff dirty clothes into your gym bag, be sure to take them out as soon as you get home.
If your workout clothes are still wet when you get home, consider tossing them in the washer right away. Allowing sweaty clothes to fester gives them more time to retain the funk (the bad funk). Wet workout gear can even foster the growth of mildew.
Use cold water to wash your workout clothes. It’s better for the environment, and hot water can cause synthetic fabrics to waste away. Turn your shirts inside out before washing them. Don’t use too much detergent, and consider using a combo detergent-sanitizer to ensure the bad bacteria gets wrested from every nook and cranny.
Final Thoughts
You do not have to put up with smelly body odor every time you want to get your sweat on. In fact, you don’t even have to focus on preventing sweat in order to smell better at the gym.
By paying attention to your clothing and putting the right products on your skin, you can walk out of the gym smelling like you hardly broke a sweat. Starting with OffCourt’s exfoliating soap, one of the best bar soaps for athletes with dry skin, you’ll be on your way to hydrated, clean, and invigorated skin that’ll last well throughout the day. This soap for athletes works just as well after workouts. Pair it with our Performance Body Spray for long-lasting good smells that will get you pumped to crush your workout.
Want to see what else you can use to step up your workout hygiene routine? We’ve got you covered. Visit our full shop for more information on skincare products that help keep athletes healthy and smelling good.