UNDERDRESSED

If you Fitness Professionals were the only ones that thought that were going to get a wake up call, guess again.

Yes being a bodybuilder and going to the gym or doing any type of workout along with keeping healthy eating habits and lifestyle is hard work, but thinking there isn’t a dress code or that a specific one is cool, then you ARE a jack ass.

For starters, for those of you who don’t wear the appropriate footwear, do you see construction workers wearing flip flops? Do you see ballerinas wearing boots? People! Exercise is the basic movement for any type of sport, and in sports you certainly don’t see any athletes wearing inappropriate clothing. In fact the Sports Industry is growing with all the technology put into fabricating, and developing clothing for better sport performance. So wearing flip flops is the same as going barefoot (which some do anyway) which is asking for equipment to be dropped on your foot, or even worse, getting your it caught in machines. If you are wearing boots, then you might as well go with dress shoes or high heels.

How many people are having problems with their feet because of inappropriate footwear during the Summer? Flip flops are flat, and don’t offer enough support to the arch of your foot, and flip flops make you drag your feet, or pressure the toes to hold it into place when walking. So besides the possibility of your foot getting caught in machines or even having the dumbells or plates fall on your feet, you should have footwear that is appropriate for sports that have the right heel size, offer lateral support, and breathing room, protecting your feet.

Just because you are training upper body does not mean you don’t need the appropriate footwear. You still need the correct posture and stable footing to be able to perform an exercise correctly, example a dumbell lateral raise.

The correct type of footwear, which in the gym are sneakers with the appropriate heel, can be found at any sport store, and if you don’t want any of the high end brands such as Nike, Reebok, Adidas, you can look for cheaper no name brands, but be sure it is specific for purposes of sports and exercise. For those of you who want ankle support in the gym, you can go with the basketball high tops, or there is even a brand that was specifically designed for weight training, usually worn by bodybuilders, giving not only support to the feet but to the ankle too called Otomix.

As for those of you wearing jeans, where did you get the idea that wearing jeans in the gym is cool? Just because you think you look good in your designer jeans or your recreational play is in jeans doesn’t mean that you go exercise in jeans.

To have a good workout what is considered appropriate clothing is what is comfortable and not tight on the body in its whole, so it can breathe, allows perspiration, and offer full movement so that the exercises can be done properly. The risk of wearing jeans is that they limit movement, so they can rip, but with today’s fashion some are just too tight or just too baggy, and prevent the correct ventilation of skin, and movement which is a risk to health.

Now something has to be said about those that think that the gym is a Rap music video clip and train with baggy wear. For the Trainers and members that wear the waist line of their pants below the hips, showing off the back of your underwear, do you really think that’s appropriate, when that came from male incarceration facilities meaning you are offering that part of your body? Be careful because knowing the gay community, who cares about their bodies, you might just be taken up on your offer.

All the inappropriate clothing and footwear does not contribute to your health, for today with the advance in technology, materials to fabricate clothing and footwear are developed to help your body move properly, breathe, metabolise adequately, and to expel toxins that are needed to get your results. Wear the proper clothing to exercise, and it is a start to maybe reaching your goals and seeing results.