Gym Shower Essentials: Everything You Need to Include
Gym showers..some people love them, some people hate them. But no one can deny, when you are in a time crunch, it just makes sense to get clean at the gym and go on about your day. This post is all about your gym shower essentials so you can leave the gym feeling your best.
The worst thing that can happen is that you forget an important item. You’re left stranded in the shower at the gym. It’s happened to me before, and I just didn’t know what to do.
Picture this: after a long and hard workout, I was really looking forward to the self care routine. Alas, I had forgotten my facial cleanser.
If you know me, you know I am very picky with what I put on my face. Many would say I hardly even have a skincare routine because mine is so simple. But, it works.
I share that to say, when you forget something, it sucks. It doesn’t matter if you are on a trip and not going to your regular gym. Or, if your gym doesn’t have the basics available, and you have to bring everything. We all have those days.
But if you keep a little organizer with your gym shower essentials, you can’t go wrong! This has helped me form good habits that help make my gym routine more efficient.
But, why would you want to shower at the gym versus your own shower at home?
Benefits of Showering at the Gym
- Creates efficiency
- Feel refreshed immediately
- Basics typically available for use
- The sooner you clean and practice proper hygiene, the better
- Self-care aesthetic by sauna’ing/steaming then showering
Showering at the gym after your workout just makes sense. It allows you to cleanse your body of sweat, dirt, and bacteria accumulated during exercise immediately after. This can help prevent skin issues and unpleasant odors. Think about it, the longer the dirt and sweat are allowed to sit on your skin, the worse it could be, right?
Additionally, post-workout showers help to regulate body temperature and can help you cool down, especially after intense workouts. After a good workout, an immediate cool shower can help with muscle recovery, promote blood circulation, and even relieve muscle soreness.
But if you are like me, and you don’t love cold showers all the time, a warm shower is great too.
A warm shower provides an opportunity for relaxation and mental rejuvenation, particularly if you pair it with going to the steam room or the sauna right after working out. This can help relax and calm your body and mind.
And…feels like an aesthetic self-care routine.
The warm water can help relieve stress and promote a sense of well-being, allowing you to leave the gym feeling refreshed and revitalized.
Lastly, by showering at the gym, you can save time and avoid rushing home while still feeling clean. You’ll feel ready to tackle the rest of your day. And you don’t have to sit in your car all sweaty if you drive to the gym.
For me, I always feel so accomplished if I knock out my workout in the morning and get my shower routine done before leaving the gym.
Most gyms also have the basics available and free of charge for use which can sometimes make things easier. That is, of course, if their products are high quality and you like what they have to offer.
For example, my gym has disposable razors and nice shower gel available for use. Let me tell you… I have not bought my own razor or shaving cream in almost a year! I might as well get my full money’s worth while I am at the gym right?
Now that we are on the same page as to why it is a good idea to shower at the gym, we can get into what the gym shower essentials are so you can maximize your experience.
8 Gym Shower Essentials You Always Need to Include in Your Bag
Shower Shoes
Do we even need to address the amount of germs you can probably pick up from wet, tiled public spaces? Even though there are so many new cleaning standards implemented after the panorama, it’s better to be safe than sorry.
Trust me, you’ll feel more comfortable bringing some shoes to walk around in.
This is also just a great idea to prevent slipping on wet floors generally speaking.
There are so many cute options available online at affordable prices. I got mine from Amazon and it is just a simple rubber slip on shoes that came in a variety of colors. I got purple because that is my favorite color 🙂
If you would rather not spend additional money, check around your house and see if you have an old pair of flip flops lying around and those can work just as well too.
But knowing you, you came to this article because you’re looking for an aesthetic vibe. So, so go ahead and see what’s available online 🙂
Mini Waterproof Product Bag or Caddy
This is an essential and simple addition. Having a waterproof product bag or shower caddy will make the process less of a hassle. It will make sure you never forget anything, so you only have to make one trip from the locker to the shower.
Make sure the container you get can hold all the products you need every day. One hack is that I like to use travel size products and just refill as I need to. That way I am not lugging full sized products to the shower every time.
