How to Get the Stink Out of Your Workout Clothes + Descending Interval Super Set Workout

This post is sponsored by HEX Performance. Keep reading to learn about a new way to clean your sweaty, smelly workout clothes along with an awesome descending interval workout that I’ve programmed to get you sweaty! 🙂 

If you’re a regular reader of my blog, I’d say that the chances are high that you deal with a lot of sweaty clothes and a lot of smelly laundry. It just goes with the territory of living an active lifestyle. One of the questions I get asked often by my yoga students is, “what can I do to get the stink out of my yoga clothes and mat towel?”

Until now my best advice had been to add baking soda and vinegar to the wash with your detergent. I wrote a post about this back in 2012 (along with this picture of my Sullie girl before her face got all white…she STILL loves to lounge on my sweaty, smelly clothes) and it’s brought a ton of visits to my site. It’s a tough problem to tackle.

There is truly nothing worse than starting a workout thinking your clothes are fresh and clean and then starting to sweat and thinking to yourself, “What is that smell? OMG it’s ME!” And this is not only a problem for hot yoga practitioners but also runners, CrossFitters and anyone who sweats in athletic clothing. It is truly it’s own special smell and it is truly awful!

This is why I am super pumped to be partnering with HEX Performance to tell you all about how they’re changing the game in the laundry category by really cleaning clothes rather than just masking odors.

And I figured it would be a good idea to give you a workout to go along with this post so that you can get sweaty and then have a reason to test HEX out for yourself! 😉

Let’s talk about HEX first and what they’re doing different and then we’ll get to the workout. It’s a really, really good one!

HEX Performance Laundry Detergent

Did you know that traditional laundry detergents/formulas were created in a time when people were mostly washing cotton fabrics? These days more than 60% of average laundry loads are synthetic or blended fabrics. It makes sense to me that different fabrics would need different cleaning formulas, especially given how technical some of today’s fabrics are!

Most traditional detergent companies rely on heavy fragrances to make us believe that our clothes are clean but as we all know (too well), the stink and smell come right back. Masking odors might make for a lovely laundry folding experience but not a nice workout experience. HEX is different in that it addresses the problems and bacteria in the fabric that are actually making them stink.

Let’s run through a few of the product features/benefits of HEX…

• It cleans sweat, stains, dirt and tough odors caused by bacteria, which is what is causing all the stink to start with
• It cleans odors rather than masks them with heavy fragrance
• It’s concentrated, you only use 1 ounce versus 2 ounces of traditional detergent
• It’s clear and pours like water – it’s not thick, blue or sticky (have you ever spilled that stuff and tried to clean it up!?)
• The product is eco-friendly and the packaging has a small footprint

I want to give you more information on the green details because I know it’s something many consider in their buying process. Here are a few highlights of what HEX is put a more eco-friendly product into the marketplace. You can read more on their website.

• Everything in HEX is carefully engineered to be eco-friendly and biodegradable so it doesn’t harm your clothes or the environment
• Thanks to no dyes, no fillers, no harsh perfumes and no phosphates, you’re left with a better formula that’s almost clear and pours like water
• 93% of the paper in their packaging is certified sustainable
• HEX uses 75% less plastic in their packaging than traditional detergent bottles
• The HEX Advanced Laundry Detergent and HEX On Demand+ Spray & Go passed the Whole Foods Market Eco-Scale™ test

HEX offers a variety of products including everything from laundry detergent to fabric booster to dual action gear wash to a spray that you can use on the go for a quick refresher. I received the detergent and the dual action gear wash. With the detergent you can choose between a fresh clean scent or a free + clear formula where you won’t miss the fragrance because the product actually cleans.

The gear wash is a special treatment that deep cleans and then prevents odors from coming back for up to 30 days!

Finally, my personal review. I’ve used the detergent multiple times now and the gear wash on a load of some of my most heavily used and smelliest clothes. Here are my thoughts…

• The detergent and gear wash are both simple to use. You use the detergent just like any other detergent and the gear wash requires you to pour one solution in the detergent compartment and the second in the fabric softener compartment…and that’s it! You wash just like you normally would.
• There is a noticeable difference in the clothes washed with HEX Performance detergent and gear wash. The biggest test came with two pairs of Lululemon Wunder Unders that I love but had this awful stuck-in odor that can best be described as a cross between dog smell and hot yoga stink. I could smell them the moment I put them on, even right out of the wash. Post gear wash treatment there is at least a 75% improvement in the smell.
• This is kind of gross but I can also tell a difference when I’m driving home in sweaty clothes on the occasions I don’t shower at the studio. Usually I am like, “how can I smell so bad from teaching class!?” The clothes washed with HEX are noticeably less offensive.
• I’ve also noticed a difference with my sports bras, the Y2 Yoga tanks that I teach in and other leggings.
• I would recommend this product to all my fellow runners, hot yogis and workout enthusiasts as well as moms who are washing your kid’s smelly sports gear. It’s a big step up from traditional detergents!

If you’d like to try HEX Performance out for yourself, use code PBRUNNER at checkout for 20% off your purchase! Bonus, free shipping for orders over $25!

Now for the workout!

Descending Interval Super Set Workout

I taught this workout in my Y2 Strength classes recently and everyone loved it! The way the descending intervals and super sets work are that you alternate back and forth between the two exercises. So for super set 1, it would look like this…

:60 dumbbell thrusters
:50 jump squats
:40 dumbbell thrusters
:30 jump squats
:20 dumbbell thrusters

So you end up doing three rounds of the first exercise and two of the second. Each super set is a total of four minutes long and you complete that super set before you move on to the next. I hope that makes sense and feel free to comment below with questions.

Here is a visual of the exercises in each super set. Since many of them are complex and/or new to my blog, I also made a video where I not only demonstrate each movement but offer coaching and form cues as well.

I hope you’ll check out HEX Performance products and also try my workout. The two go hand-in-hand perfectly and I promise you’ll need the detergent after you finish this super set workout!

Don’t forget, use code PBRUNNER for 20% off your HEX order at checkout!

Do you find yourself dealing with smelly workout clothes? Which seem to be the worst offenders?

What’s your worst smelly workout clothes story? Ever been in a class and realized your clothes were smelly? Or left smelly clothes in a hot car? Don’t hold back!