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Friday, August 29, 2014

trimming the hems

After another summer of running with drenched clothing that gets lower and heavier with every drop of sweat that won't or can't evaporate quickly enough I've begun to consider some options and take on a few experiments. 

One item of clothing which could be helpful is the running singlet, aka a tank top. But I somehow feel like I'm too old to wear those now - although I used to. Also, I've developed some killer cycling/farmer tan lines and it would take quite a while to recolor the bare spots. 

Shorter running shorts: same as above - but I might just try it again anyway.

What I have been able to agree on for the present moment is to trim off the hems on my running shirts. Now it may not seem like that would really make much difference but because they double over on themselves they actually represent a fair amount of water holding, weight adding fabric.

So far I've experimented only with my least favorite running shirt, of course. I used scissors to trim off the hems on the sleeves and around the waist. I left the stitching of the hem, though, to maintain some amount of form to the garment. So far I've left the one around the neck but depending on the shirt I may trim those off, too. 


Next up I suppose will be to trim off any hems on shorts and their linings. 

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

You should start making shirts without hems just for runners. (If someone doesn't do that already.) If Under Armour has revenues of 2+ billion per year, you could make a couple hundred bucks, I'm sure.

mindful mule said...

Thanks, J. And Mazzy could be seamstress - so… free labor!

Anonymous said...

Brilliant! We could set up a little station for her to work in the corner of Amigos while we sip margaritas. That way, if she slacks off because her little fingers are getting sore, we can crack the whip.

Anonymous said...

The seamstress idea seems to solve your conundrum. If you compare the tank top to running shirtless, the tank top doesn't seem so creepy.

mindful mule said...

Thanks, Midnight. Great point - I guess it's a question of how close to that creepy line one will allow themselves to go.

Kristina said...

I saw a few guys who had a few decades on you along the Arroyo and they were running without shirts. Not that I'm suggesting that you go that route, but it is being done.