Dealing with workout-related ablutions
I’m trying to figure out how to get a workout in during “work hours” (my workday runs from 6:30am-6pm) but avoid the whole shower-hair-makeup thing twice! I’d love to hear how others solve this problem.
– question from Deborah
Well, for me personally I work out in the evenings, so I just stay sweat-encrusted and gross until the next morning’s shower — but I know evenings don’t always work for people. What say you, readers? Do you have any suggestions for Deborah?
December 4th, 2008 at 11:22 pm
I have this dilemna too, and it’s one of the big reasons I avoided the gym – I HATE using public showers, it freaks me out. (I also dislike walking to the bus station in the morning ’cause of the huge hill that must be endured, and I end up completely soaking in sweat once I’m up there – not a good look before work).
I agree that I also try to work out either first thing in the morning, or last thing at night
I shower in the morning.
December 5th, 2008 at 1:46 am
I assume you mean that you’re trying to squeeze in a lunchtime workout? And that your office requires you to actually return from lunch and not look like a sweatball?
I did lunch workouts for *years* – mostly bike rides where I really would be awful on my return. Our office had showers so I could clean up, but it took a while to deal with the wet hair and sorta get put back together. Eventually I just said “uncle” on the hair and got a short haircut so it was much quicker to wash-and-wear.
Sometimes you do just have to end up taking a couple showers a day, and with a simpler “wash & wear hair” style it was easier to just get into the multiple-shower routine. I suppose you could find some sort of non-sweaty lunchtime workout, like a brisk walk outside? Avoid showering that way?
December 5th, 2008 at 5:40 am
I used to do a lunch pilates or yoga workout at a gym in my building. Good workouts without sweating. Depending on the weather a brisk walk outside is good too (I know some people don’t consider that a workout, but I figure it’s better than nothing!). Now I work from home and luckily have lots of day time workout flexibility, though I don’t take advantage of it enough.
December 5th, 2008 at 8:17 am
You’ve gotten a lot of great suggestions so far. I’ve been focusing on getting that brisk walk in over my lunch hour – even if its 7 degrees out. It makes that 3:30pm slump a lot less painful.
Depending on how much you sweat, you might be able to get away with just washing your body and not your hair. Pop it back in a sleek ponytail and you’re good to go. Dry hair makes the whole ‘getting ready’ process go super-quick.
December 5th, 2008 at 1:07 pm
I do the lunchtime workout thing a few times a week – and I just do the body shower, and put my hair in a ponytail. I workout pretty hard, so yeah, I have a little hair/head sweat, but luckily, I just sit in front of my computer most of the day and no one sees me. Being able to workout is worth a few afternoons of bad hair.
December 5th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
If you want to completely bypass the shower, bring some baby wipes, use those to get the sweat down, they work really well. Then, if your hair is sweaty, use a blow dryer set on cool. It will dry your hair and cool you off at the same time. You can be ready to get back to work in 15 mins this way. More time to work out!
December 6th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
When you say “get a workout in but avoid the whole shower-hair-makeup thing twice” it seems you’re saying you want a certain kind of workout, one that involves not sweating much. I would suggest a brisk walk, as long as the weather is cool where you are, or a yoga practice. Either of these are healthful but neither will be sufficient to build and strengthen muscle, including your heart, so you’ll need to build in a work out that results in a messy you at least three times a week. One thing you may want to do is shower the night before (leaving your hair dry) so you’re not doing the “twice” thing.
December 7th, 2008 at 9:18 am
I sweat like nobodys business, so not taking a shower after any kind of cardio, and then popping back into a suit, is just not an option for me. That said, when I was working those kind of hours, I took a break in the afternoon 2-3 times a week and went and lifted weights for 40 minutes or so. It was a great break, and I could freshen up and head back to work in just a few minutes (those little oil blotting tissues were great for this).
December 8th, 2008 at 6:57 pm
I work out 3x per week at lunchtime, and I sweat a lot! Ponytail (looped through only halfway so it doesn’t hang on my sweaty back), bangs pulled back with a cloth headband. Shower shoes and shower cap! Blow-dry a couple of mins only on low heat(since my scalp even sweats).
Makeup is very minimal – tinted moisturizer/sunscreen combo, blush/lip gloss combo, mascara. Not ideal but works for me!
December 9th, 2008 at 8:39 am
There’s a blog called DoctorMama.com written by a physician on a mission to convert the world to running. One of her pieces of advice is, “Decide whether you’re a morning or an evening runner.”
This is one of the truest things I’ve encountered on the internet. (I discovered I’m a morning runner.)
Timing is crucial to incorporating exercise intoour life.
Try an experiment: try packing your gym bag with work clothes & shoes the night before. Put the gym bag by the door so you don’t forget it when you leave. Lay out your exercise clothes in the bathroom so they greet you when you first get up. Put them on immediately, go to the gym before work, then do your grooming routine at the gym.
See if that ritual feels right. (I’ve discovered that if I put on my running clothes first thing in the morning, my resistance to running is dramatically lower.)
If it does feel right, then you’ve found a way to eliminate the time-consuming midday undress/exercise/shower/dress routine.
But if it doesn’t feel right, don’t force it. If you time your workouts wrong, you may end up concluding “Exercise just isn’t for me” or “I just can’t make this work” or “I can’t find time” when in reality, you just timed it poorly.
And, uh, vis a vis the midday workout options — I don’t know, I’ve never been able to make that work. (So I no longer beat myself up over it.)
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