How Can Athleisure Wear Improve Your Workouts?

For years, people followed fashion trends with little eye to comfort. How else can you explain the existence of ties and high heels, which serve no practical purpose but are nevertheless staples in many modern wardrobes? Dressing for the office was a completely different animal than getting ready for the gym.

However, today’s hectic lifestyles demand a return to practicality and dress codes have evolved to match. Athleisure combines the advantages of workout wear with a sleek style that takes you from the office to the treadmill with hardly a stop to swap your shoes for sneakers. It’s equally stylish when running Saturday shopping errands as it is for casual Fridays.

Can these garments take your gym time to the next level? They might if you take advantage of the multiple benefits. Here’s how athleisure wear can improve your workouts.

Takes You From Work to Workout Without a Pause

A lack of time is perhaps the number one reason people don’t work out and today’s busy schedules make it understandable. However, you can also find time if you get creative. For example, riding your bike to work makes better use of your commute and can lead to a longer and healthier life — but doing so means dealing with physical realities.

You can’t do much to combat inclement weather, but many people skip the healthy way to get to work, even on pleasant days. They don’t want to show up at the office with dark armpit rings from sweat — and the resulting discomfort that comes from sitting in damp, smelly garments.

However, much of today’s athleisure wear fashion features special sweat-wicking fabrics that help prevent excess sweating and discomfort by letting your skin breathe. The improved airflow keeps you cool while you ride, keeping you from arriving at the office drenched. They also dry quickly, meaning you’ll feel perfectly comfortable at that 9 a.m. budget meeting.

Lets You Squeeze in Mini-Workouts

According to the World Health Organization, you should get a minimum of 150 minutes per week of moderate to vigorous exercise to maintain positive health. That breaks down to roughly 30 minutes a day. However, what if your schedule makes you race from work to school or a side hustle after your regular gig? Finding an uninterrupted block of time at midday can prove impossible and you might be too exhausted by day’s end to dream of donning your gym gear.

However, athleisure wear lets you squeeze in a mini workout when you have a few spare minutes. For example, most workplaces provide a 15-minute break in the morning and another in the afternoon. You might sit at your desk and scroll social media or saunter no further than the break room for a Coke when you dress in a pencil skirt or dry-clean-only suit.

However, athleisure wear empowers you to take a brisk power walk around the block — or two — instead of wasting that time. If you hustle, you can even make it back to work with time to grab a coffee before you return to your desk. If your workplace has a gym, you don’t have to waste precious moments changing. Simply step inside and perform a few biceps curls and squats or take the recumbent bike for a spin.

Has You Ready to Workout Anytime, Anywhere 

What if your workplace doesn’t have a fitness room? You’re in good company, as many facilities do not — but that won’t stop you from improving your workouts with athleisure wear. Why? You can work out anytime or anywhere in this attire without worrying about wrinkling your outfit.

For example, many of today’s top fitness apps feature workouts that last only five or 10 minutes. Can you close your office door or sneak out to a local park on your break to take advantage of a quick fitness burst?

Athleisure wear lets you squeeze in a workout instead of growing crazy with boredom when stuck in a long line. Does the person in front of you at the grocer’s have two carts, an envelope full of coupons and a checkbook? Instead of letting your cheeks turn red with irritation, take advantage of the unplanned fitness break. Do a few squats and practice toe raises and leg lifts, using the cart to help you balance. Stretch and touch your toes — just be careful not to bump into anyone standing close by accidentally. 

Athleisure improves your workouts by stealing your excuses. You have little reason to stay stationary when you can get your daily movement quota in short bursts wherever you happen to be.

Prevents Injuries

Can you guess what typically sends 16,000 women to the emergency room per year? If you’re male, you might be surprised to learn it’s high heels — the female set is already shaking their heads knowingly.

A lot of traditional “fashion” isn’t very comfortable or designed for freedom of movement. While women have it rougher in terms of practicality than men, you can trip over long suit legs, too. Plus, the blazer can grow oppressively warm and dress shoes offer little traction.

Athleisure helps prevent injuries because it’s designed to keep you from becoming tangled or restricting you from making rapid movements in an emergency. It also encourages you to wear shoes with a better grip, saving you from slipping and sliding on slick surfaces. The chances you might have to fight off a mugger or break into a sprint during the typical day might be slim, but the right garments keep you safer.

Inspires You to Get Moving 

The inspirational quality of athleisure wear is perhaps the most prominent way it improves your workouts. When you don fancy gym duds, you want to exercise.

Although many of these styles flatter any figure, you’ll look and feel more confident in your clothes when you’re toned. Athleisure lets you see your physical progress in the mirror even when you aren’t flexing at the gym.

Athleisure Benefits Your Workouts

Can athleisure wear improve your workouts? The above five reasons say “absolutely!” This practical fashion trend lets you sneak in fitness anytime and anywhere in short bursts that suit your schedule. They can even overcome one of the biggest challenges to getting to the gym — the need to change your clothing after a long day.

The next time you shop for new threads, why not add some athleisure wear to your wardrobe? Try it on and watch yourself feel inspired to move more every time you rock your new look.