This recent humorous video served as a reminder to me to write about active-wear.
I'm sure if you're reading this blog you don't spend all your time in your active-wear. To me, active-wear serves a great purpose, to allow you to move freely when exercising, but once you've finished that activity, it's time to get out of it (and I know from my own experience, I usually need a shower if I've been using my active-wear for the purpose intended!) and in to your regular clothing. It's truly level 3 (outdoor leisure) of the 3 Levels of Refinement and so should be used for its intended purpose.
What I do notice when I go through the wardrobes of my clients, just how often active-wear is one of the last items considered and how often we keep really old, dated and basically pretty horrible active-wear in our wardrobes. It's not uncommon for me to find stacks of ancient and unflattering tracksuit pants, shapeless and saggy tees, and more pilling polar fleece than would be needed on an Antarctic voyage.
When I ask my clients if they feel good in this 'active-wear' the answer is a resounding " no ". They would rather not be seen in it, yet feel that spending money on something better to exercise in is a waste. Yet if you don't enjoy wearing those clothes, then you may not want to put them on, so in turn don't exercise (which is not good for your health).
Now there are elements of exercise clothing that shouldn't be scrimped on - and I think shoes and a great sports bra are those items if you are doing high-impact exercise. We only get one set of ankles, knees and hips so buying shoes that fit correctly and are going to bear some of the brunt of the force is important. But as far as the rest of your active-wear, unless you are a professional athlete or run marathons and spend heaps of time in your exercise clothing, then there is no reason to spend a fortune if it's not something you want to do.
In Australia you can get great exercise gear from Target, Big W and Kmart if your budget is tight. How much you need depends on how often you exercise. I find that if you exercise 3-5 times a week you probably need around 3-4 sets of clothes (that is if you break a sweat) as it gives you time to wash (Ok, I'll admit it I only do the washing once a week). I also like to have different lengths of exercise leggings, shorts for summer, long for winter, knee-length for the rest of the time, plus lighter and heavier tops depending on my activity and the weather.
Is it time that you took stock of what you own and if it's time to upgrade those track pants and threw out all the old exercise clothes that are now sloppy don't make you feel good?
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