If you’ve walked into a gym before you’ve probably seen multiple sanitizing stations and signs requesting you to “please wipe down equipment after use”. These stations are usually extremely accessible and include easy-to-use hand sanitizer machines and cleansing wipes.
Unfortunately, however, most gym members have dubbed this requested step a mere act of courtesy rather than a requirement. As a result, the machines, mats, and weights you’re touching at the gym are covered in countless numbers of bacteria and germs. Whether staff members are doing regular checks throughout the day or not, their equipment is being in constant use by sweaty, germy bodies.
While I can’t claim I’ve never forgotten to wipe down the equipment before, I think it is extremely important that we recognize the importance of cleaning at the gym.
Why? Well, because the gym is making people sick. A few seconds of being proactive is all it takes to protect yourself and others from a vast list of icky germ-inducing things, such as bacterial, fungal, and viral diseases. According to the National Athletic Trainer’s Association (NATA), gyms are simply breeding grounds for germs and bacteria. In light of this fact, taking a few minutes out of your workout to clean up doesn’t sound that bad, does it?
