Make Manic Athleisure Cool Again
It’s time to turn against sane activewear and become anti-matching sets, anti-ultra fitted and pro-eccentric when working out
Vanessa Hudgens in manic athleisure- a graphic tee with a gold eagle print on and wide-leg black yoga pants with a red waist band.
The slick and co-ordinated activewear popular today consist of matching lycra tight-fitted sets in various forms of plum, pink and peacock blue. These items definitely have their place- nothing is more flattering than the Lululemon align tank, and posing as a wealthy yummy mummy on her way to Reformer Pilates is too enjoyable. However, often times walking around in such systemised attire feels slightly too orchestrated, slightly too close-fitting or for some it just plainly feels uncool. Taking inspiration from celebrity activewear from the 00s, a looser, carefree and more chaotic look for athleisure can be seen and replicated.
Blumarine embellished logo short-sleeve hoodie retailed on FARFETCH for £306
This BLUMARINE short-sleeved embellished cotton hoodie is horrifyingly cool for travelling to a hot pilates session or running errands post-workout. Graphic logos, embellishments and kitschy prints are ideal for achieving the manic athleisure look.
Amanda Seyfried looking wonderfully mismatched in her athleisure consisting of graphic blue ‘SURF’ sweatpants, flip-flops and white long-sleeve jersey
New York City flared sweatpants from Ed Hardy for £60
Wide-leg sweatpants and yoga pants are a must to be and feel loose and effortless both going to and during a workout - campy graphic design seen by the likes of Ed Hardy adds further to the manic-athleisure look.
Bella Hadid rocking chaotic athleisure including a Chrome Hearts X Hysteric Glamour jersey and Champion trunks
Loose-fitted long-sleeve tees and jerseys along with a mismatch of colours and prints can be seen on the likes of Bella Hadid who is rocking chaotic athleisure.
Kiko Kostadinov x Hysteric Glamour collaboration pink long-sleeve t-shirt on SSENSE for £500
Mischa Barton repping clashing athleisure
Another brilliant contrast which adds to the chaos is the leather designer bag X activewear that does not match it in anyway, seen on Mischa Barton who’s wear a a bright yellow tank top, baby blue sweatpants… and the Chanel caviar flap bag. The mix of high and low fashion is exemplary for this look inspired by 00s celebrity activewear.
For many, including myself, manic athleisure feels truer to their own style- matching, tight, brightly-coloured workout sets (the status quo of athleisure currently) is a divergence to what I actually like wear on the regular- this is why TASTELESS deems manic athleisure to be IT currently.
Sienna Miller in the 00s wearing a carnage activewear look
BLUMARINE wide-leg logo sweatpants retailed on LYST for £161
The BLUMARINE set seen above is indeed matching, however the graphic logos and looser fit are perfect to incorporate with other pieces to attain manic athleisure
Bella Hadid in a metallic silver sports Jersey- it’s loose, it’s bold, it’s manic.
PINK by Victoria Secret is another brand to note which embodies mid-10s camp when dressing in unhinged activewear. My personal favourite top to work-out in is this ratty graphic silver PINK baseball tee (linked below)- not particularly manic but definitely not tasteful.
Baseball tee by Victoria Secret PINK on sale for £15
