How soon can you take a shower after exercising?

After moderate and above-intensity exercise, rest for 20 to 40 minutes before washing. For low-intensity exercise, as long as the water temperature is suitable, you don’t even need to wait.

Speaking of this issue, I have seen people arguing for hundreds of floors in fitness groups. Some people say that you must wait until the sweat is completely dry, otherwise you will get arthritis when you get old. Others say that they have showered immediately after practicing for several years and nothing has happened. I have stepped into the trap myself and specifically asked people who do exercise rehabilitation. In fact, the criterion for judging is not time at all, but your current physical condition and the temperature of the bath water.

Last summer, I finished a 12-kilometer interval run and sweated half a cup out of my T-shirt. The air conditioner in the gym was turned on at full speed. After five or six minutes, I felt I could breathe again. When my head got hot, I took a cold shower. The feeling of relief didn't last ten minutes when I started sneezing when I went out. My fever reached 38.7 that night, and I lay down for three days before I recovered. Later, my friend explained to me that after high-intensity exercise, the blood vessels throughout the body expand and the pores are fully opened to dissipate heat. When suddenly exposed to cold water, the blood vessels will shrink rapidly. Not only will the burden on the heart increase sharply, but the immunity will also decrease. It is strange that I don’t catch a cold.

However, not everyone has to wait for dozens of minutes. There are now many sports medicine studies to support it. If you have no underlying cardiovascular disease, you have just done low-intensity exercise such as 20 minutes of yoga and half an hour of slow walking. Your heart rate has not exceeded 110 and you are only a little sweaty. It is perfectly fine to take a warm bath at 37 to 39 degrees. It can even help relax your muscles and speed up lactic acid metabolism. Many professional athletes will take a warm bath immediately after the game to adjust their condition, and they have not had any problems for so many years.

You don’t have to hold on to the stopwatch to count whether 20 minutes has elapsed. If you’re really unsure, just stop and stand for two minutes. If you don’t have to gasp for air and can speak long, complete sentences in a coherent manner, the sweat on the back of your neck and forehead will no longer trickle down, and your heart rate will return to a level only five or six times higher than when you are usually resting. It’s no problem to go take a shower at this time. If you are really in a hurry, don't rush into cold water or very hot water. Adjust the water temperature to about the same as your skin temperature first, and slowly adjust it to a comfortable temperature, which can also reduce irritation to the body.

Oh, by the way, some people like to go to the sauna first and then take a shower after exercising, but don’t do it. Your body is already dehydrated after exercise, and taking a sauna will only increase the risk of brain hypoxia. I used to have a muscle friend who went directly to the sauna after doing leg exercises and fainted in the sauna room within two minutes. Fortunately, someone nearby noticed it early, otherwise it would have been too dangerous.