Smelly cycling tops-washing when

Maybe I'm stupid/naive or desensitized to my..own smells..

but in winter/cooler seaons, I only wash my cycling tops...um...maybe after 10 rides. That's cycling 40 kms. each ride. Warmer season isn't whole lot more frequent ..since here in Vancouver it doesn't get sweltering..but my distances are at least doubled/tripled in total.

What motivates me during warmer cycling season to wash my tops more often..is at least being able to stride into work with my cycling gear on ..and not smelly funky. (One of the reasons why I resisted wearing cycling jerseys for lst few years of cycling was old teenage memories of smelly polyester.)

Otherwise on weekends, I'm less concerned.

And admittedly I don't use deodorant. I actually have...tried it 2-3 times...as a teenager.

Ok, you can run for the hills...:o I do shower and lather with soap daily.

Um, switch to wool? :D

ewwwwwwwwwwww - sorry lol

I only use the "crystal" type deodorant, other types make me smell worse and linger in my clothes too. And my diet has a LOT to do with my smell. (animal products bring the familiar "rotten" smell, but any spices, garlic, fenugreek, coriander, etc. come right through in my sweat :o)

But I know how my pile of workout clothes smells at the end of four or five days when I have enough for a load :eek:

Along with eliminating non-crystal deodorants, some baking soda in the wash goes a long way. Sun-drying helps if something's gotten really funky.

I know when I was a kid, 25 years ago or so and using different products, I heard through the grapevine a couple of times that I smelled "odd - not unpleasant, but odd." No one would say it to my face, but I was certainly desensitized to my own smell.

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Originally Posted by Dianyla

Um, switch to wool? :D

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Sounds itchy. Seriously, for me to wear wool against my skin, only fine lovely sweaters for dressier wear.

I've asked my partner, my closest friends (for past 1/4 century) who use deodorant presumably themselves and eat less spicy food than me, work colleagues, family (do they count, some wear deodorant, I think), haven't told me nor avoided me.

I'm not sure if this makes a diff...but over the years now..I'm hardly growing any underarm hair. Genuinely don't need to shave hardly anymore...

Might be different..if I didn't shower daily..but I do. I use body lotion..because my skin is quite dry and has a very low fragrance.

Could I go camping and not shower for a week or so? No way! I knew someone who went hiking and camping in the Northwest Territories for 3 weeks. They only showered...twice during that trip.

Polyester cycling wear gets stinky because it encourages bacteria under the arms to reproduce. It's the bacteria that smells by the end of the day. Polyester is the worst thing to wear if you want to avoid smelling.

The new soft fine merino wool apparel does not itch against the skin. It's soft and lovely feeling. Three major sources to buy it from are Smartwool and Ibex and Icebreaker. People just don't get the fact that it's not heavy and itchy until they try one on and see for themselves. Merino wool breathes, and bacteria do not like wool and hence you can wear wool for days and not smell much underarm aroma. A thin merino top will keep you warm when it's cool out, and also it will keep you from getting clammy and sweaty when it's warm out, because it breathes. I plan to wear some thin merino wool tank tops this summer. It just feels GOOD, and unlike polyester it breathes, and it does not smell. Plus, you don't have to wash it nearly as often as polyester.
Merino wool....it's not like your grandma's sweaters anymore. :)

I use that crystal deodorant as well. It's basically just mineral salts and inhibits bacteria growth under the arms. I like using it much better than some strong anti-perspirant.
I would just make one comment in addition- I have known some people who don't use deodorant in order to be 'natural' and they bathe every day. But they sweat and they do smell. They smell from 2 feet away and it's not the most pleasant thing to talk with them. But- they do not smell themselves- they have become accustomed to their own underarm smell and do not think it is noticeable by others. I know this because I have heard them state that they don't use deodorant and they don't smell. But they do smell. :cool: Mind you, I don't think a healthy underarm odor is anything bad per se, a mild clean underarm odor can be appealing in fact....but as a society we are just not used to it, plus I have observed that manmade fabrics such as polyester makes this smell much worse.

I think if you want to go with the no deodorant lifestyle you really should at least stay away from man made fabrics. Stick to natural fibers that breathe.
"Wicking" claims from polyester promoters are a poor substitute for the natural wicking properties of wool. Just my opinion. I own polyester items and use them for certain purposes...but mostly as bottoms/tights and as tops but not against my skin where they will always start smelling bad. When I wear wool (or linen/cotton) I don't have that problem at all.

Sounds to me like you've just got your clothing really dialed to the temperatures you ride in :-) I hate getting overheated, so I'm really anal about wearing *just* enough to stay comfortably "slightly warm" and dry(ish). If I do this right I don't have to change my tops very often, even when I'm not wearing wool.

