Top Tips For Caring For Your Gym Kit by Jeeves of Belgravia

To understand how we can get the most out of our workout gear and still make sure our items last as long as possible, we headed to royal warrant holder, Jeeves of Belgravia and spoke to Jeeves’ operations director, Will Lankston. Will shared their top tips for caring for your gym kit at home.

Jeeves was established in London’s prestigious Belgravia in 1969 to answer the need for high-quality, reliable and discrete dry cleaning and maintenance. With the author’s permission, our namesake is the iconic Reginald Jeeves character of P.G Wodehouse fame.

Jeeves of Belgravia website

From HITT to yoga, a great way to immerse yourself into a workout is to have activewear that makes you look and feel good. As we all know, breaking a sweat is good for the body, mind and soul, but what about the unexpected toll it takes on our beloved workout gear? Have you ever washed your gym kit, but find it still has that faint aroma of sweat? We wanted to find out why, and learn the best way for caring for your gym kit, so we asked Jeeves!

Top Tips – Caring For Your Gym Kit by Jeeves of Belgravia

Jeeves of Belgravia has become synonymous with attention to detail, meticulous care and exacting standards. Our services include environmentally responsible dry cleaning, laundering, alterations and repairs, handbag restoration and specialist cleaning for couture, wedding gowns, rugs, suede and leather.

Jeeves of Belgravia website

• Wash your kit after every workout on a low temperature with antibacterial wash

A study from Tap Warehouse found that 44% of Brits wear their gym clothes more than once before washing, however, washing after every wear is essential …

“Most activewear contains elastic or lycra. These materials will last much longer if washed at a lower heat. Unfortunately, washing at 30 degrees Celsius does not help to kill the bacteria which builds up in a gym kit and causes it to smell. Our advice is to wash your gym kit after every use (even if on a quick cycle) with the addition of some antibacterial laundry cleanser. Dettol sells one which can be found in most supermarkets. It is also important to get your kit in the wash asap after getting back from the gym. If you leave it in a pile on the floor, you allow it time for the bacteria to multiply.”

• DO NOT wash or tumble dry your shoes

So what about our gym shoes? We’ve all had the experience where after a while we look at our trainers and think… these desperately need a wash!

“We would strongly advise against putting shoes in a washing machine and we definitely wouldn’t recommend putting them anywhere near a tumble dryer, as the heat can warp the shoes and damage the glue that keeps them together. Tumble dryers can often shrink shoes depending on the fabric that is used. If you have invested in a good pair of running trainers you can’t bear to give up, you can pop a few tea bags inside your trainers overnight to help absorb bad odours (quick fix), or you can send them to our store for a much needed refresh.”

• Hang dry your items

This can be a difficult one when you have a favourite gym combo, as hang drying can take a while, but if you’re looking to keep your clothes top of their game… avoid the dryer! The best way to do this is to have a rotation of favourite items, so while one set is drying, another is ready to wear at the gym.

“We always recommend reading the clothing label before caring for an item, especially gym clothing as they often require being cleaned at lower temperatures than imagined. While convenient for quick wear, drying your items can actually be limiting its life, as drying adds extra heat and wear on the materials. Hanging up your washing to line dry will keep them stretchier for longer.”

• More does not mean cleaner

After a long workout, sometimes we are tempted to add in a double serving of detergent to ensure everything comes out looking and smelling fresh, but are these additional scoops helping our clothing at all? 

“You need to make sure you have enough detergent for the weight of the load you are washing and take key facts into consideration such as how dirty clothes are, size of load and water hardness, however adding excess detergent can do more harm than good. Detergent recommendations are carefully tested and calculated to ensure there is enough detergent to get your clothes clean. Using too much detergent can actually create more problems, including stain or residue on clothes, odours left behind in the washing machine from trapped excess residue and loads not having a chance to drain properly, resulting in wetter clothes.”

• Ditch the softener

When it comes to gym clothes, or anything with a stretch, step away from the softeners.

“Not only are softeners known to damage clothing with stretch, but they are also known to leave a coating on clothing that will lock in odours, making your kit smell worse, not better. Try adding 100ml of white vinegar in your wash, as it is both a clothing softener and odour killer. It can be used without sacrificing your clothing’s stretch, meaning more wear for longer!”

Find out more:

We also offer a complimentary collection and delivery service for London and the home counties and overseas delivery options.

Jeeves of Belgravia website

Available for collection or drop off, their London locations are found in Belgravia, Chelsea, Fleet Street, Hampstead, Kensington, Mayfair and St Paul’s. (As well as being in ten cities across the world!)

Their services include…
Dry Cleaning
Alterations & Repairs
Laundry
Wardrobe Storage
Wedding & Bridal
Leather Suede & Fur
Couture
Home Textiles
Handbag Restoration
Signature Shirt Service

Jeeves care about the environment. Check out their dry cleaning responsibility here.

Jeeves of Belgravia website: jeevesofbelgravia.com
Facebook – @JeevesBelgraviaLondon
Twitter – @JeevesLDN