Fashion
Would You Wear Jeans at the Gym?
Frequent images of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and others lifting weights in jeans and boots raise the question of what can be classified as proper gym attire.
As political plotlines go, this one is more sweaty than salacious.
Last week, Page Six reported that gymgoers at a Manhattan location of the posh gym chain Equinox were aghast to see Robert F. Kennedy Jr. working out in “tight jeans and hiking boots.”
It may have bothered a few purists, but Mr. Kennedy does not appear to have broken any of Equinox’s “House Rules,” which require “appropriate foot coverings and attire” but do not specifically ban jeans.
And Mr. Kennedy, who is President-elect Donald J. Trump’s choice to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, has never been shy about his atypical gymwear. On Instagram, the politician posts shirtless clips in which he bangs out push-ups or pull-up variations in straight-cut jeans. In a video this month, Mr. Kennedy added hiking sneakers to his gym rotation.
It’s another example of Mr. Kennedy’s public display of unconventionality in all matters of exercise and public health — a stance that takes on a more serious tone when he disputes the use of fluoride in drinking water — a practice that groups like the Centers for Disease Control and the American Dental Association say has been extraordinarily beneficial — and spreads debunked theories linking vaccines to various medical issues.
“What you’re really seeing is a political decision,” said Joe Holder, a health and wellness consultant in New York. In his view, Mr. Kennedy is playing up a “brawny man” image. On Mr. Kennedy’s Instagram, every exercise session is also a branding exercise for his Make America Healthy Again, or #MAHA, agenda. “He’s doing it to bring attention,” Mr. Holder said.
