Friday Tri: Modesty, Pink, and Fat

I have mostly stopped feeling embarrassed at wearing a bra top and fairly skimpy shorts to workouts on a regular basis, year round. I do remember years ago distinctly thinking that sweats were good enough for anyone to workout in, but this was before I was doing any serious exercising and even then, I was aware of the fact that you had to pay real money and buy a good swimsuit without lycra if you were going to be swimming regularly.

These days, I am somewhat annoyed by the lack of color choice in women's athletic gear. I am a girl, and I have no problem being a girl. I'm pretty sure anyone who sees me in my bra top and shorts will not wonder if I am a boy or a girl, though I suppose it might happen on a bike if I've got a bike top on to keep me from getting burned (which is pretty much the only concession to “modesty” that I will make). But do I have to wear pink shoes, pink shorts and a pink top all the time? I suppose the advantage of that is that at least everything matches, but pink is not my favorite color. It feels a bit too girly for my tastes and while I accept that some girls want that look, I feel like making everything that color is done by manufacturers who just want to label something “for women” without actually thinking about the variety of the women who will be using their gear. I have all black outfits, but tend to prefer a bit of yellow, orange, blue or green somewhere. Is that not allowed?

If you see women working out who are wearing what you consider to be immodest clothing, please reconsider your assumption. If these women are wearing makeup and have clearly done their hair nicely, then perhaps they are thinking about how they look. If they are dripping sweat and are making grunting noises while lifting weights at the gym, they are probably just wearing what works best for them. If there are women who have fat showing that you think looks “ugly,” please also consider that they may be showing fat for other reasons than that they think they look great showing it. They may be wearing what they are wearing because they want to get rid of the fat or because they are trying to get in shape. The gym shouldn't be a place where only perfect bodies are allowed.