How to Get the Stink Out of Workout Gym Clothes

Black gym bag, women's workout clothes and blue water bottle on floor, plant in foreground.

Activewear absorbs some of the strongest smells. Even after multiple washes, sweaty and sour odors remain. Find out why your gym clothes smell and how you can wash the funk away.

Why do my clothes smell sour when I sweat?

Did you know that your sweat doesn’t actually have an odor? It’s when sweat mixes with our skin’s bacteria-containing microbiome that the sour smell is produced.¹ The smell then sticks to the fabric of gym clothes and becomes hard to remove.

multi-colored dirty laundry in piles on floor

How often should I wash activewear?

It’s best to wash your gym clothes after every workout to prevent built-up odors and lingering bacteria that can cause skin irritation or infection. You can wash your activewear less regularly if you’re just doing light exercise but avoid re-wearing without washing more than 2–3 times.

Turn you clothes inside out

Turning your gym clothes inside out allows detergent and other cleaning products like Clorox FreshGuard™ Laundry Odor Remover to really get to the source of the smells. This way, the side of the fabric that has touched your body and absorbed sweat and other odors is more easily cleaned.

Avoid fabric softener

Fabric softener limits the ability of towels to absorb moisture and workout wear to wick moisture away from the body. Because fabric softener coats fabric with ingredients to impart a soft hand feel to fabrics, it can actually trap odors in, rather than removing them.

Pointer finger pressing button on clothes dryer with "125" in digital display.

What you need

Steps to remove smells from gym clothes

  1. Load the machine

    Add detergent and clothing.

  2. Add Clorox FreshGuard™ Laundry Odor Remover

    Add measured amount of Clorox FreshGuard™ to fabric softener compartment or directly to rinse cycle wash. Rinse cap after use.

  3. Machine wash

    Wash laundry on your preferred setting as usual.

For best results, do not mix with laundry detergents in the main wash compartment. This product works in the rinse cycle exclusively. Safe to use on most washable fabrics. Not intended for use on silk or wool. Not for use on materials that cannot be washed in washing machines.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can Clorox FreshGuard™ Laundry Odor Remover work on colored clothes and whites?

Yes! Clorox FreshGuard™ Laundry Odor Remover works on both colored clothing and whites.

Do I need to dilute Clorox FreshGuard™ Laundry Odor Remover?

No need, Clorox FreshGuard™ Laundry Odor Remover is a ready-to-use product.