From staying away from native synthetic fibers to buying microplastic filters, here's everything you need to know when shopping for greener activewear.
If you're determined to get fit this year, you might want to consider buying new gym clothes right now. Here's the problem: Most sportswear is made of native nylon and polyester.
In other words, they are all plastics derived from fossil fuels, and therefore very harmful to the planet.
Many people are becoming more concerned about sustainable sportswear, with Lyst reporting last year that searches for "sustainable sportswear" had risen 151%.
But finding environmentally friendly workout wear is still a challenge, and while the market for sustainable sportswear is expanding, it's relatively easy to buy unsustainable clothing.
Currently, in order to achieve the indispensable stretch of clothing, even the more sustainable clothing on the market contains a certain percentage of native spandex or elastic fibers.
Quang Dinh, CEO and founder of Seattle-based company Girlfriend Collective, says we really need spandex in our bras and leggings.
In addition to always looking for better alternative materials, we also strive to minimize the amount of spandex used in our clothing.
All of this means that we must minimize the negative impact of sports clothing on the environment, and how we can do it, please read on.
- Stay away from native synthetic fibers
Since native synthetic fibers are such a concern, we should buy brands that use recycled materials, such as Girlfriend Collective and Perff Studio.
"Our unique recycled polyester is derived from discarded water bottles," explains Dinh. Each pair of leggings is said to be made from 25 recycled bottles.
In addition, environmentally conscious brands such as Indigo Luna and Vyayama are increasingly opting for natural materials such as organic cotton and viscosa, which, when produced sustainably, have less of a negative impact on the planet than synthetic fibers.
- Consider durability
Because sportswear needs to be washed frequently, from a sustainability point of view, it is crucial that the clothing is strong and durable. Kovylina said: "We believe customers are looking for better, not more, when they buy clothes. "Our products go through our own fitting - our entire team wears our samples for exercise and cleans and dries them properly to see if they last."
- Buy microplastic filters
When washing sportswear, be sure to use a microplastic filter to prevent microplastic particles from entering the ocean and harming Marine life. According to one study, a staggering 12 million microplastic particles are released from washing a single jar of clothes. Dinh added: "We make filters that can fit into your washing machine, but there are many good options beyond that."
- Stay away from harmful chemicals
Because sportswear is close to the skin, people naturally worry about whether chemicals are used in the production process [8]. One solution is to check the Oeko-Tex label, which indicates that clothing does not contain harmful chemicals.
Natural dyes are also more environmentally friendly than synthetic dyes. Loviisa Maenpaa, co-founder of Indigo Luna, explained: "Traditional mass dyeing uses a large number of harmful chemicals, which are sometimes released into the environment untreated, causing significant harm to local communities and ecosystems.
All our natural dyes are sourced locally from Bali, Indonesia, and all waste generated is organic and can be composted.
- Focus on recycling programs
Once your sportswear is worn out, you have to think about what to do with it and not let it go to a landfill. By buying brands that offer recycling programs, we can help create a recycling model.
Dinh said: "We were able to crush old clothes, make new yarn from old polyester yarn, and then mix it with our 'new' recycled polyester yarn. From the beginning, our ultimate goal was to build a closed-loop system."
