Many of us use and wear activewear on a weekly, maybe daily basis. Whether this be for working out or lounging around the house, activewear tends to be both stretchy and comfortable and makes for great day to day wearing. However, just like other garments, there are some materials in activewear which aren't the best for both the environment and the workers who make the garments.
In this blog post, I will highlight these bad materials and I will also give some options that you have.
Some bad materials in activewear
Everyone likes and wants their activewear to be of high quality and good enough to withstand any exercises we decide to do. However, some of the materials which we may find in some of these garments have poor environmental impacts:
Mesh
Mesh is part of some activewear garments and usually consists of approximately 85% material and 15% holes - this allows for ventilation and breathability. It is also stretchy and a comfortable material.
There are a few different types of mesh: polyester, nylon, tulle, power and powernet. Polyester mesh is the most likely form to be found in activewear - it is lightweight and is able to wick moisture while being breathable.
Mesh is almost always made from synthetic fibres - derived from petroleum, this is both a non-renewable and unsustainable resource. A lot of energy and labour is used to create synthetic materials as well as large amounts of water. This leads to water contamination which is most likely drinking water sources for many people in developing countries. Nitrous oxide is also released by the production and manufacturing of synthetic materials, which is 300 times worse than CO2 is on the environment. And to make things worse, it is not biodegradable so when it is disposed of improperly, the pollution impact continues.
Source: Sewport
Mesh fabric certifications to look out for:
Global Recycle Standard (GRS)
International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
American National Standards Institute
Lycra (elastane)
Lycra is known for being that stretchy material in your gym leggings, and a small amount in a garment can make it super stretchy. It is able to stretch 4-7 times its starting length and can go back to its original length when the stretching has stopped. Other properties of lycra include: resistance to sunlight and sweat, comfort, easy to move and shape retention. If 10% of the material is woven into a rigid material, it will stretch to be twice its size.
The production of lycra fabric requires both lots of energy and toxic chemicals to produce - carcinogenic chemicals can lead to respiratory issues in both children and adults. Lycra is non-biodegradable and it has been found that 60% of "trash present in waterways is composed of non-biodegradable fabric fibres".
Source: Sewport
Lycra fabric certifications to look out for:
Global Recycled Standard (GRS) Certification
Neoprene
Neoprene is the material you will most likely find in wet suits - it is a good insulator and water resistant with body heat allowing the water to be kept out. Neoprene is also impermeable, elasticated and known for its formability meaning that it can be pre-made into particular shapes and sizes - hence wet suits.
Neoprene is a petroleum based material and has significant social and environmental impacts - the material is refined from crude oil and requires a lot of energy and non renewable resources. Neoprene also doesn't biodegrade so when thrown away, with it being estimated that 380 tonnes of it being thrown away each year.
Source: Sewport
Neoprene fabric certifications:
International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO)
Others
Materials such as cotton, polyester and microfibre materials are also found in activewear garments - check out my previous blog posts to learn about the negatives of these materials.
Sustainable active wear brands
When looking for activewear there are some sustainable brands which you can look out for!
I have found a few sustainable activewear brands which you should check out:
@kamiactivewear
@ryleyactive
@sisterlytribe
However, I can completely understand it can be difficult for some to source sustainable active wear garments, and that they can sometimes be that little bit more expensive so buying second hand is an option.
Secondhand active wear
Second hand market places are a good place to start - the likes of Depop, Ebay and even Facebook market place have tonssss of activewear garments, which will be way below the retail price. And I bet you, some will still have the tags on.
The Goodfit is a website that you should check out. They source good quality activewear, brands which many of us have heard of including: Nike, Under Armour and Adidas, at affordable prices. They only buy in items which come from sustainable sources - this whole platform stemmed from an education on fast fashion and the poor manufacturing process which led to both a want and a need to buy and sell preloved activewear.
Source: Thegoodfit
Thegoodfit search for activewear garments from sustainable sources, and they add them to their website. If you subscribe to their mailing list you will be the first to know, and the first to access the newest collections that they drop. Items tend to be in limited stock - this is what you get with second hand. Stock is arranged by size and will show what is in stock.
To top it off, they donate 5% of their profits to womens aid (@womensaid on Instagram) and their packaging is 100% sustainable.
Follow their instagram to also get updates: @the.goodfit . They also take requests, so if you are looking for a specific garments, but would prefer it to be sourced second hand and sustainably, drop them a message and they can hopefully sort you right out!
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