It's Okay to Overthink Gym Clothes
You’re reading Shopper: Highsnobiety's bulletin on what’s taking up headspace from the marketplace. This is an edit of September 22's newsletter, in which shopping editor Max Migowski rings in gym season. Subscribe here, or head to the Shopping tab for more recs.
Confessions of a Highsnob Gym Rat
In Germany, three key events mark the beginning of fall: the sudden Christmas candy rollout at grocery stores (Halloween who?); the birthday of yours truly; and the repopulation of local gyms with everyone back from vacation. With the latter half of September chock-full of European Fashion Weeks (and all the heady trend analysis that’s to follow), I figured we'd make this week's edition a place to talk about what your friends at Highsnobiety wear to work out. After all, there's no better time to start preparing for next summer — or at least to get a (literal) leg up on one’s gym habits before the post-holiday push come January.
Now, I myself have only been a gym rat for a bit over a year. (I was motivated by the lapse of what would barely qualify as a situationship just short of my 28th birthday — how very “male approaching 30” of me, I know.) That said, in spite of my many informed opinions on regular clothes, fitness gear beyond running shoes isn’t totally my forte. Up until now, I’ve been put off by the smells of sweaty synthetics and stayed content doing my presses and lifts and crunches in a tie-dye Piggly Wiggly tee and skimpy seersucker Nike shorts. But with the anniversary of my gym membership upon us, my exercise uniform might finally be due for an overhaul.
For inspiration, I started looking around the office. My sportier colleagues engage in everything from yoga to tennis, swimming to Brazilian jiu-itsu, HIIT classes and body building to good ol’ fashioned cardio. As such, you’d assume a wide variety of brands and specialty attire are involved. Think again! Upon a personal survey, it turned out that Lululemon, the Swoosh, and adidas were by far the most frequent mentions, covering a wide range of garments for pretty much every imaginable activity. Lulu's Pace Breaker short specifically was name-dropped more than once as an indispensable and versatile item that moonlights as a casual everyday piece. Meanwhile, versions of the adidas compression shirts, D4T boxers, and EVO kicks came up several times too, alongside select Under Armour, Umbro, and TALA wares. Non-essential essentials, so to speak, included baseball caps, sturdy water bottles, anti-fog Speedo goggles, and a fanny pack to hold — I kid you not — “cigarettes.” Balance.
Perhaps naively, I was surprised to find plenty of endorsements of Uniqlo and H&M's activewear lines in my peers’ responses, and suspiciously few shoutouts to nicher, trendier, and pricier competitors. In fact, there was a general consensus on how it's A-okay to cheap out on… most things, actually — except for proper footwear (such as ASICS), socks, sports bras, and a decent outer layer à la MAAP or Arc'teryx for open air sessions (or to combat blasting indoor ACs). Aside from the occasional vintage T-shirt or baggy sweats, a notable amount of respondents stated a preference for paper-thin, stretchy, and snug fabrics over plain cottons. In our corner of Berlin at least, the obsession over natural fiber activewear seems mostly theoretical.
Interestingly, folks were less itchy for new stuff to shop than the current wellness culture discourse would suggest. Fashionability is a factor at the gym, but it can also be a liability: Nobody wants to look like they're trying too hard. It made me wonder if activewear is, indeed, one of the more trend-proof parts of our closets. I mean, if there were ever a category that depends entirely on comfortable, functional, enduring basics, this might be it. And if you really want to know what the platonic ideal of cool workout wear is, there's a single response from my survey that ended up capturing it perfectly: “effortless, mildly worn in/with patina, slutty.”
Open Tabs
Over a decade in the making, TOTEME for guys has finally landed, and my favorite pieces hitting shelves now are the bright red cable-knit and this boxy black peacoat. What are yours?
I love, love, love the color of this faintly chalk-striped blazer and matching pant by Auralee.
Slam Jam x Umbro launched an astonishingly vast collection together, and the terrace-y outerwear is especially cool.
Why yes, it's September, and I'm in the spirit of autumnal jackets. Could you tell by my stalking of this Massimo Dutti nappa leather one with the clasp?
… or by my nervous refreshing of the COS page to see if this reversible funnel collar blouson is still available?
How cute is the teeny, tiny embroidery on this GAP x A.P.C. long-sleeve? A good excuse, while you’re browsing, to also check out the former's brand new (and lore-laden) lineup of bags.
Beige Habilleur x Aurora Shoe Company's collaborative square-toe chukka boot is what happens when a Parisian men's outfitter joins forces with folksy American shoemakers.
What's more comfortable than a pair of Crocs? A Vibram-soled, Polartec-fleece-lined pair, that's what!
From what I can tell though, the Merrell x Eastlogue moc is the above's fiercest (and most stylish) rival.
Dr. Martens x Margaret Howell is an unexpected, understated, and thus far underappreciated pairing, so go grab either of these MHL-label derbies, please.
At this point, I've nearly had it with low-profile sneakers. But if anyone gets to release another new iteration, it's the perfecter of the form himself, Mr. Dries Van Noten. Let his be the final word!