Commuting - Can't shower, how to clean up?

I have no easy access to a shower at the end of my 7 mile commute. The distance is just enough that I stink a bit when I get there. How do you guys deal with that? I've heard baby wipes mentioned a time or two, is that the way to go?

Thanks :)

Deoderant, a towel, wet-naps and a change of shirt.

I keep a bottle of Wintergreen Rubbing Alcohol in
my desk...Go into the water closet, take my shirt off
and sink wash with a paper towel soaked in water and
alcohol. I have a fresh shirt in my backpack.
Not to get preacherous, just FYI....Not eating meat or
drinking alcohol will cut the odiferous problem down to
almost zero....:eek:

I keep a bottle of Wintergreen Rubbing Alcohol in
my desk...Go into the water closet, take my shirt off
and sink wash with a paper towel soaked in water and
alcohol. I have a fresh shirt in my backpack.
Not to get preacherous, just FYI....Not eating meat or
drinking alcohol will cut the odiferous problem down to
almost zero....:eek:
I'm vegetarian already :) alcohol though :beer:
I guess I should add that I don't have any personal space to store stuff, so anything I use I have to carry with me. I think I could work with both those ideas though, thanks

I keep a bottle of Wintergreen Rubbing Alcohol in
my desk...Go into the water closet, take my shirt off
and sink wash with a paper towel soaked in water and
alcohol. I have a fresh shirt in my backpack.
Not to get preacherous, just FYI....Not eating meat or
drinking alcohol will cut the odiferous problem down to
almost zero....:eek:

If I stank a week for every night I didn't have to smell cooking tofu, I would die a happy, smelly person. ;)


Make sure you're wearing something breathable on the ride, I like coolmax stuff. Maybe ride a bit slower, it's only 7 miles, the difference for me between 14mph and 17mph is amazing, sweat-wise.

As above posters stated

-go slower on way in, go hard on way home
-go in early to allow time to cool down and stop sweating before changing
-full change of clothes, wipes, deoderant in panniers/backback
-some clothes stink more than others. Wool, or synthetics with silver, tend to not stink near as much as some others.

i used talcum powder before i left and when i arrived to work, did some talcum under the arms and sprayed some axe and it actually kept me dry and smell free for most of the day. I tried a new antipersperant the other day and i stank like ... who knows but it wasnt good, the talcum and spray worked wonders for me, i may try the baby wipes though

I have an 8-mile commute. I have access to a shower at work, but some days I'm in a hurry. Wear a T-shirt with sleaves underneath your shirt.

One thing that helps is to make sure you're clean before you leave the house. What I mean is shower in the morning instead of the night before.

I've never tried riding slower. It seems I'm always in a hurry.
When I get to work, I go the bathroom sink, lather up my armpits and face with soap and rinse my hair, (I keep it buzzed). I always bring a clean, kitchen-sized towel with me. Then I put on fresh deodorant get dressed.
I also never ride in what I'll be wearing at work.

It works for me and I always get sweaty, on my commute.

This has been working for me so far:

http://10nine8.net/why.html

My warmest ride was around 60 degrees though, so we'll see how it does in the heat of summer.

Pretty much what MMACH5 said in post #9 above. There are plenty of paper towels in the wash rooms at our office building, so I use them instead of using a cloth towel. Even on days when I take it slow, I still need a quick wipedown with a damp paper towel before changing into my clothes for work.

thanks all, I plan on smelling wonderfully tomorrow :D

I had an 8 mile commute, that often seemed to involve winter sleet and snowstorms in Chicago. The building had no showers. I would usually ride in in complete snow gear, and then change in the bathroom. My "shower" consisted of using a few wet paper towels along with a small towel (with a little bit of soap) that I brought. Similarly, when I had a 40 mile commute during the summer, a nice little towel was my best friend.
In both cases, I rode in bike gear and brought a change of clothes with me.

In another case, I had an 8 mile commute during the late spring/early summer. Instead of changing, I just biked in my 'work clothes'. I usually left early enough in the morning so that it was not too hot. A also drank lots and lots of water an hour or so before biking. Lots of water means the sweat ends up being mostly clear water, and you can end up presentable with just a quick wipe down. The trip home it was hotter, and I'd end up soaking wet - but that did not matter - I was headed for a shower anyway!

Good responses here.

I have a 6.5 mile trip and don't shower either. I shower before I go and I wear a reduced sweat tee shirt and always take that off and change tee's.

I take about 10 or 15 minutes to cool down before I wash up. I've only noticed my smell two or three times and when I do I wipe my torso down extra carefully in the sink. Wipes work well, but so does paper towel and soap/water right at the sink.

I agree that drinking water beforehand helps.

Working it harder on the way home is good advise. I typically beat my time in by a couple of minutes on the way home. You can definitely find a way to make this work.