Furthermore, gym showers do not have a lot of space or shelving to put your products on as they have to maximize the space they have to fit many people at once. So it is helpful to have something to hold all the products you need.
And carrying around what you need will make it feel like a cute self-care moment!
Facial Cleanser
Most of us have specific skin care routines like I mentioned earlier. It helps to keep consistent with that to avoid causing unnecessary and uncalled for skin irritations. I know I hate switching up products I put on my skin unless I absolutely have to. Like when it is time for a change because I have used the product too long and I feel my skin has adapted to it.
Again, try bringing a travel size container or travel size version of your favorite product so you don’t have to worry about having something bulky. If you use multiple products during and after the shower, that is ok!
Organize your products into two mini bags – one for in the shower and one for after the shower!
Body Wash and Shower Products
Most gym showers do come equipped with body wash, but not all body washes are created equal. If you feel like the free products are not high quality, try bringing your own travel size body wash.
Bringing your own body was ensures that you are cleansing your body with something you know works. And, it just makes you feel more comfortable and at home even when you are using something you are familiar with.
Along with you body wash, you may also bring a body scrub and your loofah / wash rag to make sure you get a good scrub in removing all dirt and impurities. Of course, just remember to change out your loofah/wash rag frequently as they can harbor germs of their own.
Bring Your Own Towel
My personal recommendation is that I would bring a personal towel for use on your body to dry off. That just makes me feel super comfortable. After washing my skin, I know I am putting things on it that I know are clean to my standard. I think this should definitely be one of your gym shower essentials.
Yes, some gyms have towels available and some do not. I’ve noticed at the gyms with towels offered that people will use the towels for all kinds of things! I’ve even seen people lie the shared towels on the floor of the shower…yes you read that correctly! On the floor of the SHOWER!
And while the gyms do have standard processes for cleaning the towels and cycling out the fresh towels, I feel more comfortable having a towel that is my own that I put on my skin.
At the end of the day, do what feels the most comfortable for you and brings you the most peace!
Reusable Bag for Your Dirty Clothes and a Separate One for Your Shower Shoes
You do not want to just throw your dirty clothes in with the rest of the items in your gym bag when you are done. Simple as that. That would be mixing all the sweat and germs in with everything else in your gym bag!
You will want to put your dirty clothes and shower shoes in reusable canvas bags, or if you only have access to plastic bags, be sure to get multiple uses out of them. You can even use them to line small waste bins at home when you are done with use. We do like to do what we can to save the planet around here.
Then when you get back home, you can throw your dirty clothes in the hamper or laundry and lay your shower shoes out to dry!
Deodorant and Lotion and After Shower Basics
After your shower, make sure to have your aftercare ready to go whether that’s moisturizers, oils, creams, etc. Again, this will make you feel comfortable and help return moisture to your skin after the drying activities of working out and showering. I recommend carrying them in travel size containers if you can for ease of access and carrying.
This will make it good to keep up your usual routines like if you were showering at home, and you’ll smell nice after leaving the gym!
Finally, Your Change of Clothes
Here’s another hack. Always put together your change of clothes from the night before to make your life easier in the morning / the next day when getting ready for the gym.
Almost like you are a kid again getting ready for the first day of school from the night before! Picking out what you are going to wear to the gym and after the gym can help set your future self up for success.
If possible, bring clothes that you don’t mind being a little wrinkly from sitting in your bag during your workout. But, you can also likely bring clothes that hang on a hanger in your locker as well! If you don’t mind bringing a few extra items to the gym.
These are the bare minimum items you should bring with you for gym shower essentials. Of course, you can always add on top of that like your makeup, more specific self care items, bring hair tools, etc. But I think all of those are just nice to have. Again, the gym shower and locker room is not a place to linger and spend all day in after all.
You want to be quick and snappy. In and out. So my suggestion is always to just bring exactly what you need and nothing more. Create routines around it, and that will make the process even more efficient! It will honestly feel like you are having a self-care moment.
And we all know how important these are for managing stress and improving your mood generally! I talk a lot about how to manage stress and learn how to relax because it is vital to your well-being! Forming good habits helps with that!
Do you all like to shower at the gym? What do you bring? Let me know in the comments below!
