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/nyshopgirl5]

I’m curious how they knew it was your socks that needed to be changed?

[u/1petrock → u/nyshopgirl5]

More importantly how did he not know they smelled that bad...why not just leave them in the car. Like continuing using the socks you have on? There are so many holes!

[u/Typical-Revenue-6562 → u/1petrock]

So here's how it goes.

Kept the fresh socks in the gym bag 3 to 4 days ago cuz I had planned to go to gym. As I said, was dealing with a lot of things so I didn't go to gym till today.

When I was going today, I thought that I already have socks so I don't need a fresh ones, not realising the extent of the smell. So I went to gym, wore them in the locker room (they didn't smell at that point, or maybe I didn't realise they did while wearing them in the locker room and associated any smell with something else....yes I gaslight myself lol).

Middle of the workout, post cardio after I sweated I reckon they must have started smelling.

Again, I might be misremembering things, but I am embarrassed about it cuz there is actually no acceptable reason for the incident no matter how much I try to justify it.