There are many different excuses that people use in order to avoid working out, which range from the somewhat acceptable (injury) to the completely ridiculous (lack of time… when you spend three hours every evening watching TV).
One of the slightly more obscure but actually fairly legitimate reasons for not working out though, is that it’s such sweaty work. When we’re pushed for time we might try and fit our exercise in around the other things that we do on a regular basis. Perhaps for instance you want to get in some cardiovascular training by running to work in the morning, or maybe you have some friends come over so you think you’ll squeeze in a few repetitions of press ups…
The only problem is, that if you do that, then you’ll be arriving to work or socializing/entertaining your guest while damp with sweat. Which is off-putting for everyone involved.
If only there was a way to mitigate this issue and to sweat a little less while working out…
Why We Sweat
What’s important to remember here is the reason that most of us sweat in the first place – which is that we’re hot and our bodies are trying to cool us down. Thus, the objective to avoid sweating while working out should be to try and avoid getting too hot. The following steps can help you to achieve that:
Get Some Air
One way to do this is simply to wear fewer layers and to ensure that the layers you are wearing are more breathable. This will allow more air to get to your body and help you to maintain a cooler temperature. Splashing cold water on your face or even training topless can also help.
Drink Lots of Cold Water
You might think that drinking more fluids would actually increase your sweat, but it doesn’t work like that. If you were so dehydrated that you couldn’t sweat at all then you’d actually have a serious problem…
In fact, drinking lots of water will help your body to stay cool and this will help you to sweat less. Better yet, cold water will help to dilute your sweat and this in turn will mean that it smells less. All kinds of important bodily functions rely on you being well hydrated, so it’s crucial that you drink plenty when exercising.
Monitor Your Temperature
As you work out, you will be able to feel yourself getting hotter depending on the type of exercise you’re doing. To make sure you don’t get too hot and end up sweating, you can simply take longer breaks as you start to notice your temperature getting too hot and your heart rate starting to increase. This might result in a less intense workout, but if you’re trying to fit something in while staying relatively cool then this is a compromise that will have to be made.
More Preventative Measures
You can also prevent yourself from getting too sweaty in a number of other ways. For instance, antiperspirant can help you to block some of your pores from sweating too profusely and this can thereby help you to stay smell-free.
Another useful tip is to shave your armpits and to trim downstairs. Not only does hair in these areas cause you to get hotter and thus be more likely to smell, but it also clings onto the sweat and grime and thus makes you smell worse when you do smell. Taking a pair of clippers or some scissors down there can do wonders and help you to stay smelling much fresher.
How to Deal With Exercise-Induced Sweat
If you do sweat then don’t worry – there are a few things you can do.
The first is to use some odorless wet-wipes and apply them to your armpits and other sweatiest areas in order to remove the odor-inducing sweat. You can also mask the smell slightly by carrying a small deodorant with you.
Another tip is to bring spare clothes. For instance, you can train in a t-shirt and then swap that for another t-shirt after you work out. This way, any sweat that is absorbed by the t-shirt won’t be carried around with you for the rest of the day. You can even use the spare t-shirt to rub yourself down afterwards.
And if you have space in a bag, then switching shoes is also a particularly effective way to avoid smelling, seeing as our feet tend to sweat a lot. You can also use talcum powder in your socks and shoes which will absorb some of the sweat and prevent you from bringing it with you to your second pair of shoes.
Note as well that you should always change clothes between training sessions. If you wear the same t-shirt twice to workout in, then you will find that you create a cumulative effect of old sweat which is much more pungent and severe than ‘brand new’ sweat.