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Gym Wear

Looking the part (as opposed to looking like a part) is probably the least of your concerns but proper gym wear can make all the difference between a good session and an afternoon in A&E.

Let's get one thing straight from the start - this idea has nothing to do with fashion. No area of human endeavour has produced more ludicrous outfits than the fitness business (OK, there's ballroom dancing and golf.). A quick look around any gym will reveal at least a couple of lurid skin-tight nightmares that any self-respecting 70s glam rocker would have turned down as too showy. Fashion gets left behind in the locker, but function, ah now that's another story. When it comes to function the choice between good and bad gear can mean the difference between performing at your peak or winding up in hospital. Read on and rate the contents of your gym bag.

KEEPING YOUR FEET ON THE GROUND

Shoes are the make-or-break item in your gym bag, but most people choose them on either price or brand without a thought to what they're actually going to do. Most 'sports' shoes have no right to be in a gym because they're completely unsuitable and won't protect you.

Running shoes

What could be simpler than left foot, right foot, repeat? Except that the forces on your body when you run are phenomenal. The entire weight of your bounding body comes crashing down on one small part of your foot. It's only common sense to provide padding at that point but it turns out we all run in different ways and one of the key differences is the way our feet take the shock. To the experts that's called pronation.

With a neutral footfall the first point of impact is the heel. Then the sole of the foot is planted, and the force rolls up toward the ball. Finally you spring off your toes. Loading the heel and the ball with shock absorbers looks like good sense. Or would do if any of us had a truly neutral footfall. Most of us overpronate to a certain degree: our foot lands on the outside edge of the heel and rolls inwards as the weight is shifted to the ball and off again. There's nothing wrong with that, but clearly a well-designed shoe for an overpronator will cushion the outside edge of the foot. And just to make things more awkward, some people do just the opposite and oversupinate - they roll their feet outwards. As if that wasn't enough some of us have an unusually strong heelstrike, and some of us strike on the ball of the foot. Each different way of running requires a different design of shoe to minimise the impact. If you overpronate or oversupinate a lot you may even need what are called stability shoes to help balance your biomechanics.

So if you just pick up a pair of shoes on the basis of the colour or the logo you will be doing yourself no favours when it comes to the hard impact of running. There will always be someone who hammers away on the treadmill in nothing but a holed pair of green-flash tennis shoes, but as they get older they will also be the experts on overuse injuries, shin splints and knackered knees.

There's only one answer. Get thee to a specialist running shop where someone can see you run and suggest shoes to suit you. My favourite shop videos your feet as you run and then talks you through the tape. Some shops have treadmills where you can try out shoes, and all of them have a street outside so there's no excuse for them trying to sell you a shoe if they haven't seen you run in it. A proper fit is key to getting fit. Wear the wrong shoes, with the wrong degree of cushioning, and you're increasing the risk of injury.

Cross-trainers

Running shoes are great for running - but running, while very high impact, is just one kind of motion. Unless you're a very unusual runner indeed your feet will always be moving forwards, whereas the moment you indulge in martial arts, step or just about any other training you will start moving sideways, jumping and changing direction suddenly. Now your foot needs lateral cushioning and probably some ankle protection. Enter the cross-trainer. If you fight shy of the treadmill but can't resist those step classes, then you'd do better to get a dedicated cross-trainer. The golden rule is to buy the shoe to suit the job it's going to do, not to suit the suits in the marketing department.

SLICK WICKING

That baggy cotton T-shirt may feel just great, but cotton worn next to the skin is not the best for the roaring gym beastie you are about to become. Work out and you will sweat. Sweat in cotton and your clothes will soon be sporting large, cold, damp patches. For your own comfort and performance, switch to a wicking fabric. Wicking clothes are modern synthetics (careful with them in the wash) that wick sweat away by spreading it rapidly through their fibres where it more readily evaporates. That cools you down in the process. Nike introduced the wicking revolution with a fabric called Dri-Fit but these days every single brand has much the same thing under a different name.

BE IN CONTROL OF THE BOUNCE

Seriously good sports bras are invaluable and for the larger lady that will mean something with a lot more support than a crop top from Sweaty Betty. Try the Less Bounce site (www.lessbounce.co.uk) or SportsBras (www.sportsbras.co.uk).

NO-NOS

No jewellery - please. I don't know how he did it but I can still remember seeing a lad who managed to get his chunky ID bracelet caught in the (moving) seat of the rower he was sitting in. Everyone was so fascinated it was ages before anyone offered to help.

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