A functional training wardrobe is smaller than most people's. Six well-chosen pieces cover five sessions a week with one wash cycle, and every additional item past that point is mostly storing itself.
The order matters. Buy the thing closest to your skin first: whatever the session actually depends on. For most women that is the bra, for most men it is the short — specifically the liner. These are the pieces where a bad choice ruins the session and a good one disappears.
Second, buy the layer you will wear most often, in the most neutral colour available. This piece will be photographed, worn out of the gym, and washed more than anything else you own. Pay for the version that survives it.
Third, and only third, buy something because you like how it looks. There is nothing wrong with this — clothes that you want to put on are clothes you put on — but it should follow the two functional decisions rather than lead them.
What to stop buying: anything bought because it was reduced, anything in a colour you own three of, and any garment where the fabric composition is not on the page. That last one is the most reliable filter there is.
Written by
CHISSELED Studio
Part of the CHISSELED coaching and studio team. Everything published here is written by people who train, program or build the products they are writing about.