When it's cold out this is pretty easy, once the weather turns damp it's harder. In cold dry weather I can wear the same stuff for 3-4-5 days, after one day (2 commutes of 15-20 km each) in wet weather my clothes can stink to high heaven. Seems like the smell sets in a lot faster if I don't manage to partially dry out what I'm wearing as I go. Some microbiologist could probably tell me more than I really want to know about this process :p

Lisa-

I'm just the opposite of your friends.

I do wear deodorant, but it's the Tom's of Maine stuff, so pretty mild. However, I'm hyper sensitive to underarm smell. I think the polyester stuff does make it worse. But it comes other times too (even when wearing clean wool). I've asked (close) friends if they can smell anything, and it seems to be just me that notices. Still...makes me paranoid. I tried the crystal, and it didn't work....

Ah well...just goes to show we're all different.

I have no opinion on whether you smell or not (!!), only a sniff test will do :D , but shall I recommend that you buy your next sports top at MEC [for other readers: that's the Canadian REI, and not far from ShootingStar's home I think] in the merino wool section? They are much less expensive than Smartwool or Ibex or Icebreaker. The quality is a bit less than Ibex but not very different from Icebreaker, I think, and they are MUCH cheaper. (My Smartwool pieces are very thin and don't really compare to the MEC stuff, so I don't know about that.) And they do not itch. At all. I wear their wool t-shirts all the time in the summer, I find them for long trips. The bike jerseys tend to be more expensive (as jerseys are) but they have a zip top and a crew neck.

I also love wool socks. I can wear them for running two or three days in a row, saves me from doing more laundry. I also love the Smartwool wool socks, which I wear more than once (not for exercise) now and then, especially on trips where bag space is limited.

But, I have to candidly admit, never 10 times. Often 3 though.

This is one of my MEC top (I don't like this colour though - mine is grey with pink sleeves that make it very visible):
http://images.mec.ca/media/Images/Pr...9830634516.jpg

Even here in Florida, I wear wool tops for much of my winter cycling and occasionally my Ibex wool knickers. When the temps rise, though, I generally wear something like this:
Cotton Fitness Tee
I know cotton is the devil in most cyclists' eyes, but this shirt is so lightweight and does such a good job of wicking perspiration, compared to the average cotton T-shirt, that I wear one of them on my rides well into June (I have three). I like that I can keep my forearms protected from the sun, too.

July and August are a different story--some days, even at 6 in the morning, it's already hot and humid. I'm still looking for a satisfactory alternative to synthetic fabrics for cycling during that time of year. Any suggestions are welcome!

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I would just make one comment in addition- I have known some people who don't use deodorant in order to be 'natural' and they bathe every day. But they sweat and they do smell. They smell from 2 feet away and it's not the most pleasant thing to talk with them. But- they do not smell themselves- they have become accustomed to their own underarm smell and do not think it is noticeable by others. I know this because I have heard them state that they don't use deodorant and they don't smell. But they do smell. Mind you, I don't think a healthy underarm odor is anything bad per se, a mild clean underarm odor can be appealing in fact...[snip]

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ahem....hear, hear!

Karen

I wonder if oily/dry skin is involved? I have relatively oily skin (NEVER wear lotion - I just feel greasy then) and my sweat does stink (and I do smell it - perhaps more than other people do, since DH never smells it). I don't wash my ski stuff every time, but I did notice that it smelled yesterday (and washed it last night, wore it again today and it still smelled a little). My DH has very dry skin (claims when he was a kid the doctor said he didn't have any oil glands, which I find to be somewhat farfetched), but he never smells. He uses lotion daily. He doesn't have to shower every day. I am pretty jealous.

I used regular deodorant/antiperspirant until last summer, when I changed to the crystal stuff. I still sweat, but it really does help with the smell. The regular stuff just smells like chemicals to me (harder and harder to find unscented anything), and when I'm really sweaty, the mixture of smells is awful. But then, department store perfume departments smell like insect repellant to me, so maybe it's my nose.:rolleyes: Actually, I avoid anything scented, because it seems like it doesn't work with my body chemistry, or something.

Anyway, in the summer I can't really get away with not washing my workout clothes frequently. I do shower daily (well, if I'm going to be around anybody, or go anywhere). And my wool stuff does start to smell, sometimes the first day, sometimes after 3 or 4.

Wow - the information we share here!:p

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Originally Posted by Skierchickie

I My DH has very dry skin (claims when he was a kid the doctor said he didn't have any oil glands, which I find to be somewhat farfetched), but he never smells. He uses lotion daily. He doesn't have to shower every day. I am pretty jealous.

