I smell like ammonia after I run... What to do?

jenniferormesher
jenniferormesher Posts: 15 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
So I've been working out for six months now (yea me!), and can now run 2 miles without stopping (again, yea me!).

Today when I walked into the house after running, the house smelled weird.... like cleaning supplies... but I didn't use anything to clean this morning. Then I realized it was ME! I smelled like ammonia.

What causes it and what should I do to get rid of it? You know, other than take a shower.

Thanks!

Replies

  • deluxmary2000
    deluxmary2000 Posts: 981 Member
    Are you sure it’s you and not your clothes? Sometimes clothes that sit in the washer too long will have that smell. You may not smell it when they’re dry, but your sweat can activate it if your clothes get wet while you workout.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,439 Member
    Do you take any supplements? I was taking some creatine for a while that did that. I switched brands and haven't seemed to have any issues since.
  • whoami67
    whoami67 Posts: 297 Member
    I used to smell like that after exercise. I don't know what causes it.
  • swirlybee
    swirlybee Posts: 497 Member
    It used to happen to me every once in a while. Not enough carbs. Increase your carb intake a bit and see if that helps.
  • 777Gemma888
    777Gemma888 Posts: 9,578 Member
    Are you eating enough carbs? Are you on a kept diet perhaps?
  • midlomel1971
    midlomel1971 Posts: 1,283 Member
    I notice this smell on my sometimes too. It's weird. Not sure why.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Well, don't wipe down with chlorine wipes after the run then!
  • Lietchi
    Lietchi Posts: 6,780 Member
    You need more carbs, your body is burning protein:
    https://www.nydailynews.com/sports/more-sports/running-doc-sweat-smells-ammonia-article-1.2804757
  • yukfoo
    yukfoo Posts: 871 Member
    I smell like ammonia after I run... What to do?

    Hit the showers... :p
  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 8,352 Member
    Ditto. It was terrible. It went away when I tried to track my macros a little better, so seems to have been some kind of imbalance.

    The worst was the sports bras. The underboob area smelled straight up like I’d doused the bras in ammonia. No amount of washing would get it out, and they smelled musty and salty (?). I had to replace them, which hurt me to my heart because I’m cheap and they were otherwise OK.

    But, as self conscious as I was about it, apparently it only smelled like ammonia to me.
  • spiriteagle99
    spiriteagle99 Posts: 3,740 Member
    I get it sometimes when I do a hard workout on the TM. I don't notice it when I run outdoors, probably because the fresh air sweeps it away. I don't think it's carb related, since I eat a high carb diet. It doesn't seem to do any harm though, so I don't worry about it.
  • MaltedTea
    MaltedTea Posts: 6,286 Member
    I wish I had a "too much protein" problem. Other than what has been suggested, try more water (annoying on a run but on long runs you may actually sweat it out before you need to pee it out. No? Just me? Ok).
  • MichelleMcKeeRN
    MichelleMcKeeRN Posts: 450 Member
    I believe it has to do with the creb cycle and not having enough carbs for your activity.
  • BrianSharpe
    BrianSharpe Posts: 9,248 Member
    Is it your sweat (more carbs) or your clothes? If it's your clothes try soaking them in dilute vinegar before laundering or add a scoop of borax to your wash.

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