How To Protect Yourself From Germs at The Gym

November 28 2013

How To Protect Yourself From Germs at The Gym

Although you can’t see them with the naked eye, germs are all around us; they’re on your smartphone, door knobs, steering wheel, gas pumps, and practically any other surface that you frequently touch. While most of these germs have little effect on our health, the gym is a haven for potentially harmful germs like the cold virus, flu, athlete’s foot and a variety of infectious diseases.

So, does this mean you should stop going to the gym just because it’s prone to potentially harmful germs? Absolutely not; all public places fall under the category of “high risk for contagious illness germs.” However, individuals should take some additional precautionary measures to help reduce the chance of transmission. There’s no way to 100% safeguard yourself from transmittable illness, but you can certainly reduce the chance of illness by following some basic steps.

Know The ‘Hot Spots’ For Germs

There are certain places in the gym which are hot spots for germ activity. It’s a common assumption that germs die within 24-48 hours without a host, but this simply isn’t true. While certain germs may die within this given time frame, others can thrive for weeks in a gym hot spot. Take the norovirus, for instance; this stomach flu germ that’s responsible for nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, pain and fever can survive for over a month, which is why it’s important to familiarize yourself with the germ hot spots in a gym.

Germ Hot Spot Locations:

• Dumbbells
• Kettlebells
• Barbells
• Mats
• Exercise balls
• Weight machines
• Locker rooms (the high humidity encourages germs to thrive).

How Can I Protect Myself From Germs at The Gym?

The single biggest piece of advice for protecting yourself from germs at the gym is to wash your hands frequently. Don’t just run them under the faucet for a couple of seconds, but instead use a fair amount of antibacterial soap along with warm water, and really rub your hands together to create friction. This should kill 99% or more of the germs.

Also, try to avoid touching your eyes, mouth, nose or face when you’re working out at the gym. You might naturally feel the urge to wipe away a bead of sweat with your bare hands as it begins to trickle down your forehead, but doing so can move the germs closer to your mouth — where it can easily enter your bloodstream. If you feel the urge to wipe away sweat, do so with a clean towel and not your hands.