‘Athleisure’ Clothing Buzz: Workout Clothes You Can Wear Outside The Gym Capturing Consumers’ Hearts

“Athleisure” might not be a word that has crept into the popular culture, but expect it to remain. As reported by the Washington Post, new stores featuring athletic gear that’s a step above the ratty old stuff that used to fill gym floors and not as formal as the business casual gear certain jobs necessitate are taking advantage of the trend. It’s called athleisure, and retail stores like Chelsea Collective, a new chain of stores from Dick’s Sporting Goods focusing on activewear, are getting in on consumers desires for clothing they can wear from the health club to the grocery store and beyond.

Retailers like Abercrombie & Fitch, Urban Outfitters, Ann Taylor Loft, and Victoria’s Secret are also chiming in on the athleisure trend, reports Philly Voice. With high intensity boot camps all the rage these days and health conscious people fitting yoga and strength-training sessions into their schedules on a daily basis, a whole new breed of activewear has been created. Blame innovative companies like Lululemon — which represents one of the first fitness gear firms that recognized customers were willing to buy beautiful, fashionable workout gear that looked good and performed well during exercise activities.

With an increasingly image-focused social media society — wherein plenty of workout mavens place their routines online — a varied wardrobe of colorful and cute gear would naturally come in handy. As reported by the Inquisitr, singer Carrie Underwood recently launched her very own athleisure line of exercise clothing that seeks to help those who wear it look cute both inside and outside of the gym.

The “Calia by Carrie Underwood” fitness line was launched March 5 and is sold via Dick’s Sporting Goods and online.

With advanced features in plenty of today’s workout clothing that features moisture wicking that draws sweat away from the body and seeks to quell it, althleisure gear can mean less gym bag packing for those who sport the gear. Instead of wearing one outfit to the gym and packing another distinct set of workout clothes and then another wardrobe change of clothing for later activities, athleisure can help buyers cut down on some of the wardrobe changes needed. If it’s an outfit that’s cute enough to wear to lunch and pull double duty by holding out well on the PowerMill stair climber later — the althleisure wear could be well worth the price.

Indeed, some fitness mavericks find their athleisure closets full of more workout clothes that “normal” everyday clothing.

[Image via Instagram]