Looking for a genuine excuse not to hit the gym later? Well, we're here to tell you why you may genuinely be better off skipping the treadmills and spinning classes forever.
None of us is under any illusion that gyms are super sanitary because, by nature, there is a whole lot of sweat and general nastiness in the air of most fitness locations.
However, a study conducted by EmLab & PK, on behalf of FitRate, our average treadmill, exercise bike and free weights are rife with nasty germs.
According to the study, which collected bacteria samples from 27 pieces of equipment across three different gyms; free weights carried an average of 1,158,381 CFU (colony forming units), which is pretty darn high.
But what does that number ACTUALLY mean? Basically, free weights have 362 times more bacteria than your average toilet seat - ew. The treadmill and exercise bikes performed slightly better, with averages of 1,333,432 CFU and 1,333,417 CFU respectively.
So, your treadmill has 74 times more bacteria than your water faucet; and that exercise bike is 39 times dirtier than your typical reusable cafeteria tray - again, ew.
And as if this information wasn't off-putting enough, it turns out that almost 70 per cent of the bacteria found on gym equipment has the potential to be damaging to your health, and could result in skin infections.
If you're going to hit the gym, be sure to use disinfectant spray before starting - or maybe just go for a jog in the clean, fresh air? Or, forget about all that, and just relax in front of the TV tonight (that's our plan!).
