In the gym, your hands, clothes and gym towel are constantly in contact with shared surfaces. Microorganisms can travel from the gym equipment to your hands, from the padding to your gym towel, and from there on to your skin, face, clothing or the next machine.
Moisture in particular can encourage this transfer. Sweaty hands and damp gym towels pick up more easily whatever is sitting on handles, benches and other contact surfaces.
How can germs be carried through your workout?
- Contact with handles, dumbbells or gym equipment
- Transfer to hands and fingers
- Pick-up by the gym towel
- Passed on to skin, face or the next machine
- The damp gym towel travels home in the gym bag
In short: Germs don't automatically stay put on a single surface. Deliberate hand hygiene, keeping the two sides of your gym towel separate and a clean approach to shared gym equipment help break unnecessary transmission chains.
Please note: The mechanisms shown come from various scientific studies. Laboratory values and transfer rates cannot always be applied directly to every training situation.
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