Bikram Yoga, aka the Ultimate Sweat Inducer, can leave your Bikram yoga clothes a puddle of foul and rancid sweat at the end of the session, triggering people to dodge you in an attempt to avoid the unearthly smell emanating from your apparel. If you thought that yoga was sweaty, you have yet to try the popular and intense exercise of Bikram Yoga. Bikram yoga incorporates 26 postures and two-breathing exercises lasting for 90 minutes in a heated room (usually 100-degrees plus) to allow for the body to detoxify, relieve stress, and help heal chronic pain. And as you twist into position and consequently bake in the heated room the sweat is bound to pour out of you and seep into the fabrics of your yoga clothes. Moisture-wicking and sweat-proof gear have become a more common apparel trend for Yogi’s, as an added layer of protection for reducing sweat. Although these performance materials and synthetic fabrics provide the capability to absorb sweat produced from exercise – or Bikram Yoga – they also do a really good job of holding onto foul and stinky odors caused by extreme perspiration. So now is the time, to not only defeat sweat but to defeat the sweat odor left behind on your Bikram Yoga Clothes!

What Makes Bikram Sweat So…Smelly?

Heat, heat, and more heat is the perfect recipe for an amalgam of pungent sweat odors and embarrassment, making you want to run to the shower ASAP after a Bikram class. In comparison to a basic yoga class, a Bikram class can have you producing that foul Bikram sweat that will leave its smelly evidence on your yoga clothes far after your session ends. The high temperatures in the studio (over 100 degrees) can dramatically increase the amount of sweat production in most humans. This increase in sweat is associated with a plethora of benefits including:

• An increase in calories burned due to an increase in heart rate and metabolism.
• An increase in oxygenated blood to the muscles from a boost in arm and leg blood flow.
• Improved muscle tone and flexibility.
• Relieves stress.

However, the sweat can also lead to some very unpleasant odors in your yoga apparel as is to be expected from such intense heat and rigorous exercise. Yoga pants and shirts typically contain advanced performance enhancing materials to help aid in the capturing of sweat and overall minimization of sweat in general, but the unfortunate truth is that in Bikram Yoga there is no such thing as no sweat, which leaves your Bikram Yoga Clothes crying for help at the conclusion of a session.

Laundry Tips for Sweaty Bikram Yoga Clothes

Yoga aromas are real, and unfortunately, many of the fabrics used in workout clothes, yoga pants, and other athletic gear are less than forgiving when it comes to sweat odors. Fabrics such as polyester and synthetic fabrics that are used for moisture wicking don’t absorb moisture or odors like basic cotton, so the odors and smells are not released from the fibers following the washing of these fabrics. Instead, the moisture wicking fabric expels water when in the washing cycle making it extremely difficult to penetrate to accomplish odor elimination from the fabrics. Therefore, what can you do when you are left with stinky Bikram Yoga Clothing that will not relent the odor out of the fabric?

Immediately Wash Your Fabrics

After a workout, the first thing you want to do is get in the shower and expel the foul sweat odors from your body. Usually, during the pursuit of this quest, our yoga clothes are often discarded and forgotten about either on the floor of the bathroom or locked away in your hamper with the ideal conditions for mold and bacteria growth. Sweat odors in your clothing can act as a breeding ground for bacteria, thus the longer the sweaty clothes are left unwashed the more bacteria that will grow on your workout clothes. To aid in the removal of odors from your Bikram yoga clothes the first thing you will want to implement into your odor removal process is making sure you wash your sweaty yoga clothes immediately following a sweat session. Having a quick response to sweat odors in your workout clothes can make a big difference in how effectively the odors are removed in your washing routine.

Extra Rinse Cycle

An extra rinse cycle in your washing routine may also help when trying to remove sweat odors from your yoga apparel. Often times, the detergent will remain on your sports fabrics after the wash cycle has concluded. When detergent is left behind on your clothes it can mix with the remaining odor to create an even worse stench than you started with to begin. Therefore, adding an extra rinse cycle could be beneficial as it can help to wash away the residual odors and detergent left behind on your fabrics.  

Effective Sport Wash Laundry Detergent

You may think that laundry detergent is the ultimate one-stop product for all laundry detergent odors and stenches, but when it comes to sweat odors in your yoga clothes you may need a reinforcing source to eliminate the odors trapped within the fabrics. A specialty formulated sweat odor neutralizing laundry additive could be the solution to all your sweat odor problems in your Bikram yoga clothes. The OdorKlenz Sport Laundry Additive utilizes a patented earth mineral technology that is effective at eliminating the stubborn sweat and body odors from your workout clothes and yoga apparel. The laundry additive is gentle enough to use on DRI-Fit clothing and yoga pants but is also strong enough to remove the sweat odors from the source of the fabric. Don’t let your sweaty yoga clothes be the source of embarrassment for you any longer. With these easy steps you can make sure that your smelliest of Bikram yoga clothes smell as fresh as the day you bought them, so you are ready for another sweat-filled Bikram session.