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Amazing..I always perceived men as just sweating and smelling alot more from activity.

Do I plan to wear deodorant after this..doubtful. :o No one has avoided me....I have jobs which require people to approach me for help which means them finding me, sitting and standing right beside me while I demonstrate or instruct them. If after all these past few decades, I have managed to keep groups of people overtime for almost 2 hrs..in a small rm...and they don't want to leave a course that I'm teaching...

Maybe think about washing my cycling more often. After all, I don't sit in enclosed rm. in the office with cycling gear on. :D

Grog, thanks for remarks. I've walked right by those clothing line displays at MEC. maybe I'll try something from that line....one day...I need to replace a broken pair of clear cycling glasses anyway. Not sure I can spend more moolah on cycling gear...after REI blowout purchases last fall. :D

I soak everything (all my wicking running, biking, xc ski clothes) to death with washing soap in a basin in the bathtub and then hang to dry *every* time I wear them. Otherwise they get super stinky. The odor stays in the clothes and eventually gets so bad I cannot wear them. That's a waste of money, since wicking stuff is expensive. I sweat like a ******. Except if it's wool (then every 3rd or 4th) or if it's not a base layer (every couple of times).

What about washing biking clothes in specially made products just for sweaty and smelly clothes? Maybe something like Assos or Win? I'm sure they are others, but can't think of any more right now. I know these have been mentioned before in this forum, but thought I'd mention them again. They've worked really well for me.

I have to use deodorant AND shave my legs. My mom doesn't have to do either and she NEVER smells. Why couldn't I get her genes? But alas, I always wash my tops (and bottoms as a matter of fact) after a ride. Well, not right after a ride. I let them hang out to dry and then throw them in the hamper for the next load of laundry. One ride and that's it for me.

I have worked with people who had really bad b.o. I had to be close to them, but never had the heart to tell them to go get cleaned up. That's when I run get a mint, put it in my mouth, and try not to smell them.

I am super-stinky, and thank the heavens above for my best friend's mom who told me when I was a teenager that I was kinda smelly. She suggested I use some baking soda with my deodorant. What a kind woman!

(baking soda works wonders, by the way)

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Originally Posted by shootingstar

Amazing..I always perceived men as just sweating and smelling alot more from activity.

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Not necessarily. One of my boyfriends is full Chinese and he can go backpacking for days wearing synthetic polypro underwear and still not have any BO. He sweats a lot, too, but doesn't generate stink. Amazing!

um, how do you use the baking soda?

The only time I don't wash after every wear is if it's a recovery ride with very low effort, or if I'm wearing my wool. The wool gets washed very infrequently!

Ditto. It's not inconvenient if you have lots of biking/workout clothes. :D

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Originally Posted by mimitabby

um, how do you use the baking soda?

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Dip the deodorant stick into the baking soda (so there's a fine dusting of soda on it) and apply as usual.

Been doing it for about 25 years, works great for my stinky pits.

I'll have to share the baking soda idea with dh. Even when he puts on deodorant/antiperspirant he is still "stinky man". Even I get smelly. That wicking material really does create strong odors. And I wash everything we wore on our ride immediately after every ride. I'm fanatical about this. In fact they go straight into the washer as soon as we are both showered.

I've not had a problem with my synthetics retaining odors since I switched to crystal deodorant and started putting baking soda in the wash. I don't know how much really, maybe 1/3-1/2 cup per load.

I'm a really big fan of Under Armour base layers during the summer and winter. Their stuff is notorious for becoming really really stinky after just one wear. All of my cycling jersey's get nasty, too, after a long day in the saddle in June.

I got a couple bottles of Win (the sports apparel laundry detergent) and have used that since the fall. It was an immediate difference because it completely removes the smell. So much so that I had worn a pair of winter cycling tights for 3 days straight (7+ hrs!!) and my girlfriend didn't take them to do the laundry. She said she did the sniff test to everything and they apparently didn't smell. The stuff works great and I recommend it.

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Originally Posted by DirtDiva

It's not inconvenient if you have lots of biking/workout clothes. :D

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True... and I do have a rather large pile come laundry day... but honestly it isn't that inconvenient when I'm traveling, and just bring one set of running/gym clothes to wear and one set to wash. Just takes a couple of minutes, some dish soap, Dr. Bronner's or hotel shampoo (no bar soap!), and odors come right out in hand laundry with a little extra attention to the armpits and cr*tch. Cycling shorts don't always dry overnight where there's high humidity or low air circulation, so a third pair of those is good when I'm riding every day.

boy i sure love my ibex and smart wool. (and heck, my second hand store wool sweaters for that matter!)