Is Expensive Workout Clothing Worth It?

Hollis100

nighthawk584 wrote: »

Brand names like NIKE are a rip off. I use old CHEAP t-shirts and cut sleeves off. I do buy good quality weight lifting/biking gloves, padded bike shorts, and good sneakers. But even so, I always look for bargains and most bang for buck.

This is exactly what I do, too. I put my money in good shoes. The rest, meh.

For me, the botttom line is this is for me, not for what I look like to other people. I don't need to spend hundreds of dollars on pants and tops to walk and run around a nearby national park, which is where I usually exercise. I'm good as long as I have neon to wear so the cars won't hit me.

lx1x

I buy cheap ones (Walmart).. I workout at home so I wear old shirts and shorts what not.. lol

PennyP312

I have a huge range...Walmart to lulu.
Depends on what the workout is too. My expensive white lulu top is not my first choice for low bar squat day cuz the barbells at my gym are gross.
Also, for spinning, my cheap old navy or Walmart sports bras will not work! Need the Victoria sport or under Armour compression.

But all this said, I love to work out. I’m at the gym 6 days a week. So spending the money on a few more expensive, quality pieces for me is worth it.

moonangel12

Hollis100 wrote: »

nighthawk584 wrote: »

Brand names like NIKE are a rip off. I use old CHEAP t-shirts and cut sleeves off. I do buy good quality weight lifting/biking gloves, padded bike shorts, and good sneakers. But even so, I always look for bargains and most bang for buck.

This is exactly what I do, too. I put my money in good shoes. The rest, meh.

For me, the botttom line is this is for me, not for what I look like to other people. I don't need to spend hundreds of dollars on pants and tops to walk and run around a nearby national park, which is where I usually exercise. I'm good as long as I have neon to wear so the cars won't hit me.

No joke on the neon! Even in our tiny, very quiet little neighborhood I have had a car take a turn WAY too wide and head straight toward me as I was waiting off the road for then to go by... you could see the moment when they finally noticed the NEON shirt and hat when the car jerked back to the road.

Function over fashion - each activity will have a different set of needs. Biking in loose pants? Not a good idea... running in loose clothes with noticeable seams? That has great potential for chafing... But on the other hand, I hate all the new leggings that are out with the different panels because the seams irritate me. I need to invest in some good sports bras now that I am running more, the cheap ones aren’t nearly supportive enough and leave pressure hives sometimes.

okc0mputr

I suggest trying the different brands. I have shirts and shorts from nike, reebok, adidas, and some off brands from walmart, as well as underarmour. I found that I like the underarmour material better because its better for moisture wicking than the others, but that's just my opinion...

cwolfman13

I put my money into quality cycling gear as that is my primary form of exercise and quality cycling gear is worth every penny. I also will put money into quality shoes because I tend to have foot issues. My regular gym workout gear I mostly just get from Target, but all I wear is shorts or track pants and wicking fabric shirts...I don't need anything fancy.

My wife finds quality leggings to be a plus and they usually cost more...I think she has some Lulu stuff. She's found cheap leggings to, for the most part, wear faster...too thin and rip and tear and show the world everything that's going on down there. She gets most of her other gear for running and whatnot from Target primarily. She's an avid runner, so she does invest in higher end running shoes.

I think it all really depends on what you're doing and how you want those clothes to perform. I know a lot of people who just have to have whatever the trendy hot brand name is which I don't get...most of those people I also see kinda prancing around the gym and not doing a whole lot.

mom23mangos

I can't justify the money for brands like Lulu. I buy from Ross/Target/Old Navy. I was able to snag a pair of Fabletics from Ross for about $12. I like them a lot. I've never had a quality issue buying cheaper. I still wear clothes from 25 years ago (as you can tell from that statement I'm not much about fashion). I've never a pair of leggings or shirts rip or tear unless I was in an accident. I just make sure I try them on and make sure they are thick enough to now show my goodies before buying.

AnnPT77

I think this is all about personal values, and the nature/location of one's workouts.

I'm near-totally oblivious to my appearance (other than trying to keep it respectable out in public), so will go with inexpensive but decent quality workout clothing for basic workouts. I don't like tech fabrics much, so I'm wearing a lot of Walmart yoga pants or leggings in simple, plain colors that aren't see-through; and inexpensive cotton or cotton-blend t-shirts. For rowing (on water), I want the shirts in neon colors (those usually come from the crafts chain stores, where they sell them for fabric painting, and they're often 3 for $10 on sale: Works for me). I've gotten some good values at Costco occasionally, too.

For functional technical wear, I'll spend more. My rowing splash jackets (with a sit-on tail, extra-long sleeves because you reach, fit that doesn't risk catching your thumbs or other dangerous things, etc.) are more expensive. I'll certainly be buying high-quality PFDs for canoeing/kayaking wear. Good-weather hats are pretty cheap; it's just a sunshade. Foul-weather hats are technical. Adequate rain gear for long-duration activity in very cold or wet weather is going to be more expensive. Biking tights/shorts need to be decent quality. And so forth.

