IN FOCUS TRAINER FASHION
BAFFLED BY WHAT’S HOT AND WHAT’S NOT IN THE
WORLD OF FITNESS FOOTWEAR? MIXMAG'S DIGITAL
FASHION EDITOR TAYLER WILLSON IS ON HAND TO
REVEAL THE TRAINERS THAT PAIR PERFORMANCE
WITH EVERYDAY STYLE
STYLE
ANDSUBSTANCE
ontrary to popular
belief – and what
your parents told
you when you were
younger – trainers
aren’t just for exercise.
Mad to think that
after all this time, all
those uncomfortable years of opting for a rigid
pair of tanned, pointed loafers as casual wear were
in vain, because in truth, your feet were always
allowed better.
Keeping gym and casual footwear separate
has always made sense, mind. Sweat mixed with
treadmill wear and tear doesn’t usually tend to
make for a fresh-looking pair of trainers, but space,
money and time halt the ability to own too many
pairs – so merging the two is the logical choice.
Such is the necessity to be more e cient,
shifts in prevailing footwear trends and trainer
technology mean there are now plenty of shoes
that will perform both in the gym and on the
street. While we aren’t suggesting wearing a
clumpy pair of thick-heeled, grandad runners
with a pair of jeans on a night out with the lads,we are saying there are trainers out there that can
cater for both: that suit the dance oor as much as
they do the treadmill; footwear that looks as good
with gym shorts as it does with a pair of tightly
pin-rolled chinos.
Gone are the days when gym trainers looked
like the piss-ridden set your old P.E. teacher wore,
or the beige suede duo your grandad donned
when he played squash. It’s all di erent now.
While the big boys in the footwear game have
been making versatile sneaks for a number of
years, the rest of the gang have now started to
catch up. It’s not always easy to nd the ideal
balance between active and casual wear, though,
with one slight design movement changing the
dynamic of a shoe completely. One wrong colour,
one wrong cap move and the shoe’s gone. Dead.
Buried. Never coming back.
ere’s a ne line between getting it wrong
and getting it right, but luckily we’ve found
some of the perfect silhouettes that are rmly
in the former. Iconic, stylish trainers that look
as comfortable on the running track, as they
do down your local Wetherspoons covered in
Apple Sourz.C