Athleisure: Making “Fetch” Happen In Quarantine
Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner.
I have so many reasons as to why I dropped out of high school senior year that it would a decade of therapy to properly and effectively dissect them all. But, at the top of my list was my abject refusal to ever take P.E again.
There was literally nothing I despised more than Physical Education.
Maybe it’s because I can’t catch a flying object to save my life. One time, we practiced volleyball all day, and my wrists swelled up to the size of grapefruits. One time, I sprained my ankle so bad jump roping that I had to be on crutches for the next 2 weeks. There were exactly 3 things I ended up excelling at in P.E. which were as follows: hula hooping, pole climbing, and doing this crazy yoga pose where you stand on your head and rest your knees on your elbows.
Which is why it’s taken me exactly 33 years and 6 months to become open to the idea of activewear being “fashion”.
The lifestyle shift of this pandemic has got me embracing activewear the way girls who wear yoga pants 24/7 embrace fro-yo. As I shift from the couch to the desk to the bed, with an occasional run to the deserted bodega for single rolls of toilet paper, I find it increasingly tiresome to pull myself together completely. My vintage suits and statement dresses that make me feel fab while running around the city or socializing at close-range, are cumbersome for short strolls down empty streets, or getting together with friends on Zoom. I purchased sneakers recently for gym-related purposes only, but the other day something extraordinary happened. I put on the sneakers and I went for a walk.
Two days later when I found myself strolling to the grocery store in nothing but a spandex activewear set, I realized I needed to embrace the shift toward Athleisure.
It turns out when you blend activewear with your finer clothing and accessories, you not only get the exact recipe for getting chased down by street style photographers in Soho, you also get the best of both worlds for quarantine. It’s that weird little magic blend that celebrities are consistently documented in while stepping off airplanes. It’s a little bit ”track meet”, with a dose of “power suit”, or even haute couture depending on the occasion.
I decided to break down some of the best recipes for looking actively glam, and I made you some mood boards below to get you pumped like Power-Ade:
Tonal Body Workout:
I am tonally into the tonal look– almost as much as I am tonally into the overuse of intentional puns. Basically a quick way to make anything look 3-times more expensive than it actually was, is to layer it with like-shades. This means, if you pair your busted mauve tracksuit with low heels in a similar shade, and a drapey sweater in the same color family, you’ve got your new stay-home power suit that totally rocks for couch-conferencing.
Images: Lacoste SS20 runway show, Atlantic/Pacific, DKNY Spring 2017 Runway
Leggings Are Not Pants
…But you can cheat them into pant territory by utilizing the universally flattering technique of quite literally covering your ass. All the best legging outfits that hold their own outside jogger territory involve a butt-covering of some kind. Some of the most successful I’ve seen include:
An XL hoodie paired under a blazer of equal length.
A layered situation involving a midi-skirt.
A really flowy see-through get-up.
Images: Prada FW20 runway, Hailey Bieber, Tory Sport SS19
The sports bralette
Pairing a chic sports bra with a high-waisted anything is a look that seems to flatter breast-having people of all body types, which is why you shouldn’t sleep on it this Spring. Hang around your house in your teeny tiny top and your favorite undies, and when it’s time to walk the dog, take an enthusiastic dive into some paperbag waist pants or a not-too-tight skirt, throw on a blazer and sneakers and you now officially look far too intimidating for anyone to risk coming within 6 feet of you.
Images: Bondi Born Runway, Versace SS15 Runway, unknown credit
Not Your Plumbers Jumpsuit
I’ve been seeing more and more boiler-style jumpsuits out and about on socially distanced shoppers at the little produce market I frequent. We can look at the boiler suit as a symbol of revolution as they’ve been seen on notable political disrupters for much of the last decade, making them the perfect uniform for this uncertain time. Jumpsuits have been so big lately that I’m unsure they require explaining but for what it’s worth, look for belted options with looser legs and made from unconventional materials. Pair with dressy sandals, or low-top sneaks, and add statement accessories like bangles, a headband, and/or chunky earrings. An absolutely perfect look to stand in line for Trader Joes in.
Images: unknown credit, The Style Stalker, Lucy and Yak
Yeah okay, but what the heck am I wearing in the cover shot?
I needed a look that said “I’d rather be anywhere but at the pet store stocking up on cat food”. I was indeed off to buy more cat food when I decided to colorblock an easy ensemble using this loose jumpsuit from Zara as my base, and layering with an epic pink vintage windbreaker, matching sneaks, and a tonal turban.
Why it works: The colors are all warm shades so they don’t clash all together. The coat adds needed volume to the otherwise shapeless look. The accessories balance out the seesaw of dressy meets sporty with casual footwear and then a glam turban scarf pinned in place with pearls.
