(Picture: Ella Byworth for Metro.co.uk)

When you work out, you do so with the intention of getting your sweat on.

After a few minutes on the treadmill or rower, those beads of moisture start gathering on your forehead and slowly begin the decent down your face, neck and into the crevice between your boobs.

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Ah, how attractive you look.

You’re basically someone from a soft porn film – glistening and buff in your leggings and crop top.


Those girls from the Eric Prydz video have nothing on you.

And then you get off whatever cardio machine you’re using and head towards the mat space – where you notice a massive, sweaty patch forming around your vaginal area.



You look like you’ve pissed yourself.

Less Eric Prydz, more incontinent mess.

It can be incredibly embarrassing if you’re as self-involved as me.

Crotch sweat isn’t something anyone wants to draw attention to and yet there it is, slowly drenching your Nike running pants.

It always happens to me the moment I start squatting after a run. I’ll be nice and dry one minute and the next, it’ll look like someone’s thrown a water balloon at my crotch.

Because I’m incredibly lazy, I prefer to bring long jumpers to the gym to wear home rather than having a shower. And I tend to find that once you’re out of the gym, a good, cool breeze tends to moderate the patch somewhat.

You have, in my experience, a two hour grace period between the sweat commencing and the stench setting in, to get those clothes off and to get into a shower. Any longer and you will start to disgust yourself and anyone else in the vicinity.

What causes the sweaty vagina triangle?

We’ve got two main types of sweat glands – apocrine and eccrine.

Eccrine glands produce the moisture. Apocrine glands produce the grim smell. Depending on which gland is more dominant in which area, you’ll be able to produce odourless sweat or not.

Your groin has a higher density of apocrine than anywhere else on the body except your armpits.

That means that, inevitably, a sweaty crotch will become a smelly one.

Don’t try and fight it – accept it and decide how you’re going to deal with it.

Aside from our glands, sweat is also caused by a lack of air.

When you work out, it gets hot down there and while air can get to your forehead, chest, armpits relatively easily, it’s difficult to air out your vagina beneath two layers of skin-tight fabric.

Fat also insulates the body and in places where there’s a higher fat percentage – your thighs for example – the temperature can escalate faster than in others.

What’s the problem?

Apart from it being quite embarrassing, allowing vaginas to remain sweaty can be a one-way ticket to yeast infections.

‘The main issue is that this is an ideal environment for bugs to thrive and multiply – especially those that cause yeast infections (candida) and boils,’ Consultant Obstetrician & Gynaecologist Shazia Malik tells Metro.co.uk.



What to do if you suffer from a sweaty gym vagina

Try and stay dry

The best thing you can do is to try and keep yourself as dry as possible. If you’re planning a cardio-fuelled workout, why not opt for shorts rather than leggings?

And if you want to keep wearing leggings, you’re best off changing into some loose fitting bottoms once you’re done – baggy joggers or yoga pants.

Keep your kit clean

If you can, change your leggings and pants as soon as you’re done with your workout. And if you can’t, then be strict with how long you’re going to stay in the same clothes. As I say, the maximum length that period should be is around two hours – and Dr Malik agrees.

‘I would advise removing the clothing as soon as you finish exercising and having a shower – certainly, you shouldn’t keep it on for more than a couple of hours.’

By all means, wear your kit home but don’t be that guy who goes to a pub in their used, sweaty gym kit. I’ve done that and it’s not a sociable thing to do.

Wash your gym kit every day. Regular machine washing can be bad for lycra (and the environment) but all you’ve got to is stick a bit of hand wash detergent in the sink or bath and that’ll do the job.

Invest in some proper workout underwear

Spend a little more and buy yourself some clothes that will wick away any moisture. Loads of sportswear brands like Under Armour, Sweaty Betty, and Dear Kate design underwear specifically for dealing with sweaty crotches. They’re breathable, leak-free and often VPL-free.

Keep your pubic hair short


‘If you exercise regularly, then it’s best to keep pubic hair short and trimmed to reduce the sweating around your pubic area/groin,’ Dr Malik says.

‘It’s best not to wear liners during heavy exercise as they can actually increase the temperature down there – and wear loose comfortable clothing to exercise rather than the skintight Instagram outfits!’

TL;DR if you’ve got a vagina and you’re working out hard, you’re going to get the sweaty vagina triangle.

If you’re wearing black, you might not be able to see it – but it’s there. Your crotch will be moist.

Don’t be embarrassed about it – it’s a testament to your work. If you want fire glutes, if you want powerful quads, if you want a tight core, this is the price you pay.

But there are things you can do to minimise it and deal with the potential gynaecological fallout.

Wear your sweaty vagina triangle with pride. Just don’t wear it for too long.

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