Are your oversized shirts or hoodies not suitable for the Florida heat? Well don’t give them away or save them for your winter break just yet, they may have another use. Whether you’re a gym rat or simply enjoy getting a good sweat in, your oversized shirts and hoodies might make the perfect pump cover.

A pump cover is a baggier article of clothing you wear over your workout clothes in order to trap heat, causing you to sweat more so you burn more calories. 

Not only do you burn more calories when you use a pump cover, wearing a pump cover can affect the way you look after a workout. 

“As you workout, more blood flow goes throughout your body, your muscles visually become bigger, a lot of people like to get there bodies pumped up and reveal it all at once, kind of like a show and tell,” says Wellness Center Trainer, Yoonsub Kim, a senior majoring in exercise physiology. 

In gym rat terminology, the term “pump” refers to a temporary increase in muscle size visually following a workout. When wearing a pump cover, the increase in mass stays hidden until you decide to take it off, leading to greater satisfaction in your analysis of your post workout physique. 

“When you come in with no pump and take the cover off after you look kinda crazy,” says avid gym-goer Ryan Riggione, a senior majoring in entrepreneurship.

Even if you don’t workout regularly or don’t like to analyze your physique, there are other benefits of wearing a pump cover. 

“It warms up your body more, increasing your internal temperature, helping you get more warmed up,” says Kim. 

By increasing your internal temperature and being more “warmed up” you are also keeping muscles warm and reducing your risk for injury. While pump covers can lead to a reduction in your chances of injury, keep you warm and relaxed during your workout, they’re also going viral online.

In the discourse of gym culture, the concept of a pump cover has grown from a fad to a staple of the community, largely in part to social media. Many influencers and celebrities share themselves using pump covers on social media leaving many gyms filled with patrons in oversized hoodies and shirts. 

As the influence for wearing a pump cover has grown, so has the market. Many athletic apparel companies now offer baggier items people can use as a pump cover. 

“I use any plain cotton shirt, but young LA and Gym Shark and pretty good affordable brands,” says Riggione. 

Growing as a fashion staple in gym culture, pump covers are becoming more and more popular. Whether you want the physical benefits or would like to join in on the trend, getting a pump cover is easy and you may have plenty already in your closet! 

You can wear any sweatshirt, oversized T-shirt or any article of clothing that covers the area in which you are focusing on in your workout. If it’s leg day, any old sweatpants can work great. If it’s an upper-body day, anything with long sleeves will do. 

Unfortunately, there is a downside to wearing a pump cover. Sweating more means your clothes will get more wet but thankfully many pump covers can be sweat absorbent.

Cotton leads to more sweat due to its thick and warm nature, but plenty of other materials can work too. Polyester, spandex, merino wool, and even bamboo fibers are materials that will help absorb sweat while increasing body temperature at the same time. 

If you don’t mind a bit of extra during your next lift, be sure to check out highly regarded brands within sports apparel such as Fabletics, GymShark, Under Armour and Young LA, known for their high quality fabrics and absorbent materials.

Whether you want to wear them for lifting, cardio or just to feel good, a pump cover’s purpose is what you make it.  

words&photo_ben treacy.

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