What Erika Veurink Wears to Work Out
Chatting with a Substack It Girl, thoughts on the fitness gap, Vuori, Lululemon x Disney, and more...
If there’s one thing you should know about me, it’s that I’m a fan girl. Part of my introduction to – and subsequent obsession with – Substack was through the writing (and Instagram) of Erika Veurink, author of the Long Live newsletter and champion of the 1990s J.Crew catalog.
For those who don’t subscribe (fix that!), Erika writes about shaping your personal style with an emphasis on shopping second-hand and your own closet. My favorite recent newsletter was on the art of pulling outfit inspiration from the colors in old quilts. I scored a royal blue Bill Blass corduroy set and a renewed appreciation for color theory thanks to it.
In my ongoing effort to interview interesting women about how they dress for performance, I am thrilled to present this chat with Erika.
For those new here, through this series I’ve chatted with brand consultant Grace Clark about comfy workout clothes, author Danielle Prescod on riding her horse, media moguls Claire Mazur and Erica Cerulo on what the cool NYC girls are wearing to the studio, and Emily Oster on the hunt for a running headband that stays put, among others.
Who should I speak to next?
The Reformer is My Runway
In Conversation with Erika Veurink
What was your introduction to sports? Do you remember what you wore?
Some of my first baby pictures are me being posed alongside a basketball. My dad was very into the sport, and I played from the moment I could walk. I wore basketball jerseys a lot, but I mostly remember pulling my hair back into the tightest ponytail I could manage to keep it out of my face for practice.
What’s your workout routine these days?
I love reformer pilates and weight lifting the most.
How do you think about getting dressed to work out? What's most important to you?
I really avoid thinking about it, actually. I don't feel an allegiance to any of my workout gear except for these Lululemon t-shirts I'm obsessed with and an old vintage pair of Army shorts I bought on eBay that are the perfect fit. Most of my workout clothes are black because I like to keep things streamlined. I want to feel comfortable and supported. Mostly I just want to get out of sweaty workout clothes, into the shower, and dressed in my outfit for the day.
You're tall – how does that impact the way you think about getting dressed for performance?
I prefer to work out in shorts anyway, so unless it's super cold, I love men’s hiking shorts, something like a Patagonia baggy. I shop Lulu for leggings because they have extended lengths. Otherwise, I buy strange brands on eBay that list long inseams. I can't really participate in like cute workout set culture because of my height but that's no problem.
Are there any trends you've observed in the way women you admire or see out and about dress to work out?
I love seeing someone in a unitard, which is partially why I'm so obsessed with my friend's brand, Wear One's At. People look SO chic and pulled together in her pieces. I have a knockoff from Old Navy that my best friend got me because it's the only place that makes tall workout unitards.
Are there any activewear or sports brands you think are nailing it right now?
I love Hikerkind for hiking adjacent gear. Beyond Yoga is a cult I'm just now becoming inducted into, but it's amazing. I also live and die for Salomon, so whatever they're doing is really working.
What do you think is missing from the market in terms of performance apparel for women?
Tall options! Really sleek all-black options that keep things as simple as a uniform. In an ideal world, I'd trade my hodge podge of pieces for five sets of the same outfit and never have to think about it again.
Quick Thoughts
Things that Drew My Eye or Ire…
In the NY Times, Danielle Friedman explores the “fitness gap” between men and women: “In one recent study of 400,000 Americans, only 33 percent of women met weekly recommendations for aerobic exercise, as opposed to 43 percent of men.” This quote in particular stood out to me: “Men often report that they’re exercising because they actually enjoy it,” Dr. Gulati said, while research suggests that women are more likely to work out for appearance reasons, such as losing weight, which can make it less of a stress reliever. ‘If we don’t find joy, we won’t necessarily carve out time for it.’”
While none of the above is particularly surprising, I was struck when I also saw this trend story in the WSJ, in which Rory Satran looks at the rise of women wearing weighted vests to walk. The two articles feel related: because women have less time to workout (and less experience lifting), they rely on things like weighted vests to make their sessions more efficient. I can’t imagine that wearing a weighted vest while walking sparks much joy, which only makes things worse. TL:DR: this bums me out.This week in her newsletter, As Seen On, the brilliant Ochuko Akpovbovbo wrote “Perhaps I need to be paying more attention to Vuori, the Californian activewear brand that just raised a $825 million investment, at a $5.5 billion valuation.” I too tend to sleep on Vuori, which has always underwhelmed me with their easy-breezy Californian approach to activewear. Their main USP emphasizes comfort and that’s just not very compelling. It also means they don’t come across as expert in producing performance gear for specific activitues. Consider this cover from their Spring 22 catalog showcasing some of the strangest running form ever captured in print.
Jokes on me, though. ‘Cause they are crushing it. A bit ago, their founder Joe Kulda spoke to Guy Raz on How I Built This. In it, Kulda speaks a lot about his background in accounting and its clear this has made a big difference in Vuori’s success. He was rigorous about building a profitable business from the jump, investing in wholesale at a time when all the cool-kid brands were chasing DTC and dumping millions of money they didn’t have into Facebook ads. The result? Vouri’s steadily built a bottom line of which a lot of activewear brands are seriously jealous.
I was not a Disney kid and I am definitely not a Disney adult. So this Lululemon x Disney collab is very much not for me. I’ve heard that the Disney Challenge race series is quite popular, so I suppose this is a smart tie-in for that audience. Still, it’s cringe. Especially when a rising competitor like On is partnering with Loewe, Zendaya, and FKA Twigs.
Adventurer Lise Wortley is recreating the historic journeys of female explorers and doing it in 19th-century garb. It’s fascinating to consider what dressing for performance would have meant to a woman 150 years ago.
The WSJ looked at the slow-and-steady strategy behind On and Hoka’s growth.
Canadian footwear upstart Norda is launching a trail super shoe. I love what our neighbors to the north have been working on for the past few years. Their offering is elevated yet true to the sport, innovative but not tech for tech’s sake. I also really like this copy, which they’ve been using in ads. (Yes, I screenshot ad copy I like, sue me.)
I’ve been fascinated by skiing and snowboarding subculture around “slut strands” since I first learned about them during the 2018 Winter Olympics. Now someone’s making “clip-in strands,” which apparently solves the problem of hair freezing on the slopes. Now that’s what they call product-market fit! H/T to the Slopeside newsletter for the discovery.
I LOVE this from Hikerkind – the styling is impeccable and it feels like a fresh approach to getting dressed for the outdoors. All without screaming “FASHION.”
this was FUN! thank you for having me
LOVE this Lee!