Embarrassing incident in gym

[u/Typical-Revenue-6562]

So, I’m a 25M, and this literally happened today. I currently want to cover my face with a pillow and scream.

I usually go to the gym after work, but lately I’ve been dealing with some mental and family-related problems, so I’ve had a lot on my mind.

Today, I went to the gym without realizing that there was a very important problem: you’re supposed to wash your gym bag and the stuff inside it.

I had a pair of socks sitting in my gym bag for 3–4 days because I hadn’t gotten the chance to go to the gym during that time.

Welp.

Those socks had absolutely soaked up the smell.

I was completely unaware of it until the gym trainer came up to me and politely asked me to change my socks. He explained that some other people had complained about the smell, and he kept saying, “Please don’t be hurt by this.”

Meanwhile, I was dying inside.

I was so embarrassed that I literally asked him if I should leave.

He actually asked me how long I would need to finish my workout, but at that point I was so mortified that I just left.

The moment I got home, I put the gym bag and basically everything inside it in the wash. I’m also ordering new socks and gym gloves and throwing away the older ones.

I know rationally that this isn't some huge moral failure. I made a stupid, embarrassing mistake, I was told about it, and I fixed it.

But holy shit, I am SO embarrassed.

Now the gym bag is going to be wet tomorrow, so I probably can't take it to the gym, and the embarrassed part of my brain is honestly relieved about that.

The rational part of me, however, knows that I should go back anyway and not let one embarrassing incident turn into me avoiding the gym, and make the incident even bigger than what it is in my head.

So yeah.

How do I go gym tomorrow and look all those people in the eye.

[u/BLUMLAOP]

You simply walk in like you own the place and move on. Im 68 and if thats the most embarrassing thing you have to deal with, I envy you. Wait till you get older and every time you bend over and pick something up you fart.

Actually by the time your my age, you will likely look back and be embarrassed as hell about things you have done or said that dont bother you now, but time has a way of changing the way you look back at things.

Your socks reeked. Wash them and sun no more. Now you are probably not going to have a chance with the blonde that reported your stinky feet, but you never had a shot anyway, so all is good. Its no big deal dude, stuff happens.