Tag: fitness gear
With the pandemic, I feel as though there are two camps: those who’ve let their fitness fall to the wayside, and those who’ve dived in and are more fit than ever. And to keep your fitness groove on that track, I truly believe getting some proper gear for your workouts will be a big motivating factor. Of course, you can keep using the old apparel you dug out but over time, those sport bras lose elasticity and those shorts have seen better days. Besides that, working out in fitness gear that you feel good in makes it that much more likely you’ll be eager to do another sweat session.
But everything in the world seems uncertain right now, and many of us are trying to be smarter with how we’re spending (maybe you’ve been furloughed or you’re on CERB, for example). The good news is if you have a small budget, you can still score some great gear for your new active lifestyle. My four tips on how to shop for easy-on-the-wallet gear:
1. Check out retailers outside of the usual brands. Canadian-owned family discount store Giant Tiger, for example. They carry their signature brand of fitness gear, ACX Active, which comes in plus-sizes too and includes shoes, and I can tell you firsthand that the gear is soft and comfortable. I’ve been living in the bike shorts ($6!), and the shoes, while I wouldn’t run a marathon in them, I’ve walked many kilometres in them for the virtual race I’m completing this summer.
2. Try everything on in the store (even pieces that don’t immediately grab you as your personal style). Firstly, you should try fitness gear on in the store before you buy so you can ensure it is comfortable and suits the activity you’re planning on wearing it for (so if it’s for running, try a little jog in the store, or do a sun salutation if it’s gear you want to wear for yoga). But secondly, you may be surprised by what pieces you like the most once you try the pieces on. Fitness gear often doesn’t show well on a hanger, but once you get it on, you’ll notice the perfect length of a pair of shorts, or the soft drape of the fabric of a t-shirt you weren’t sure about. I knew I loved this orange sport bra ($12!) as soon as I saw it and was even happier once I tried it on and saw how flattering it is.
3. Don’t be afraid to customize the pieces. On the hanger, the piece might not be totally you but don’t limit yourself to wearing the piece as is, and remember this as you’re in the change room trying things on. Think of how you can style the pieces to suit your personal style. Knot that tee or even crop it with a pair of scissors (I love the drape of the blue tank top, and am planning on cropping it).
4. Add in other summer fitness essentials at Giant Tiger while you’re building your fitness wardrobe. Caps, sunglasses, and sunscreen for example. One of my all-time favourite SPF products is Hawaiian Tropic Sheer Touch Lotion. It goes on and disappears into the skin (it does leave an extremely subtle, flattering luminescence) so I happily slather it on daily (and a derm once told me the best sunscreen for you, if you’re undecided on say SPF 30 versus SPF 45, is the one that you’ll use regularly). For especially hot and humid days (when you’re sweating more and/or plan to be in and out of the water often), another great option is Coppertone Sport SPF 30 Lotion, since it is water resistant.
Feeling good and looking good as you exercise can be what pushes you to keep up these healthy new habits, and getting some great new options that won’t drain your bank account is worth it. Consider it a small investment into your self-care.
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August 4, 2020
I have a new category of clothes in my wardrobe, and it’s all because of my rescue pup, Billie Jean.
Until recently, my clothing could be broken down into three categories: my running gear, my actual clothes for going out, and my at-home clothes (which is essentially my pajamas–I’ve always been one of those people who put on PJs as soon as I get home no matter what time it is). Given that I work from home, this means until a few months ago, I spent a lot of time in PJs.
But now that I actually have to be out in public several times a day when working from home to walk and play with Billie Jean, I’ve found that I need comfortable clothes that are easy to get on quickly (especially for those morning walks, because I’m not an a.m. person!) and look presentable. My flannel PJs weren’t cutting it.
Fitting this new niche in my wardrobe is the Mark’s Shambhala line, which I’ve only recently discovered. Did you know that Mark’s launched in 1977 in Calgary (love that city!)? I only found that out now. That’s not to say that I’m a Mark’s newbie. I’ve shopped there since high school (although, in Quebec–where I grew up–it’s called L’Equipeur) and I’ve picked up sweaters, gifts, undies and socks throughout the years there.
Their Shambhala collection is a mix of workout gear and activewear, and the items are easy to throw on quickly (think easy to mix and match pieces of mostly solids with a few graphic prints). The pieces work for me because I can put on an outfit from the collection in the morning for Billie Jean’s first walk of the day, and then I’m super comfortable as I work from home. But I can also easily go for a run (or do any workout, but I just tend to gravitate towards running), or I can just as simply pop into my favourite coffee shop or pick up some groceries and my ootd is perfectly fine for any of these occasions. And that suits me well given my lifestyle (I’m typically juggling a lot of different things and just making it work with my schedule).
Which is like many of us these days, after all? Our responsibilities call for clothing that’s versatile. There’s a reason the active look is sticking around, after all–being on the go is the new normal.
I’ve got on some of my fave pieces here but there’s a crisp striped tank that I think would be great for spring. I knew adopting a dog would change my lifestyle, but didn’t realize it meant a new day-to-day wardrobe, too.
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May 11, 2017
Between running a minimum of three times a week and then other workouts thrown into my routine as well (from Spinning to dance class), I go through a lot of activewear in a week. Add in wearing some of that gear for going out (hello, athleisure!), well, my fit gear gets a lot of use, and it gets real sweaty in the process. And so I do laundry at least once a week of just my activewear.
But as I’ve come to realize (in an embarrassing way — more on that later) is that clean doesn’t exactly mean fresh smelling. The performance fabrics that activewear is made with consists of synthetic fibres, which can trap odour if you’re not diligent with how you care for them, resulting in a not-so-pretty scent referred to as “rebloom.” That shameful incident I referred to above? Well, I’ve become familiar with this rebloom when I’ve thrown on a sports bra — a clean one — to head out for brunch and as I stepped out the door, I noticed a peculiar scent, which to my horror was from this fresh from the laundry sports bra.
Well, as I definitely don’t want any malodorous rebloom emanating from me, I’ve changed up my laundry routine and have partnered with Tide with their new product. Now my gear is getting into fresh smelling shape with the Tide + Downy Odor Defense Collection. It’s specifically designed to fight against rebloom; you can use it for all of your laundry but it’s especially great with activewear, given the synthetic fabric content of these pieces. Its rebloom-eliminating power comes from Febreze Odor Defense technology, which goes to task at breaking down organic compounds and body soils (ew!) deep down to the level of the fibres.
It’s a trifecta of products that work as a team to eliminate this rebloom: there’s Tide Pods plus Febreze Odor Defense (cleans and removes stains); Tide Rescue with Febreze Odor Defense (greasy body soils and odours deep in the fibres begone!); and Downy Fresh Protect with Febreze Odor Defense is the third product, which is what gives your clothing 24 hours of freshness.
Since you can use it on all of your clothes, it doesn’t call for a whole separate set of products just for your activewear (and you don’t want rebloom in any of your clothes, after all), so it’s what I’ve switched to. And now I can leave the house and not have to worry about my clean clothes giving off anything but the freshest of scents. I may return with them soaked and grubby from a sweaty workout, but I know that my new Tide routine will take care of that.
Disclosure: I created this blog post as an ambassador for Tide. All opinions and advice are my own and I only work with companies I genuinely love and have used prior to being contracted.
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June 28, 2016
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