Dealing with the Wet Elephant in the Room

May 25, 2017 11:40 AM

I want to get back to swimming every morning before work. However, I take public transportation and would be unable to make it back home before heading down to the office. What the heck do I do with my swim gear that is low profile, low odor, and low moisture?

I used to go swimming semi-regularly at the gym while I was at a previous job and on a different schedule w/ better access to the car, so I was able to come home, shower, & change before driving into work.

In my new job & routine, I take public transportation and walk to the gym & office. There is a bus stop right near the gym, so walking home just to drop off my gear adds an additional 30 minutes to my morning I'm not willing to waste.

My office doesn't have a gym, locker rooms, or other, semi-private space I could lock up my gear. It's a semi-open format office, so I don't have an office space, or full cubicle, to store a gym bag. I would prefer to be able to fit everything into my existing work/laptop backpack (perhaps sans lunch), so I don't take up extra seats on the bus.

How can I store my wet suit, towel/s, & other swim gear discreetly at work, without stinking up the place, soaking through my bag, or ruining my gear with mold/mildew growth?

posted by RhysPenbras to Health & Fitness (15 answers total)

First: have you checked whether or not your gym has one of those swim suit drying spinner things? They're magic and every gym I have swum at (from fancy to the Y) has them. Second, does the gym have - for free or otherwise - towel service? Monthly locker rental? Anything that would allow you to minimize the bringing-to-work problem at all?
posted by brainmouse at 11:45 AM on May 25, 2017

Since it sounds like the office and gym are walking-distance from each other, does the gym have lockers where you could store your wet stuff all day?
posted by tchemgrrl at 11:49 AM on May 25, 2017

I do this! What I did:

Switch from bringing a towel to renting one. (Or, if that's not an option, use a super-absorbent camping towels.) This is critical.

Affix a tension rod or 3M hooks to the underside of the desk, on the less-visible side (on my desk, on the side of the drawers facing my legs). Hang suit on that. Most offices are pretty dry; mine dries fully by 4pm.

Use the suit spinner religiously.

Use only travel-sized toiletries. Everything should fit in one quart-sized ziplock.

A gallon-sized ziplock keeps the damp stuff from harming the laptop and papers in transit.

That's it, works for me. If you don't have your own desk I'm not sure what you'll do--I can say that the one time I forgot to hang up my wet stuff it did start to mildew pretty fast. (The swimsuit didn't, though, because it's quick-dry and chlorine is antibacterial.)
posted by epanalepsis at 11:53 AM on May 25, 2017

Clarification: No, there is a 15 min bus ride and 20 min walk between gym and work. My morning commute would go: Walk to Gym > Swim > Take Bus Down Town > Walk to Office

Last time I checked there was no swim suit spinney thing (those things are AMAZING) or towel service, but I will directly inquire.
posted by RhysPenbras at 12:04 PM on May 25, 2017

I use a small-ish waterproof toiletry/traveller bag. It holds my swimsuit, silicone cap, goggles, small ultralite towel, soap/soap dish, and travel size shampoo bottles. Wipe dry everything as best you can before putting things in the bag. I also put my suit IN the cap before putting it in the bag.

I do have a little locker that I can use to hang my bathing suit once at work. With the other items I just open up and air out the toiletry bag.

To get rid of that chlorine smell off your gear and yourself. Rinse off with a mixture of water and 1/2 tbsp of ascorbic acid (vitamin C) powder. I carry a separate (foldable) water bottle for this so I can fill the water during the shower or at the sink.

EDIT: If you have a swim backpack, or any backpacks with similar straps, you can hang your suit and towel on the outside so they can dry and air out a bit during your walk.
posted by lucia_engel at 12:05 PM on May 25, 2017

Wet things go in a plastic grocery bag or dry sack to protect the other things in my backpack. If I have time, they hang in my locker at work to partially dry. If I don't have time to go to my locker, they sit until I rinse them out and air dry at home.

I have not noticed a mildew problem and I've been doing this for years. I get some crud in my goggles that I eventually wash out with a glasses lens cleaner. I rotate two sets of shorts and towels in the summer when things don't dry, but use the same set in the winter when the air is dry and everything is fully dry the next morning.

The key is making a mental checklist of things to collect every morning, and being consistent with what you do and where you put things.
posted by blnkfrnk at 12:45 PM on May 25, 2017

Caveat that I have no idea how well this would actually work, but the suit spinner thing makes me think of a salad spinner, and googling that seems to show some potential feasibility...

If hanging up your suit in the office turns out to be a problem, could you rent a locker at the gym, hang your stuff there, and take the bus there to pick it up at the end of the day instead of going straight home?
posted by trig at 1:57 PM on May 25, 2017

Artificial chamois is what you want! As seen used by divers during Olympic competition. Dries you quickly, stores away in a plastic tube and is meant to stay a bit damp in there for best use. There are a million kinds out there. Here's one. Check your automotive section at a big box store for likely cheaper options.
posted by goggie at 2:24 PM on May 25, 2017

If you go the artificial chamois route - not only will it dry you, you can also fold it around your suit and press - it will shorten the drying time.
posted by bunderful at 3:59 PM on May 25, 2017

A dry bag - usually for keeping your stuff dry from water on the outside - will hold your wet suit/cap/chamois towel all day, and squinches down pretty small if you get the smallest one that holds your wet goods. Be sure to rinse your suit in regular water (or this vitamin C trick, which is new to me) so you're not going to be knocked over by the chlorine whiff when you open that sack at home.

Rotate suits, towels, and gear bag so they all get thoroughly dried out before rewetting.
posted by janell at 4:38 PM on May 25, 2017

Seconding the Vitamin C spray. I just add a small amount of L-Ascorbic Acid Powder to a travel spray bottle and add water. I refill it about every other week. Right after my swim I spray it all over my body and in my hair, get all​ my shower stuff ready, and then wash it off. It seems to work better if it sits for a few minutes. It's a miracle for removing the chlorine smell from my skin and hair... it doesn't seem particularly effective on my swim suit though. I might not be spraying enough to fully saturate or something but YMMV.

If you're ok with disposable stuff my gym has a roll of those cheap plastic produce bags you find at a grocery store for wet items. it's perfect for storing your suit and just dispose when you're done so it's 1 less thing you have to worry about drying.
posted by simplethings at 4:47 PM on May 25, 2017

I have this microfiber beach towel that's like a giant camping towel. If I roll up a wet suit in one and wring it out, it gets dry enough that it won't drip. Then you could hang your st and towel under your desk.
posted by advicepig at 4:57 PM on May 25, 2017

It's like this one.
posted by advicepig at 5:04 PM on May 25, 2017

I've used a wet bag (intended for cloth diapers) for this from time to time. Cloth diapers pose the same problem - you want to contain odors, but also allow some breathing to avoid mold. The bags are made from laminated PUL fabric so, waterproof but breathable. You can get them from Amazon.
posted by The Toad at 9:30 PM on May 25, 2017

I recommend spending just a little bit extra and get yourself a heavy duty dry bag. I limped along on a lightweight one for a while but it would soak through and it delaminated. If you intend to carry anything like shampoo in your swim bag you'll be grateful for that rare but not rare enough spill from getting on your computer. I have the 20L version of this one that works pretty well but is probably a little larger than your needs. I bought the big size because I occasionally transport a wetsuit.
posted by funkiwan at 1:52 PM on May 26, 2017