Fitness Fashion Confessions

If you opened my closet right now, you’d assume one of two things: either I’m an extremely dedicated fitness enthusiast or I’m operating a secret athleisure boutique. The truth is, it’s a little bit of both.

The Shoe Situation

My shoe rack looks like a running store after an earthquake. I have:

• “Just for Coaching” sneakers: These never leave the gym. They’re stored at my desk and don’t go farther than in the gym and some occasional 400m runs. I coach anywhere from 2 to 6 hours per day and having a solid pair of sneakers is a must.

• “Outside of the Gym” sneaker: There are a few of these for errands and anything outside of the gym and sometimes my “just coaching” sneakers” are retired and come home too. These aren’t beat up old shoes, and they shouldn’t be. Always have supportive shoes!

• “Serious Running” Shoes: Worn exactly twice. They’re so technical they practically lace themselves, but apparently, they can’t actually make you want to run.

• Lifting Shoes: For Olympic lifting. Yeah!

• Super Brightly Colored Sneakers: For motivation of course because bright pink and orange are a must for everyone.

The Great Legging Dilemma

The struggle is real especially for a curvy girl. And pockets! OMG, I love, love, love pockets and they’re tough to find. I prefer them on the side, and preferably two pockets, but that’s a big ask. I can make one pocket work but two would be dreamy when I’m coaching and have to juggle the timer and class check-ins. (Shout out to @sweatybetty leggings for pockets!)

In other news, these little gems are a hard pass from me:

• Compression Leggings: Light compression, sure but medium or more (yikes!) make me feel like I’m getting squeezed like a tube of toothpaste. I’m still not sure how this could give me “performance enhancement” like the description touts.

• Booty Lifting Leggings: Which do, in fact, lift the butt but girllllll, how on earth do you move in these when other areas are ummm…uncomfortable? I’m all for power-of-the-peach but I’m going to opt for more loaded squats instead of being squeezed.

• High Rise Leggings: I’m a mid-rise girlie but the shift in most brands to high rise has me left out of the crowd. Yes, I’ve tried several brands but I’m not feeling it when the waist reaches my face. It’s really NOT a good look.

What about colors? Black. I wear a lot of black which, in case you didn’t know, goes great with gym chalk. LOL. Do I have some prints and colors, sure but when I’m coaching, it’s black. Story time —- Years ago, when I decided that “I might be a runner” I bought a pair of bright red, shiny running leggings and I LOVED them. I wore them all the time. Sadly, those red pants didn’t help me get better at running but I did meet some cool people that helped me and my shin splints back to the car pretty often. Lesson learned – I’m a sprinter not a distance girlie and that’s OK!

What have I learned?

Get the shoes that you need for each activity. Shoes need to air out because no-one needs fungus-filled shoes. Your feet will get a break from the same pressure points and your shoes will last longer. Oh, and you can show off your personal style too.

And as for the leggings…buy them until you find the best ones for you. It doesn’t matter if they’re $30 or $125, get a pair that’s comfortable and you WANT to wear. Are you going to have a pile of back-ups, yes. Can you take inventory and donate a few pairs to friends at the gym a few times a year? ABSOLUTELY because your back-ups might just be your besties “shiny red runners,” and she’ll love that.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go organize my gym clothes for the week and probably go online and look for a new pair of “reds” for motivation.

Don’t worry, we’ll talk about sports bras later. That’s a whole thing on its own!