Can You Exercise After Getting a Tattoo?

So you have got a new tattoo for yourself and you are a gym freak, you love sweating it out now that’s what we call a deadly combination and this combination needs to be taken care of in a proper way. You got yourself inked where you wanted and now you must be taking care of your tattoo with the aftercare products as suggested by your tattoo artist and dermatologist.

As we know your tattoo will take some time to heal properly but you just cannot wait to exercise until then. Exercising and going to the gym is something that you would not want to miss for more than a couple of days.

So once you have gotten inked, you need to properly balance both the things, taking care of your tattoo and not missing your physical activities that include exercising and going to the gym.

And for that, you must follow the aftercare instructions given by your artist while avoiding the sweat to enter the tattooed area. It is okay to do physical activities after getting the tattoo but you need to take special care for the tattoo.

When can you hit the gym again?

After getting the tattoo, avoid going to the gym for at least 2 weeks as the tattooed area is not healed and it needs to be taken care of properly. Everybody has a different healing rate but 2 weeks time is the least that you need to avoid doing any physical activity.

There is no specific time till the healing process completes because everyone heals at a different pace and everyone’s body responds differently to the injury. Generally, the healing process completes in 6 months properly but no one would want to wait this long.
You can start going to the gym after 2 weeks but with some precautions. The damage that exercising may cause to your tattoo/skin.

Once you start working out again, you need to be very careful. You need to take precautions while you go to exercise. You need to avoid direct sunlight. You must cover your tattoo with a bandage and keep it moist.
You would have to change your exercise routine also like not doing those exercises much that would directly affect the tattooed area/part.

You must not let the sweat soak in the tattoo for longer periods. You must avoid stretching the skin as it may cause permanent damage in the tattooed area because the tattoo is not properly healed. Exercising during this time may damage the tattoo along with damaging the skin.
Your skin may tear and the tattoo may get spoiled, even you may get an infection due to the sweat.

Post workout tattoo aftercare routine to follow

You also need to follow a proper post-workout tattoo aftercare routine. You must clean your tattoo as soon as you finish working out. Do not let sweat soak in for too long, clean it properly with a dry cloth and use a good anti-bacterial skin sensitive soap. Once you are done cleaning the tattoo, use a good tattoo healing lotion or cream to moisturize the area.

Keep the skin hydrated for a quicker healing response. To sum it up, it is okay to hit the gym after some time but you need to take proper care of the tattoo. Be sure that you follow the instructions and tips properly so that you can have both, a beautiful body and a beautiful tattoo to flaunt.