Working out is one of my favorite things to do. I love going to the gym, burning off my sweat, and getting a great workout. After I workout I feel amazing, like a whole new person. When I go to the gym I always put on my favorite workout outfit. My workout outfit is so important to my workout because I love “dressing up” in my favorite workout top and leggings. I always get my workout clothing from either Models or Lu Lu Lemon, but it made me think what exactly does work out clothing do. Besides it looking cute, does it really impact peoples workouts?
All workout stores say that their clothing is the best. One way to really find the best clothing is to look at its material. The best types of materials are spandex and wool. This is because when we workout we sweat. These fabrics are very breathable which is necessary because sweat vaporizes from people’s bodies very slowly. The interesting thing about workout clothing is everyone is different. Everyone’s bodies act differently and respond to movement in unique ways. This is why trial and error is very necessary for people to do to find out what exactly works for them.
Working out causes people to sweat. Sweat is our body’s way of cooling us down. Our bodies make 1 liter of sweat a day. Sweat is made in our sweat glands. There are two sweat glands; the apocrine gland and eccrine gland. The apocrine sweat gland is near our armpits while the eccrine gland is all over the body. The apocrine gland is the most active during exercise and is located right near the hair follicle. When people work out it releases fluid with proteins and hormones.
In recent years the new style is compression clothing. This tight material is so popular because it is said to make peoples workouts better and give them a good recovery when they’re finished. At the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas students tested compression clothing to examine the phenomenon. Through studies they found it increases blood circulation, which gives the athlete more oxygen that they can use during their workout. It also makes the person use fewer muscles because their space relative on earth changes. This makes people have more energy after their workout because they got an amazing exercise, just with fewer muscles. A test was done at the University of Indiana Bloomington to see if the compression clothing even eliminated bio chemicals. To do this she took sixteen male runners with linked up monitors and masks. She put some runners in compression while the others wore regular gear. Her null hypothesis was if compression clothing really makes a difference in running efficiency. The runners then got on a treadmill. Her results showed that compression clothing didn’t improve efficiency but greatly impacted endurance. I think that to further the investigation more studies should be done on athletes. For example running and playing basketball are two different types of sports. They require different muscles and movement. I think compression could impact one more than the other. I also think that environment has a lot to do with this. If it is hot outside, the more a person will sweat rather then an indoor sport. Compression though isn’t for everyone, 20% of people in the United States said they don’t like using compression material at all.
Clothing really does have an impact on his whether it is compression or not. ‘”Enclothed Cognition” was discovered in a 2012 study by two scientists. In this study the
two scientists divided people into two groups to preform science activities. One group was dressed in nothing but normal clothing and the other were given lab coats. The people dressed in lab clothes had the best results at the end of the activity. This relates to workout clothing because when one gets dressed in this clothing, the more athletic you feel which causes people to go to the gym and get a great workout. This is why Lu Lu Lemon is such a successful brand. The make clothing that is attractive and supportive, even though the cost no less then $50!
Work out clothing seems to be the new thing, all around campus I see people wearing it. When I asked if they went to the gym or are going sometimes they even say no. I find it so shocking that they’re wearing workout clothing but they make a good point, its comfortable and supportive. Will one day workout clothing be the new style to wear everyday
Work Cited
http://lifehacker.com/is-there-really-a-benefit-to-special-exercise-clothing-1607198642
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/01/14/can-compression-clothing-enhance-your-workout/?_r=0
http://www.antiperspirantsinfo.com/en/all-about-sweat/what-is-sweat.aspx
This is a very interesting post. Whenever I go to they gym I usually wear workout clothes whether tight or not, that make me comfortable. I never actually knew that it helps us get more oxygen, that’s very neat. Now I need to buy more tighter workout pants for the gym.
This is very interesting because I always wondered why wearing tighter clothes helped people at the gym. Now I know that it gives people more oxygen. I was really surprised when I read that people should work out with wool but now i understand that since it is breathable it is better to work out in.
I found this post to be really interesting. When i was in high school and went to lacrosse practice, we all wore either tshirts or hoodies to practice. Now, when i go to the gym i always wear cute workout gear and i feel so much better. When i feel better, i can definitely see an improvement in my workout and my overall fitness.
I think wearing work out clothes does have it’s physiological advantages, such as how compression clothing helps blood circulation in the body. However I think the “trend” with workout clothing is how it is marketed, and not what how it enhances workout abilities. We live in a society that is easily impressionable. When you market the clothes as something, people will believe everything they say in the advertising, and go buy the clothing. Especially since the workouts clothes are appealing and comfortable, as it can even be worn as regular clothes. When people see other people wearing it, they feel more inclined to go out and buy the clothing for themselves
I don’t believe that workout clothing really influences whether you have a good or bad workout. But I do believe footwear can impact a workout. Ankle injuries can occur if you are wearing the wrong shoes. I was surprised at the section of the blog that mentioned that wearing wool was good for working out in. When I think of wool I think of heavy fabric that will suffocate your being. Thanks to Shannon’s comment that provided the link retaining to working out in wool, I was able to learn that wool is actually a breathable fabric.
I love to wear workout clothing whether I am going to the gym or not. I like to wear it to class because, as you pointed out, it’s comfortable, flexible, and breathable. Something that I thought this post lacked was a paragraph about shoes. Wearing a decent shoe can make all the difference in people’s workout habits. Whatever your workout might be, the shoe you wear can save you from foot and ankle injuries that could stop your workout for awhile. If you plan on running at the gym, make sure you can find a shoe designed to soften the blow of your feet pounding on the ground. If you’re more into basketball, a high top shoe is best because it protects your feet. Wearing the right shoe could majorly help your workout, and your health.
Nice post! I really liked the way you presented the study. When I noticed that you said people should workout in wool I was surprised. I did some research and it turns out wool is actually really common for workout gear because its a breathable fabric. Especially Australian merino wool, the downside is its really expensive but its said to give better workout results because its lighter and not a synthetic fabric. If you’d like to read up on it heres a website to do so http://www.racked.com/2014/8/18/7580967/merino-wool-activewear