Skin Gym: Did you know that gyms are one of the places where we can find more germs? Sweat left on exercise machines, towels, and humid areas like saunas, showers, and pool floors are some of the reasons gyms are where many people get fungus, a foot from athletes and many other skin infections.
In our fight to fulfil this year’s resolutions, we’ve put together the best tips to prevent skin infections in the Gym. Don’t let bacteria be an excuse to throw in the towel!
Table of Contents
What are the most common skin infections we can acquire in the Gym?
Athlete’s Foot
Folliculitis
Bacteria usually cause infection in swimming pools and hot tubs. It usually starts with itchy spots in the bikini area, which turn into an allergy with red blisters that typically appear with pus around the hair follicles.
Impetigo
Are you one of those who share the towel when doing sports?
The infection usually starts with tiny red pimple-like pimples that fill with pus. After a few days, the spots typically break down and eventually form a yellowish crust.
Plantar Wart
Infection caused by viruses, produced by not wearing footwear in common areas. It is distinguished because it has a callus-like appearance with tiny black dots.
How to Avoid Skin Infections at the Gym?
Check The Cleanliness Of The Site
Before joining a gym or any sports site, pay attention to the cleanliness of the spaces and facilities. As a user, you have every right to ask about the cleaning routine of the place. The facilities must be cleaned at least once daily with detergents or space disinfectants.
Check the availability of disinfectant wipes or sprays with which you can clean each machine before using.
Wash Your Sports Clothes
Change into and wash your gym clothes once you finish your routine. You should pass and dry everything at a high temperature to kill all the bacteria.
If you practice swimming, keep wet clothes in a unique bag and do not mix them with the rest of your dirty clothes.
Invest In Some Sports Equipment
To protect your skin from infections in the Gym, it is advisable to bring your floor mat, gloves, hats and flip-flops, avoiding sharing as much as possible.
Take A Shower at the End of your Routine
Get used to showering after you finish exercising, dry yourself carefully and pay special attention to the skin folds. Do not feel ashamed to be selfish, do not share your items such as towels, razors, etc.
Protect your Feet
Never go barefoot in locker rooms or showers. Wash your feet and dry them well before putting on your shoes again.
Why do Skin Infections Occur in the Gym?
A gym is a closed space where many people stay for a while. Various diseases can be transmitted in these types of places. For example, a cold or common cold is when someone sneezes or coughs without covering it.
However, skin infections in the Gym are more common or common than those in the respiratory tract. It is due to bacteria, fungi, other pathogens, and sweat left on equipment, towels, or humid areas such as saunas, showers, and even hot tubs.
A 2014 study found different types of bacteria on exercise machines, stair railings, and bathroom handles at fitness centres.
On the other hand, several factors contribute to the appearance of skin infections in the Gym:
- Frictions in contact sports (such as boxing or wrestling).
- Presence of open wounds.
- Use of everyday towels.
- Share implements and equipment.
- Walking barefoot in bathrooms or around swimming pools.
Manual to Take Care of the Skin if you are A Regular at the Gym
Gain muscle mass, lose fat, and stay in shape. Surely, as a regular at the Gym, you have very clear what your goals are to carry out your training. But beyond these goals, there are other aspects that you should not neglect, such as keeping the skin in perfect condition.
And that practising physical exercise in the Gym can influence the state of the skin, so we must adopt a series of essential habits before, during and after to favour its care.
Pre or Post Workout Cleaning
How? What do I have to wear clean skin to train? That’s right, friend. Just as you read it. Bearing in mind that during the exercise, you will sweat, it is better than the skin, mainly because the face is free of impurities to prevent the pores from becoming clogged and pimples from appearing.
Of course, subsequent cleaning is also essential, both of the face and the rest of the body, to remove sweat and impurities resulting from training.
Internal and External Body Hydration
We already know that drinking water during sports practice is essential, affecting skincare, which we will be hydrating. In addition, after cleaning after exercise, we must apply moisturizing cream to also contribute to it. Of course, you must use a specific product for the face and another for the body since the skin of each area has its peculiarities. Nothing to use the same cream for everything.
Also Read: Ruby Skin: Everything you Need to Know
Use Two Towels to Train
It is common to use a towel to dry our sweat during training and place it on the benches and machines so that we do not fill them with labour, nor do we stain ourselves with the effort of others. The ideal would be to have a clean towel for each of these tasks since, in this way, we would not be transferring the dirt that may be in the gym material to our face.
What is the Skin Gym and How to Practice it At Home to Improve Facial Skin?
It is a non-invasive, preventive and self-knowledge technique to exercise the muscles of the face.
Just as we train the body to keep it healthier, why not do the same with the muscles of our face? Under this premise, the ” face gym ” seeks to improve the appearance of the skin through exercises performed with the hands.
It is part of a new approach trending today: facial care through self-management and non-invasive methods. In this way, the natural process of ageing is vindicated.
Also called “facebuilding”, the German plastic surgeon Reinhold Benz created the method around 1930. Later, it became firmly established in Russia and the United States. And it was expanding.
How to Practice it At Home
1. Lymphatic Release
Massage with the palm of your hands from the retroauricular area (behind the ears) towards the clavicles. Perform 3 to 5 repetitions with gentle pressure.
2. Nasogenian Groove
With the index and middle fingers, go from the corners of the lips to the sides of the nose in an ascending and straight line. Perform 3 to 5 repetitions with medium pressure.
3. Lifting Contour
Embrace” one side of the face with the palm of the opposite hand. As it rises, accompany the movement with the other hand. Perform 4 to 5 repetitions with medium pressure.
4. Eyelid Acupressure
Place your thumbs on the inner side of the eyelid. Press and go through it, passing through the highest point until the eyebrow’s tail. Perform two repetitions of 3 seconds each, with medium pressure.
5. Smooth Front
Make smoothing movements with the fingertips from the beginning of the eyebrows towards the scalp. Perform 3 to 5 repetitions with medium pressure.
Now, some clarifications. The method is not suitable for people who have any skin pathology. Also, massages should not hurt, but we must use intuitive pressure.
Conclusion
Every day we use some muscles when blinking, raising our eyebrows or speaking, but other muscles never move. At home, you can contribute to the treatment by massaging the face from the chin to the forehead. The use of sunscreen is essential to avoid spots and wrinkles.
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