In Your Gym Girl Era? Here’s 12 Gym Bag Essentials You Need to Optimize Your Workouts

Ready to lock in for your fitness goals? If you’re planning on going to the gym regularly, then there are a few things you should take with you for every visit. Whether you’re a beginner or an avid gym-goer, it’s important that you have your gym bag essentials to optimize your workouts! 

Here are 12 gym bag essentials every gym girl needs for her workouts!

12 Gym Bag Essentials You Need as a Gym Girlie 

1. Gym bag

If we’re gonna be talking about gym bag essentials, it only makes sense to include a gym bag on this list! This will keep everything in one place, making it easier to find your other gym essentials when you need them. 

When I was a beginner, I often used different bags for the gym, which turned out to be a nightmare in the end because I’d always forget to pack the essentials I needed from a different bag. So, I’d recommend getting a bag solely for the gym, so you know you have everything you need in one place when you do your workouts. 

Since the gym essentials you’ll have vary in size and shape, you’d want a gym bag that can fit them all. So I’d highly recommend choosing a duffel bag for your gym bag! 

2. Padlock

For those days when you don’t need to carry your bag around with you in the gym, or you need to keep your possessions (e.g., keys, purse, coat/jacket) safe, you need somewhere to lock them up. This is where a padlock will come in handy! Every gym has a changing room, and every changing room will have lockers to lock your things up. 

3. Headphones

Gym music is, more often than not, awful. And being subjected to awful music is not helpful when you need to lock in for your workouts. So, investing in a pair of high-quality headphones can help with that. The ideal pair of headphones to use for workouts at the gym is noise-cancelling, wireless ones. 

The best headphones for the gym are the Sony over-ear noise-cancelling XM series headphones. I never do a workout session without them. They’re high quality, comfy, and the noise-cancelling is perfect! 

4. Reusable water bottle

It’s important to stay hydrated, especially when you’re using so much energy during your workouts. You can never go wrong with a reusable water bottle. Not only does it save the environment, but it will also help prevent toxic chemicals from disposable plastic from going into your system!

Your gym will have multiple water fountains to fill up your water bottle, so it’ll always be put to good use! 

5. Face and hand towel 

You know you’re going hard on your workouts when you’re sweating! To make sure you’re prepared for the sweats, pack a face and hand towel. It’s best to get them in different colors, so you know which one is which. Use the face towel to wipe the sweat off your face and neck. Use the hand towel for drying off equipment you’ve sweated on to remove sweat stains and germs. 

6. Barbell pad

Barbell pads are so important to use for lower body days, specifically for hip thrusts! If your glute day consists of barbell hip thrusts, then it’s important to get a barbell pad to protect your hips from bruising.

7. Barbell clips 

You’ve probably seen those metal weight clips at the gym, which require you to squeeze the handles to slide onto barbells. They are such a nightmare to use, yet it seems like every gym has them! If you hate those metal clips as much as I do, then you’ll be glad to know that quick-release barbell clips are the barbell clips you’ve been looking for. 

Quick-release barbell clips are way easier to use than the metal ones provided at the gym. It’s always good to have your own barbell clips either way because sometimes the gym ones can run out, especially if you’re at the gym during peak hours. 

8. Ankle straps 

Ankle straps are another essential for lower body days, specifically for glute days! They’re great for doing glute isolation workouts on the cable machines, such as cable kickbacks. Generally, gyms won’t provide ankle straps, or if they do, they’re not the best quality. So it’s best if you have your own! 

9. Resistance bands 

Resistance bands are great to keep in your gym bag for warm ups on lower body days or for resistance only workouts. If you get a pack of them with different resistance strengths, you can start with the lowest strength, then build up to help with your gains! 

10. Lifting straps/Versa Gripps

If you struggle with grip strength when lifting, or you hate getting calluses from weight lifting, then lifting straps or Versa Gripps are the gym bag essentials you need to have! Lifting straps and Versa Gripps have a different design but are made for the same purpose: to help improve grip strength. However, lifting straps are much more budget-friendly! 

11. Gym sneakers 

The kind of sneakers you wear to the gym is very important. It all depends on whether you’re doing cardio, upper body, or lower body. Ideally, sneakers for cardio and upper body should be comfy and light with cushioning. For lower body weight training days, sneakers should be flat to help with stability and getting a full grip on the floor. 

For this reason, it’s best to have one sneaker specifically for cardio/upper body and another for weightlifting on the lower body days. One of the best sneakers for cardio and upper body is the Hoka Bondi 8, as they’re super comfy. Meanwhile, the best sneakers for lower-body days are anything with a flat sole, such as Vans (I personally use slip-on Vans) or Converse. 

12. Cosmetics pouch 

A cosmetics pouch is a small purse to keep all of your toiletries and hygiene products in one place. These can include deodorant (anti-perspirant), tampons/pads, body spray, lip balm, hand sanitizer, a hair brush, hair bands, body wash, and lotion. These just help to keep you looking and feeling fresh during and after your gym session.

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