What Kind of Equipment Do You Need to Wipe Down in the Gym?
Most gyms have small tissue dispensers scattered all over your body, or maybe rags and aerosol cans for you to clean up after yourself. Some people use them religiously, some ignore them. What should you do as a good gym citizen? What do you need to do in order not to be a rude person? Here are some rules of thumb.
What should always be wiped clean
- Anything that has a visible sweat stain
- Yoga mats to be shared with another person
- Benches, seats and headrests of cars if possible
Sometimes you run for a wipe and come back to find someone on the bench or car you were about to wipe. Either they haven’t noticed your puddle of sweat, or they don’t care. Let go of it and hold on to this napkin until you drop the next item.
What you usually don’t need to wipe
- Anything you covered with a towel (for example, if you put a towel on a bench before using it)
- Everything that belongs to you and only you (your sweaty yoga mat is your problem)
- Paul, unless you create a slippery or dangerous situation
Read the room
In gyms, cleanliness standards differ from each other, just as neat freaks live in some houses, and in some, let’s say, not. In some gyms, no one wipes anything.
If your gym has rags and spray cans in prominent places, cans of napkins right next to your equipment, signs asking you to wipe things off after use? Wipe that shit up . If a sign in the gym asks you to do something, just do it. That’s a good rule of thumb for life, okay?
A little human observation will clarify some of the ambiguities in the cleanup policy. Should you wipe down the handles of the treadmill when you’re done using it? I think it’s silly (do you think I carry a towel all over the place to wipe the doorknobs?), But if everyone does it, I’ll do it.
The power of the napkin remains on you
Let’s talk about the opposite situation that came up when I was looking for snatch in the gym . I have a lot of complaints about people sweating everywhere and not wiping anything off:
I think it’s time for a different approach. Trying to fix the other guy’s behavior doesn’t work for you. The gym staff have more things to worry about as to whether this person is not wiping this machine. Moreover, according to your estimates, 60% of people did not wipe anything there. I wouldn’t do this with the gym staff and confront people individually.
Luckily, you have the perfect solution right in the tissue container you are so familiar with. If you don’t want to sit where someone has fingerprints, wipe down the bench before sitting on it. This is the power of the napkin: you can use it to clean things for personal use, as well as to leave your station smelling fresh for the next person. Go pamper yourself.