Personally, I don't care what the brand name is. I care about features, price, and quality (in varying order, depending on the specific item/use).

I don't think ill of people who want cute workout clothes, who value particular brand names, who need to keep things on the way-cheap because of constrained budgets or whatever.

The only time I'm judge-y about workout wear is when new rowers at our club wear things that can be unsafe, when I'll suggest changes and tell them why. (I help with the learn-to-row classes, so this is not just pure interference . . . though I might interfere anyway, as an experienced club member, for safety's sake).

debrakgoogins

High quality work out pants are important to me as are good sports bras, shirts not so much. I don't care about cute but I do care about functional. I am tall and have a long torso. Badly fitting leggings gap on my bum and cause chafing at the leg seams during runs and don't get me started on see through pants. Eddie Bauer makes leggings in women's tall sizes that fit well. I live in them. Sports bras need to hold everything where it should be held without painful pinching. I haven't been successful in finding inexpensive sports bras that are effective. As long as the shirt is wicking material and long enough, they work for me.

NorthCascades

Here's a picture of me from March, 2012. In it, I'm wearing two pieces of Arc'teryx gear, the jacket, and the neck gaiter which I'm using as a hat. I've worn that jacket almost every day from October until March almost every year, and the gaiter an awful lot too. I still have and use both of them. Eight years is a long time for stuff like this to last when you use it so much. Arc'teryx is notoriously expensive, until you consider how much use you get out of it. Also, their gear functions very well, and tends to look good as a bonus. So I'd say yes, at least in some cases expensive gear is worth it. I don't have any Nike, North Face, or Under Armor, I'm not saying all expensive clothing is worth it or good. Even among Arc'teryx in whom I have a lot of confidence, I research every piece of gear I think about buying, to see if it's going to fit my needs.

barefootbridgey

Depends on what you're doing for working out and what you feel comfortable in. I workout/run in athletic capris - I have several $10 pairs from Walmart that are just fine, they are comfortable, they stay where I want them to and I've never had an issue with them being see through. That being said...when Victoria's Secret runs a sale on the Knockout sport Capris and they drop to under $30, I scoop those babies up, because they are my absolute favorite workout pants ever. the fabric is amazing, with some compression but not enough to feel uncomfortable, some of then have pockets, they never move when I'm working out. they are not a necessity and I refuse to pay full price. But....for a sale price of triple what I pay for Walmart brand ones? 100% worth that. Shirts though...not worth it. tshirts are not comfortable (for me), but the cheap Walmart fitness tank tops (like $8 or something are just fine and they last forever (I have some that I've had for probably 6 years and I wash them constantly). I will occasionally pick up an under amour heat gear shirt, because they are nice in the summer when it's hot. But even then. Never full price, always wait for the sale. Shoes - sort of the same. I run in Asics, but I don't find the $80 Asics to be any better than then $35-$30 gel ventures that you can get at JC Penney on a pretty regular sale (and actually those are probably my favorite running shoes ever). But...those are my feet and your feet might not dig those shoes.

Good sports bra though....that's full price worthy.

CSARdiver

NorthCascades wrote: »

Here's a picture of me from March, 2012. In it, I'm wearing two pieces of Arc'teryx gear, the jacket, and the neck gaiter which I'm using as a hat. I've worn that jacket almost every day from October until March almost every year, and the gaiter an awful lot too. I still have and use both of them. Eight years is a long time for stuff like this to last when you use it so much. Arc'teryx is notoriously expensive, until you consider how much use you get out of it. Also, their gear functions very well, and tends to look good as a bonus. So I'd say yes, at least in some cases expensive gear is worth it. I don't have any Nike, North Face, or Under Armor, I'm not saying all expensive clothing is worth it or good. Even among Arc'teryx in whom I have a lot of confidence, I research every piece of gear I think about buying, to see if it's going to fit my needs.

My primary outer shell is a Mountain Hardwear purchased sometime around 1998. I think two years ago the zipper broke and I contacted customer service - sent in the jacket and they repaired it for free.

At the time it was one of the more expensive pieces of gear out there, but it certainly held up well. Multiple ascents and deployments and incredibly reliable.

dbanks80

For me it is worth getting quality exercise clothes. I get them when they are on sale. And mine last for a few years. They wash well and fit well every time.

Duck_Puddle

It depends what you’re doing. I have a lot of cheap stuff that works great for 90% of my workouts.

I pay $$$$$$$$ for sports bras for running. I pay similarly for running shoes.

I also pay big money for weather-specific running gear. Insulated leggings that aren’t too thick, too heavy, too hot, don’t breathe, and are durable enough to last a whole winter are worth every penny.

