Wear what makes you Confident in the Gym

             The gym is the gym. You are not walking down the runway in front of millions at Paris Fashion Week. Wear what makes you comfortable, you don’t need to need to impress the other 15 people whose eyes are barely open at your 5:00am workout. The gym is for you to make a better version of you physically so you can wow people when you go out later that night in the amazing new outfit you bought at the mall last week.
             When I go to the gym, I wear baggy basketball shorts, an old t-shirt, and worn out tennis shoes. I know I probably don’t look my best, but I know I’m going to sweat anyways, which doesn’t add to my overall attractiveness. Personally I don’t care how bad I look while working out because I’m focused on if I’m doing the lifts correctly and have the right form, not if my shirt is too big. But let’s face it, most of us have experienced that nagging voice in the back of your head, myself included, that is constantly whispering that you look gross and need to change. Just learn to ignore it, and don’t worry about how you look because I can guarantee you that a majority of the people in the gym have that same annoying voice talking to them too, but they keep pushing on.
             If you are an active gym member, you can probably clearly picture that one person who is the exact opposite of myself, which is one who dresses in top notch athletic clothing, has a full face of makeup, and perfectly done hair. I feel like almost every gym in America can attain to that statement because there are all different types of people in the world, and for some it is important to them on how they look, even when at the gym. Now, if you are that type of person who cares about their appearance at the gym, I’m not saying it’s a horrible thing and that you should show up dressed like you haven’t changed your clothes in weeks; I just want to get the idea out there that you don’t have to dress yourself up to go to the gym, just go in what you are comfortable in. I think being comfortable in what you are wearing while at the gym is a big deal because not only can you focus on the task at hand which is working out, but I think that it makes you more confident because you don’t have to worry if others will judge you based on what you are wearing.
             I think that the reason behind little rant here is that I don’t want people to be intimidated on going to the gym because they worry too much about what others will think of them. The gym is supposed to be a place for you to gain confidence in how you look and feel about yourself and how could you ever gain that confidence if you never take the “leap of faith” and just go for it. The clothes you wear shouldn’t stop you from reaching your end goal of becoming a better you mentally and physically.

 

 

Nike Shoe Collection

My personal Shoe Collection

       
              So I've hinted at it in many of my previous posts, and here is the evidence to show you that I am a huge Nike fan, especially their shoes. As you can tell I love the Nike Running Shoe Collection in which 9 out of these 20 shoes are apart of. Also I prefer Nike Basketball shoes over any other brand with my 5 pairs at the top of the picture. Every year Nike comes out with a new pair of shoes that I love, and I am hoping that they soon come out with a pair from their Flyknit Collection that I can soon add to my own collection!

Compression Shorts (aka Spandex) are a Girl’s Best Friend

                I am going to make a bold statement in saying that over 90% of athletic girls have at one point in their career worn compression shorts, which are also known as Spandex. Call them whatever you want because girls like them! Mainly this article of clothing is only known as Spandex in the volleyball world, but everywhere else they are called compression shorts or just compressions for short. You can see these undergarments everywhere, whether it be under a girl’s uniform, sweats, or even a dress as compressions seem to be the go to piece of clothing for girls across the nation.

Nike's Pro Combat Compression Shorts
are my favorite brand.

                 Personally, I am one of those girls who can’t live without them. Every time my family travels I always throw in at least one pair whether it be for a weekend sports tournament or just a family vacation, you never know when they can come in handy. I don’t know what it is about them, but I always feel like I am missing something if I don’t have them on with my uniform or even when I am just wearing them under a pair of sweats, I feel naked without them.
                 From an athletic standpoint, compressions are really nice to wear because they protect your thighs from elements you don’t really notice. As a soccer player myself, we have to play on turf a lot and the shorts we wear can be pretty short sometimes. So when you slide on the turf, you can get some really bad burns and scrapes, but by wearing compressions they help cut down the number of those injuries. Also they come in handy when playing sports because they help keep your quad and hamstring muscles warm which helps cut down on the number of muscle cramps you may get throughout the game.
                Compressions have many uses off the playing field as well. When dressing up, a lot of female athletes like to wear compressions under their dresses, myself included. This trend is very popular among teenage athletes especially. I think that part of the reason many girls like to wear their compressions under their dresses is because it makes them feel comfortable as athletes, because they are so used to wearing compressions 4 days out of the week with their regular clothing, while they only wear dresses every so often, so it’s something normal for them to wear.
                All in all compressions are a nice piece of clothing to have as a female athlete because they have many different uses to meet your specific needs. My only note is to please not wear them just by themselves out in public unless you are playing volleyball, because some would consider it like just wearing underwear in public. I highly recommend for those of you who don’t already own a pair of spandex to look into getting some, and they come in numerous different colors and patterns if you want to spice up your wardrobe.

Pictures Courtesy of www.wanelo.com