Baking Soda -- My New Best Friend

Since I've started with Sara, I've learned to stop saying things like:

• "WOW! That was the hardest swim/bike/run session ever!"

• "WOW! I've never sweat this much!"

• "WOW! My legs have never hurt this bad!"

• "WOW! All the muscles in my body have never felt so sore!"

Because -- guaranteed, the next session will top the previous one in terms of sweat or pain. Hahahahahahahaha!!

I have two towels spread out underneath my bike and a stack of facecloths beside my bike. I even tuck a facecloth into my sports bra because the sports bra gets so saturated that the sweat drips down my abdomen onto the bike seat and all over my bike. A facecloth in the bra gives added absorption. :) :)

With all this sweat comes the dreaded occasional waft of BO....You know--- that gagging smell. I do laundry ALL THE TIME, so the smell of BO horrifies me. Immediately, I'm smelling under my arm, trying to find out where it is coming from. Now I have a lot of clothing that is pushing 8 years old -- but is still like new.

The only bad thing about a couple of pieces of clothing was the creeping stank from years of use. Heh-heh.

My favourite running shirt/jacket had stinking armpits a while ago. I noticed in the usual way -- an ominous waft -- then the usual frantic, "Is that me? Oh my God that STINKS!!!!!" I've had this jacket for YEARS so we are talking years of slowly accumulating stink here. It doesn't matter that I washed it all the time...

So, I washed the jacket again and again. Still the armpits stunk albeit with a perfumed overtone from the laundry detergent.

Then, I tried spraying the armpits with "Shout!" -- still, a residual stink hung about.

Finally, a friend told me to try baking soda. I soaked the jacket armpits in water, then poured a good amount of baking soda over each one, then sprinkled more baking soda liberally over the whole thing while it sat in a sink of hot water.

I left it there overnight and -- Voila!! Stink was gone!!! :) :) :)

Similar thing happened to me yesterday during my second bike session. The aero pads were already saturated from my previous effort, and WHEW boy they were stinking!! I didn't know my elbows could generate the same kind of stink as armpits!! Hahahahahah!!

I took them off the bike last night and did the same baking soda trick -- let them soak overnight in the sink. And this morning? Stink is gone!! YAY!!!


Baking Soda: Every Triathlete Should Have a Box!! :) :) :)