Same with running jackets of lots of different weights/levels of wind/water resistance.

While I don’t care about brand, typically the big name companies are the ones developing clothing that meets that criteria.

But for everything else? Meh. The $5 stuff I got at Walmart is good enough.

NorthCascades

CSARdiver wrote: »

NorthCascades wrote: »

Here's a picture of me from March, 2012. In it, I'm wearing two pieces of Arc'teryx gear, the jacket, and the neck gaiter which I'm using as a hat. I've worn that jacket almost every day from October until March almost every year, and the gaiter an awful lot too. I still have and use both of them. Eight years is a long time for stuff like this to last when you use it so much. Arc'teryx is notoriously expensive, until you consider how much use you get out of it. Also, their gear functions very well, and tends to look good as a bonus. So I'd say yes, at least in some cases expensive gear is worth it. I don't have any Nike, North Face, or Under Armor, I'm not saying all expensive clothing is worth it or good. Even among Arc'teryx in whom I have a lot of confidence, I research every piece of gear I think about buying, to see if it's going to fit my needs.

My primary outer shell is a Mountain Hardwear purchased sometime around 1998. I think two years ago the zipper broke and I contacted customer service - sent in the jacket and they repaired it for free.

At the time it was one of the more expensive pieces of gear out there, but it certainly held up well. Multiple ascents and deployments and incredibly reliable.

I've had a couple of Mountain Hardware pieces that were pretty excellent too. Some tech shirts that breath really well and dry almost instantly. Their Ghost Whisperer wind shirt, packs down to the size of my thumb, blocks the wind and all but the heaviest of rain.

I have no problem spending on good outdoor gear because it's going to keep me comfortable, and it's probably going to last.

fdlewenstein

Whether its worth it or not is a personal preference. I really love buying good quality exercise clothing, but I have 40 pounds to go until I reach my goal. I have been more financially aware while I am loosing weight. Personally, once I reach my goal I will definitely up my game. In the meantime I buy on sale, a lower quality product, and make due with less.

As far as shoes go...you should 100% invest in a good pair of shoes. Shoes is not the place to scrimp. Good foot wear is a must because what you wear on your feet has an impact on your alignment. Bad foot wear can cause other issues.

spiriteagle99

Money is tight for me, so no, it wouldn't be worth it to buy expensive workout gear - with a few exceptions. I do buy quality shoes, since they can make a difference between running injured or not. My shirts are almost all race shirts - paid for by my entry fee. My pants were bought at Adidas outlet. My shorts were bought on sale from Roadrunnersports. Socks are usually a 6 pack from Walmart. Gloves, vest and jacket are old hiking gear. Bras came from Target. If I was running in sub-0 temps, I would be willing to pay for good gear to keep me warm. So far I haven't had to run any colder than 16 F. and my old cheap gear worked just fine.

BrianSharpe

LOL most of my workout gear is race tees that I've picked up over the years, a handful of Adidas & Asics shorts that are at least a decade old, some MEC (Canada's version of REI) half zips and running tights. I do splurge a little on cycling/triathlon shorts, bought a really good wetsuit and running shoes (I look for sales / last years models etc)

Personally I think athletic wear is grossly overpriced.

GreenValli

I personally would not spend a lot of money on workout clothes. I have way too many t-shirts and workout pants already. But if you have the money and WANT to look good at the gym, I would say go ahead. It's your decision and if wearing cute workout clothes helps getting you to the gym it may be worth it.

AnnPT77

Shoes: It matters what you do with shoes, too.

I don't use bike shoes for spin, even though real cyclists say I should. Inexpensive shoes are working fine.

As an on-water rower, though, I may spend more than average on shoes: They can be several thousand dollars a pair . . . if you think of them as coming with a free rowing shell attached. (I think the boat vendors' price lists would argue that it's closer to the other way around!) Yes, rowers' shoes are attached to the boat, essentially bolted on. They can be switched out, but that's a rare thing. And they needn't fit especially well, either.

But the net result is there's really no need for me to buy expensive athletic shoes, as I don't do "on my feet" athletic activities, or much walking. (I do buy everyday shoes, moderately priced, that I know work for me for the amount of walking I actually do.)

An unrelated aside: The leggings from Walmart (I think the ones I have are Danskin) have proven very sturdy, despite their low price point. When my obese-sized ones got too loose for athletic use, I threaded a cord through the waistband fabric tunnel, and now still wear them as knockabout pants at home. (It's been nearly 5 years since they fit as leggings, and they were few years old then, but the fabric isn't unacceptably thin, seams still intact, all that jazz.) I still have a few of the XL t-shirts, huge on me now, but suitable for yard work, still in decent shape, too. Cost per month very, very low. Pennies. ). Yup, I'm cheap. And I like to use things until they're used up.