I guess I am lucky for commuting. I have my own private office, a bathrrom and a shower with my own locker for all my gear.

Life is good. :)

no shower on my 15 miler. just make sure you wash before you go and wear clean clothes to commute in.

i do notice my sweat stinks after i have tied one on the night before... never happens to often during the wek but i sure stink up the trails some wekends after going to a party the night before.

Lots of insight as to what food or drink makes you smell or not.

Does anyone have more info on this? Has there been some real research on it, as opposed to old wives tales. Does drinking water ahead of time really help, as I've noticed--or am I just full of it?

I know asparagus makes my urine smell--could that leach through my skin if I sweat the morning after I ate it? What is it in beer that makes one smell? Just curious! :D

I love my morning coffee, but I try not to drink it at home before I ride to work on warm days. If I do, I sweat a lot more.
I live uphill from work so I coast a lot going in on hot days to not sweat too much, and I go hard on the way home to make sure I get my workout.

Protein (consumed or muscle tissue) will break down into urea which could eminate from your body as an ammonia-like odor. That's some of the reason behind not eating a lot of protein (earlier was said meat, but other sources too) and not working so hard that you deplete glycogen and your body needs to supply energy by catabolizing some muscle tissue.

You -should- have some carbohydrate and protein within an hour of riding to replenish glycogen stores and help repair damaged muscle tissue.

Here's more about metabolizing protein:

http://www.unu.edu/unupress/food2/UID07E/uid07e00.htm#Contents

I use the birdie bath too, like MMACH5. Only, I don't use soap. Just a wash rag and water. My wife says I'm weird cause my sweat doesn't have that BO smell like everyone else...so I can get away with no soap and look and smell like I drove in. And I time trial 15 miles to work, so I'm a damn sweaty pig when I get here. Oh...I cool down for 30 mintues first in front of a fan too before the birdie bath.

I just switched to an office with no shower after 8.5 mile one-way commute. I bring a hand towel with shampoo and face soap. Fortunately, there is a one door lockable bathroom with a baby changing table and a sink with tall faucet for handicap. I use the changing table as a shelf to arrange my clothes, then wash my hair and face in the sink. Dry off hair and face with hand towel, then wipe off pits and crotch with wet towel (TMI?). Then I have some baby wipes stored in the changing table and wipe off again with them, leaves me smelling nice and baby bottom fresh! I use "Land Before Time" baby wipes with aloe, but if they had Sponge Bob, I would definitely try them out!

I just switched to an office with no shower after 8.5 mile one-way commute. I bring a hand towel with shampoo and face soap. Fortunately, there is a one door lockable bathroom with a baby changing table and a sink with tall faucet for handicap. I use the changing table as a shelf to arrange my clothes, then wash my hair and face in the sink. Dry off hair and face with hand towel, then wipe off pits and crotch with wet towel (TMI?). Then I have some baby wipes stored in the changing table and wipe off again with them, leaves me smelling nice and baby bottom fresh! I use "Land Before Time" baby wipes with aloe, but if they had Sponge Bob, I would definitely try them out!
man, land before time is old school

I'm lucky enough to be able to store my toiletries at my desk (soap, towel, deodorant). I usually bring in my clothes and have them hanging on my door. Cruise in early enough to cool down and then wash of the sweat in the bathroom. Morning temps are already hitting the upper 60F, so it will be toasty soon.

Be careful of the paper towel route. The ones we have are manufactured from recycled paper. Small metal fibers have been found in these same recycled paper towels. Might cause some irritation.

18.5 MILE COMMUTE ONE WAY.

No shower here.

The key is Fresh sweat does not stink , I also wear lots of wicking material so Im pretty dry when I arrive (hair is always soaked though) I wear X-mart poly shirts, wool socks and cycling shorts.

I do a bird bath ASAP , add deoderant, wash hair in sink and Im good to go. I spray my shorts with lysol or similar and hang up. I keep baby wipes deodorant and shampoo/towel at the office.


I dress in office casual IE golf shirts /dockers so I need to be presentable.

no problem!!!

"John"

The key is Fresh sweat does not stink , I also wear lots of wicking material so Im pretty dry when I arrive (hair is always soaked though) I wear X-mart poly shirts, wool socks and cycling shorts.
"

Same commute distance, and same problem with hair being the hardest part to look presentable.
I now use a headsweats bandana thing, seems to work wonders. I no longer need to do the hair washing in the sink, and can just comb it out.

In winter I use a thin beanie made out of polartech powerdry material under my helmet. Seems to give similar results.

If I go with just a helmet, or with a regular bandana, i arrive with my hair soaked and matted.

I am really close to a buzzcut. Hair is overrated anyhow. May not work as well for the female commuters though

-D

Hair is overrated anyhow.

I wholeheartedly agree. Been shaving with a razor for five years now.