by Matt Bird

Created on: June 12, 2009

I don't know about the rest of you, but when I visit the gym it's to improve my health, not make it worse. And though the gym is an excellent place to tone your body and get your muscles pumping it's also a great place to pick up plenty of nasty germs.

Why? Well, because of the emphasis on using the body. When people are working out they sweat, they cough, they heave - and they do all these things over the equipment. Allowing yourself to take in these germs is a quick way to get yourself sick, so it's very much to your advantage to limiting your exposure to these germs as possible.

Here are a few tips to help you do just that. Keep them all in mind and you should be A-OK on your next visit.

1.) Wipe off every machine, mat or exercise aid before you use it. It's amazing how dirty these things get after even a single person uses it. And though the majority of users will be kind enough to wipe off their machine - luckily most gyms either provide towels, clean wipes for quick uses or both - you'd be surprised how many either forget or just plain won't do it. Disgusting in either case, and there's no reason you should chance using an infected machine, especially since wiping takes a couple seconds at most.

2.) Bring your own towel from home, and clean it after every visit. No offense to these gyms, I'm sure they wash their towels very thoroughly. But why take the risk? Just grab a towel you KNOW only has your own germs on it and cart it down to the gym. Make sure you're the only person who uses it, as well, or the whole thing will be for naught.

3.) Avoid people who are coughing, heaving or sweating a lot. It may sound rude, but you don't need to be too overt about this. Just edge away from them relatively slowly. You'd be amazed how many people show up to the gym and either overdo it like crazy or are just plain sick.

4.) Don't eat anything in a gym. Doesn't matter if it's from the gym or not, packaged or not, just wait until you're outside.

5.) Bring your own bottled water. Never share with someone else.

6.) Avoid the showers, for the most part. They're kept clean every day, but there are still plenty of accumulated germs. If you can get away with it, just shower at home and avoid the germs of sweaty men and women.

7.) Spend as little time in the locker room as you can. Don't linger too long, even though the compulsion to rest may come upon you. Locker rooms are breeding grounds for germs of all kinds, which stands to reason since people are getting dressed in close proximity. Get in, get changed, get out.

Not too hard, is it? The key is mainly to limit as much of the gym's equipment you use as possible. I wouldn't say you have to go TOO overboard - good gyms really do work hard to keep clean - but a bit of caution, especially when it comes to using machines, is warranted.

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