Gym Bag & Post-Exercise Essentials
Want to add some souped-up skincare to your workout routine? We’ve got the goods.
Check out our guide to the very best additions to your gym bag for a post-workout cleanse that will leave you feeling refreshed and ready for the next session.
Freshen Up
One of the most important components in your gym arsenal is a cleansing men’s shower gel to refresh and revitalise after a hard session. Your hard work deserves more than the weird smelling, luminously coloured astringent shower gel they keep in the gym changing rooms.
Our shower gel collection comes with a range of scents, featuring skin-loving ingredients aimed to leave you feeling luxuriously clean and cleansed after a workout.
Try the Lemon and Bergamot for a revitalising citrus blast, or the Peppermint and Eucalyptus for a crisp, invigorating feel. For something a bit zestier, we’ve got the Ginger and Patchouli, or if you’re looking for a richer, earthier scent, try the Vetiver and Black Pepper.
If you’re not sure if you should be packing a soap or a body wash we’d advise that it doesn’t matter too much and comes down to personal preference. As long as it cleans and refreshes without drying out the skin you should be covered. If you’ve decided on packing a soap, make sure you have a water tight soap case to stop any suds leaking in your gym bag. However, it’s best to keep the soap for your body only as using soap on your face can be harmful to the skin - use a face wash instead; we’ve got a wide range to suit all skin types!
Grease Controlling Face Wash
Ever notice that your skin likes to host a little blemish party when you up the ante on your gym regime? The combination of sweat and dirt can clog your pores leading to breakouts. Make sure you hit the shower straight after you finish working out rather than waiting too long and hanging around in your sweaty gym kit.
Next, make sure you look after your face by including a specialist product in your gym bag. Even if you’re not prone to oily skin, the increase of sweat following exercise can result in your skin behaving a little differently than you’re used to.
Upping the ante and using an Oil Control Face Wash will help to deal with the problems faced by oily skin, whether that’s your usual skin type or something related to your environment and lifestyle.
We’d recommend that you lather up and give your face a thorough (but gentle) wash for at least a good 30 seconds. It doesn’t sound like long but, next time you wash your face, try counting in your head. We reckon you’ll be surprised by how short your usual cleanse takes.
Good to Go
Whether you’re an early bird, lunchtime lunge lizard or evening powerlifter you want to know that you can step out of the gym changing rooms and go about the rest of your day without any lingering smells (gross) or gnarly post-dumbbell hands. It may sound obvious but, now you’ve showered and cleansed, you can still make sure you’re looking your very best after a work out with a few simple and easy to use products.
Just like you’d drink lots of water on the day that you exercise, give your skin a long refreshing drink. Working out causes transepidermal water loss. In English this is when water passes from the top two layers of the skin and then evaporates from the skin’s surface. It’s a natural process but sweating encourages this to happen rapidly. Counteract it with Oil Control Moisturiser – a light, hydrating moisturiser.
It’s also important to roll with the best deodorant for men. Put down the strong aerosol, it’s just not cool to use in an enclosed space (let’s be considerate people). You want a low-key deodorant that doesn’t overpower your favourite fragrance. Our Original Deodorant roll-on is aluminium free and contains a blend of essential oils. Or, choose a scent you love from our range.
Finally, look after your extremities! If you’ve spent an hour gripping, pushing & pulling your hands have done a huge amount of work bearing the brunt for the rest of your body. Look after them with a specially formulated hand cream for men. It will tend to be a thicker formulation than a regular body lotion as your hands will be used to much more exposure than other parts of your body (ahem) so will need to be more nourishing. Our Original Hand Cream fits the bill perfectly.
Some Key Questions
Can I use shower gel as shampoo?
There’s no harm using our shower gel instead of a shampoo but, as it’s been specially formulated for the body not hair, we would recommend that you only use it on the hair as a last resort i.e. if you’ve forgotten your shampoo.
Can I use shower gel as a face wash?
We’d say no to this one. You want a face wash that’s going to properly cleanse the skin on your face gently without leaving it feeling dried out or uncomfortable. A shower gel won’t be formulated for this purpose so might leave the skin feeling dry and uncomfortable.
Can I use a moisturiser on my hands as well as my face?
You can but because the skin on the hands is much thicker than that on your face, it won’t fully rehydrate the skin. Using a thicker formulation (such as our Original Hand cream) will give you a much better outcome.