By IodinePure
You already know the risks when you step on the mats. Twisted ankles. Bruised ribs. The occasional cauliflower ear. But there's a category of training injury that doesn't come from a bad sweep or a heel hook; it comes from the floor beneath your feet, the sweat soaked into the mat, and the thirty other people who trained barefoot in the same spot before you did.
Foot fungus, ringworm, and plantar warts are endemic in combat sports. Not because the athletes are unhygienic, but because the training environment is structurally designed to transfer them. The athletes who don't get these infections aren't lucky. They have a post-training habit.
Why Combat Sports Are a High-Risk Environment
Mats that are warm from body heat and saturated with sweat. Dozens of bare feet making direct contact with the same surface for hours. Grappling means prolonged skin-to-skin contact with training partners at close range. Temperature, moisture, organic material, and direct contact: those are exactly the conditions that fungi, viruses, and bacteria need to transfer and establish.
In combat sports, bare feet on shared mats is not an edge case; it's the entire training methodology. The risk is built into the sport.
The Three Infections Mat Athletes Get Most
Tinea Pedis, Athlete's Foot
Dermatophyte fungi thrive in the warm, moist environment between the toes and on the soles of the feet. Athlete's foot presents as itching, scaling, cracking skin between the toes and on the sole, sometimes with blistering. It is highly transferable on shared mat surfaces and is extremely common in combat sports. Left untreated, it can progress to the nails.
Tinea Corporis, Ringworm
Despite the name, no worm is involved. Ringworm is a dermatophyte fungal infection of the skin. It presents as a ring-shaped, red, scaly, often itchy lesion on the trunk, arms, or neck. In BJJ and wrestling, face, neck, and forearm ringworm is extremely common because of the sustained skin contact in clinch positions, guard, and top control. Ringworm is technically grounds for not competing in many wrestling and BJJ competition rulesets.
Plantar Warts
Plantar warts are caused by specific strains of human papillomavirus (HPV) that infect the sole of the foot through small breaks in the skin. They grow inward due to the pressure of standing and walking, which makes them painful, particularly when you're sprawling, driving off your legs, or drilling takedowns. HPV survives on warm, wet surfaces for hours.
Why Some Training Partners Never Seem to Get It
Watch the people in your gym who consistently avoid these infections. Within a few minutes of finishing training, they're in the shower. Before they put their shoes back on, they're applying something to their feet. Their gear goes in a bag that gets aired out. They have a short, consistent post-training routine that they do every single session.
The difference between "always getting ringworm" and "never getting ringworm" in the same gym is almost always hygiene habit, not luck.
The Post-Training Routine That Works
This should take you three minutes. Do it every single time you train, without exception.
- Shower immediately after training. Not an hour later. As soon as training ends. Use soap on your feet, between your toes, and any skin areas that had sustained mat contact. Fungal and viral organisms are easier to disrupt in the minutes immediately following exposure.
- Dry thoroughly. Fungi love moisture. Get between every toe with your towel. Wet skin between toes after a shower is the perfect environment for athlete's foot to get started.
- Spray Sole Shield on your feet. After drying, spray Sole Shield on the soles of your feet, between your toes, and on the lower foot and ankle. Let it dry for 60 seconds before putting on socks or footwear.
- Spray inside your training shoes. Spray Sole Shield inside both shoes, particularly the toe box, and let them air dry. Never seal wet shoes in a bag.
- Spray inside your gear bag. Gear bags become contaminated from wet equipment sitting in them. Spray the interior periodically and leave the bag unzipped to air between sessions.
Mat Hygiene: What Your Gym Should Be Doing
Your personal hygiene routine matters, but so does your training environment. A well-run gym disinfects mats consistently. This means proper mat cleaning solution applied with appropriate contact time, not a quick wipe-down with a damp mop. Mats should be cleaned after every training session, not once a day.
If You're Already Dealing with an Infection
- For athlete's foot: Start treating immediately. Spray Sole Shield on affected areas daily, keep feet clean and dry, and treat the inside of all footwear. Most athlete's foot responds within a few weeks of consistent daily attention.
- For ringworm: Cover the lesion if you train. Treat with appropriate antifungal. Tell your coach so the mats get cleaned thoroughly.
- For nail involvement: If you've noticed thickening, discolouration, or changes at the nail edge, address it early. EZ Clear Nails applied daily can help target the early stages before the infection establishes deeper in the nail plate.
- For plantar warts: Don't pick at them. See a GP or podiatrist for appropriate treatment. Wear footwear in communal areas of your gym while the wart is active.
Gear Tips That Actually Matter
- Rashguards and spats reduce direct skin contact during rolling, which directly reduces ringworm risk. Wear them.
- Wash all training gear after every single session. No exceptions.
- Never share gear, towels, or flip flops. Ringworm and athlete's foot transfer easily from shared fabric items.
- Flip flops from shower to mat area and back. The locker room floor is not your friend.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do BJJ athletes prevent ringworm?
The most effective prevention is immediate post-training showering, applying an antiseptic to exposed skin and feet after washing, washing all gear after every session, never sharing towels or personal equipment, and training in gyms that maintain consistent mat hygiene. Rashguards and spats provide an additional barrier against skin-to-skin fungal transfer during rolling.
Does iodine help with mat-borne infections?
Iodine has long been recognised as a broad-spectrum antiseptic. Sole Shield is an aqueous iodine spray designed to help maintain an antiseptic environment on the skin and inside footwear. It is used as part of a post-training hygiene routine to support prevention of common fungal and skin conditions.
What do wrestlers use for foot hygiene?
Experienced wrestlers and coaches consistently point to the same core habits: immediate post-training showering, antiseptic application to feet and lower legs, daily footwear treatment, gear washing after every session, and flip flops in all shared areas. Sole Shield fits into that routine as a post-training foot and footwear spray.
How do I stop getting athlete's foot from the gym?
Shower immediately after training. Dry your feet completely. Spray an antiseptic foot spray on the soles and between the toes before putting on socks. Treat the inside of your training shoes after every session. Wear flip flops in communal shower and changing areas.
Spray on Feet. Spray Inside Shoes. Spray in the Gear Bag.
The 60-second habit that keeps you on the mats.
Sole Shield is a natural iodine-based antiseptic spray designed for daily use on feet, inside footwear, and on sports equipment. Apply after training. Apply after showering. Keep your training partners healthy and keep yourself training.
About the Author
This article was reviewed by Evan Lewis, PhD, who specialises in natural and nutritional therapies for the prevention and management of chronic diseases and complications, with a focus on chronic disease, diabetes complications, clinical nutrition, and nerve health.
