Changing pants in office bathroom

Question

I commute to my office in my bike, and after cycling 40kms, my clothes will be soaked. I change vest and shirt, but pants and underwear will be soaked, which is uncomfortable.

I would like to change my pants and underwear too. But the problem is, the only place where I could change is in the office bathroom, which is wet and dirty. So, when I remove the pants and put on the fresh pants, the leg part of the pants will be dirty.

Standing on the toilet seat cover is not an option because it's too old and risky. There are no malls nearby.

Are there any life hacks for this problem?

I’m looking for an independent way. I could come by bus but it would take one and half hours to reach due to traffic. On the bicycle, it would take only two hours and I could add the workout also in that plus it’s safer during the pandemic.

Answer 1

Well, I had to change few times in public toilets which weren't in a good shape, so came up with a technique.

The trick is to not wear the pants while standing, but rather while sitting, with the legs in the air. Requires some effort, but worth it. So all it takes is a clean toilet seat cover, which you can clean with toilet paper if needed, or even bring wet wipes and use them to clean.

Since your legs are in the air, the clean pants and underwear won't touch anything dirty.

Good luck! :)

Answer 2

Stand on your shoes

Your first problem is the wet floor. Once you've taken your shoes off, what do you do about that? Answer: stand on the shoes like stepping stones. It takes a bit of balance, but it's totally doable. If you've got two pairs of shoes (and you probably have from cycling) then this is even easier - put two shoes next to each other so that you've got more area to stand on.

Bunch up your pants legs like a donut before you put them on

Now you've got the problem of getting your pants on without wiping them over the floor. You can bunch up the legs so that you've still got a clear hole down the leg to put your foot through, and now your scrunchie-like roll of fabric is clear of the floor. This is harder with jeans, but works very well with suit pants.

Learn to balance on one leg, Karate Kid stylee

Threading your foot into your pants leg is still awkward, especially if you have to bend down. If you can balance well on one foot, you can lift your knee up nice and high, and then you can thread your pants leg over your foot whilst stood on the other leg, without having to bend down.

Use the door

Surfaces are often dirty. So is the seat - even assuming there is one. But there's always a door, and cubicles often have space over the top of the door. Use this to hang your clothes over, whilst you go through the changing process.

Don't forget your socks

You mention changing everything else. Don't forget that your socks are going to be at least as damp as your underwear. If you don't want to subject your co-workers to cheesy socks the rest of the day, bring spare of them too.

Answer 3

Buy a roll of "butcher paper" and keep it at home. Cut a square of paper (about 45 x 45 cm) from the roll each work day, fold it until it fits in your bag and take it to work. In the work bathroom, unfold the paper and place it on the floor with the smooth, waterproof side down. You now have a clean, dry square where you may stand and change your clothes. When you are dressed, discard the paper in the bathroom trash.

Butcher paper, made for wrapping meat or fish, is a cheap white or brown paper that is coated on one side with a substance that makes it waterproof. I see it is for sale in India on Amazon.in and the daily cost of one square cut from a large roll would be about the same as the cost of one piece of chewing gum.

Answer 4

Put something disposable on the floor, like newspapers. Or get something like a camping or yoga mat cut in half (but be sure which is the clean side and which is the dirty one). You might need to clean it once a week.

Answer 5

Dirty floor?

One cardboard box, killed, laid flat on the floor.

It will present a suitably large surface, is sufficiently waterabsorbing to not get soaking wet immediately, and can be disposed easily.

Either source the box from a local tip, if available, or collect a few and stash them in a dry place. If you must, above a toilet stall works just fine, and won't even be noticed by your co-workers.

Answer 6

There's a much easier solution. Bring a plastic bag, open it, fold, roll or scrunch it down, and step into it when you take off your shoes.

The pant legs will rest inside the bag, and not touch the floor.

When done, just reverse the bag and fold it up. No mess.

Answer 7

How do you undress and dress on a beach? By using a towel as a "skirt". Just do that in the cloakroom. As long as you don't make a fuss about it (and change your shirt in the bathroom to avoid showing your torso/upper body etc in public) I see no problem. Everyone that see you know that the bathroom is dirty.

Answer 8

Changing pants in office bathroom?

As you say: in that case be humble to ask if There is no malls or individuals who would allow you to you to use their shower before work. Even for a small fee.

In that case please ask around. I have let others do this very thing in my flat, because of particular situations!

Truck stops occasionally have showers that are available for a dollar or two. Ask around!

Answer 9

In India, you could easily use a Dhothi and then change the pants in public.

If people watching concerns you, make a colored bedsheet into a pyjama like in Carlie Caplin’s ‘The Kid’ movie.

I recommend you not to change like this in office because your bosses and colleagues may not like this attitude in India and it may affect your work life. You can change near any shop backyard or even roads. No one cares a stranger guy changing clothes. If it is only someone they know, they will come up with some complaints.

I regularly see Hindu priests with no shirt and a towel wrapped in Kerala walking in public in the morning to do the religious things.

Inside office premises, you are under them but outside office, you are your own boss.

Answer 10

My hack is to

• Clean the bathroom.

which needs doing anyway.

Don't ignore the greater problem!

Answer 11

Since the old clothes are drenched in sweat and you'd probably want to carry only one extra plastic bag to keep these wet clothes in it, carrying more bags or materials isn't a feasible option.

I think the the most efficient solution would be where you can lay down the wet cycling clothes on the wet floor and keep your feet on it (the wet clothes) all the time while wearing the new clothes. No matter how wet your wet clothes are, they won't make your new pants wet, since the water (sweat) is absorbed totally by the wet plant unlike in the case of floor where drops of water remains at the surface and gets absorbed by the new pants immediately.