What to wear on your bottoms for training

[Hugo]

I'm sure that for many of yours this may be a silly question, but although I know part of the answer, I never knew it 100%. I always had the question of what type of clothing is valid to wear on your bottoms for our training workouts.

I know that both short and long tights are perfectly valid for this, and that's what I usually wear. Anything that is elastic, it doesn't matter if it's a little loose or tight, is valid. But I want to know what other options are equally valid, especially for winter.

I do my training in a room that has no thermal insulation on the walls and the cold is sometimes noticeable. Would a fleece tracksuit be suitable? What other clothes do you recommend?

* I know that someone will answer: "Do your training in a warmer place." I'm sure you will, Rip, I know your sense of humor. I listen SS Radio.

[Maybach]

I cannot imagine this ever mattering in a way that wouldn't become immediately apparent to you as soon as you started warming up.

[Jason Donaldson]

Hugo, it doesn't even have to be elastic - if you mean what I think you do by a fleece tracksuit (i.e. sweatpants), then these are quite sufficient, so long as they don't bind your movement. As Maybach says, you'll find that out right away when you warm up.

Don't underestimate what you can get used to, either. I train in a cold state, in a poorly insulated garage, and I usually take off my sweatshirt early in the workout, and even sometimes swap from sweatpants to shorts when I get going. If you've ever been forced to run in the winter in shorts and a T-shirt, you know what I'm talking about.

If you're worried about cooling down between sets, you could get one of those warmup suits with the zippers or snaps down the lower leg for taking on and off with shoes on. Or sit with a blanket, I suppose, Professor X style.

[Hugo]

Thanks for your reply Jason. Yes, I tend to dress warmer between sets in the winter as you say.

My question about pants, regardless of whether it's cold or not, comes because the blue book only mentions the following about clothing: "Each trainee should have proper clothing, i.e., a cotton T-shirt, stretchy sweats or shorts, and a pair of shoes suitable for squatting and pulling." That is, except for the shoes and that the T-shirt is recommended to be made of cotton, with respect to pants I have never seen a video on the YT channel where this item of clothing is discussed in depth.

But going back to training in cold conditions. Another question that comes to mind is the following and maybe you can clarify it for me. Are thermal compression shirts suitable for training? I ask because they do not usually have cotton in their composition.

[Mark Rippetoe]

My question about pants, regardless of whether it's cold or not, comes because the blue book only mentions the following about clothing: "Each trainee should have proper clothing, i.e., a cotton T-shirt, stretchy sweats or shorts, and a pair of shoes suitable for squatting and pulling." That is, except for the shoes and that the T-shirt is recommended to be made of cotton, with respect to pants I have never seen a video on the YT channel where this item of clothing is discussed in depth.

I like the cheap gray sweatpants best.

[Maybach]

The shirt needs to be cotton because the bar needs to not slip around on it during the squat. They even make shirts with little rubber grippy things in the back that do this job that are NOT 100% cotton, but they do the same job.

The only thing the pants need to do is a) allow you to perform the movements and b) interact favorably with the bar during the deadlift. The bar for B is pretty damn low, and is fulfilled by pretty much every pair of pants people wear, with the caveat that short pants often require socks to prevent your bare shins from getting blood on the bar.

[RyanW]

But going back to training in cold conditions. Another question that comes to mind is the following and maybe you can clarify it for me. Are thermal compression shirts suitable for training? I ask because they do not usually have cotton in their composition.

I don’t think there’s anything magical about cotton. The reason it is recommended for shirts is that it is less prone to allowing the bar to slip on your back while squatting. Thicker cotton is better for that same reason. Wear whatever you want; if it hinders your range of motion, try something else.

[Jason Donaldson]

Thanks for your reply Jason. Yes, I tend to dress warmer between sets in the winter as you say.

My question about pants, regardless of whether it's cold or not, comes because the blue book only mentions the following about clothing: "Each trainee should have proper clothing, i.e., a cotton T-shirt, stretchy sweats or shorts, and a pair of shoes suitable for squatting and pulling." That is, except for the shoes and that the T-shirt is recommended to be made of cotton, with respect to pants I have never seen a video on the YT channel where this item of clothing is discussed in depth.

But going back to training in cold conditions. Another question that comes to mind is the following and maybe you can clarify it for me. Are thermal compression shirts suitable for training? I ask because they do not usually have cotton in their composition.

Glad to help, Hugo. The reason for cotton being specified for the shirt is to ensure sufficient friction between the back and the bar on the squat and for the back against the bench on the bench press. (I suppose it may be a minor factor in racking the clean, too.) This effect is multiplied in the presence of sweat both ways - the cotton sticks better, and the synthetics tend to slip more.

I would expect the kind of shirt you describe to be slippery, and hence not good for SQ/BP. For the press and the deadlift, it doesn't really much matter, so long as it works with your belt.

Full disclosure, I actually use a blended material shirt for SQ/BP, but that's because I like A7's bar grip shirts for those lifts. For the press, I prefer something with enough stretch not to interfere at all at the top of the movement, and will even use a tank top these days as temperature permits. I also tend to program one lift a day at this point, so I don't have to worry about squatting and pressing in the same workout, either. If I were, it'd be the bar grip shirt or straight cotton every time.