Just How Gross Are Gym Mats?

How are the last 10 minutes of most fitness classes spent? Lying on a mat for abs and cool-down routines. Usually, the mats are stacked somewhere in the aerobics room. They look clean because they are usually black or dark blue. (It's highly unlikely that there exists a gym with light-colored mats. Ever wonder why exercise mats are almost always black?) They seem clean also because they are dry. But they are often where germs have accumulated the most.

While some health clubs have strict protocols for keeping mats disinfected, as well as washed every day, other facilities never so much as have employees wipe down the mats with a wet rag. Gym cleaning crews-who may religiously mop around apparatus, scrub treadmills and wipe benches-usually don't touch the mats with their sanitizing sprays and wash rags. The mats are no more disinfected than are the dumbbells, weight plates and stability balls. Even filthier than the warm-down mats, are the thinner mats designated just for yoga classes. Most yoga participants are barefoot, and this can expose a person to the germs of the mat's previous users.

Moisture is a breeding ground for many kinds of bacteria and fungi to set up real estate on exercise mats. These microbes include E. coli from stool matter, and athlete's foot fungus. Mere contact with these organisms won't cause infections. However, a simple scratch or nick (even one that can't be detected by the naked eye) on your skin can provide an entryway for these pathogens to get into your body. For instance, it's very easy to get a scratch from walking or lying around in the pool area, where the surface surrounding the pool or hot-tub is often rough to minimize slip-and-falls; this rough surface can tear the skin without the person ever knowing it.

How often do people check their skin, including on their back, for scratches before lying on mats? Skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis can also provide gateways. Another risk factor for infection is being over-stressed, though this certainly doesn't mean that the yoga practitioner with four teenagers needs to worry about getting sick from lying stomach-down on a mat.

Where do all these living but invisible organisms come from in the first place? They are simply everywhere, including your own home. Sweaty environments make it even easier for these microbes to multiply. There are three key sources for these microscopic pests: feces, respiratory tract infections and skin. Dr. Tierno explains, "In general as a society we literally bathe in feces mainly because people tend to not wash their hands or they wash incorrectly or insufficiently, and people tend to use gyms before they shower, figuring that they will get sweaty and will wash later. So they may start out with higher germs counts. Wherever people expose their bare skin, including their bare feet, they pose a risk of seeding areas like gym equipment, floor mats, etc., with potential pathogens like athlete's foot fungi, staph aureus, or even human wart viruses (papilloma viruses), because many either have those infections or they sweat and their germ counts rise as they exercise vigorously; and then they leave their germ deposits on the apparatus they have used."