Gonna make you sweat...and then we’ll measure it
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Sometimes you don’t know what’s missing from your workout until someone tells you. Like, say, a T-shirt that measures how much you sweat.
L.A.-based personal trainer and businessman Jon Gilman didn’t know that item was missing from his repertoire until he noticed one of his clients had created a distinctive and progressive sweat pattern on his shirt during his workout — it started at the neck and moved downward. Says Gilman, ‘I said to him, we should have a meter to mark how much you sweat each time you exercise, and then I thought of a name — the Perspirometer.’ What began as a joke soon turned into a garment.
The $17 shirt has an inverted triangle graphic on the front that measures perspiration output, beginning with ‘Light Workout’ at the neck, segueing to ‘Good Workout’ in the middle, and ‘Great Workout’ at the bottom. A couple of inches below that are the words, ‘Shower Time?,’ which I hope is a rhetorical question. Though I realize that Gilman’s tongue is planted in his cheek as he cranks out the shirts, I have a couple of bones to pick, because sweating is serious business, especially for those of us ... I mean those of you ... who may be prone to shedding copious amounts of bodily fluids during a workout.
First, even he concedes that all perspiration is not created equal. Generally the more fit someone is, the faster he or she will start to sweat, since a fit body is more efficient at cooling itself. So right there, fit people have a bigger advantage which .... OK, maybe they should have anyway, since they’re fit. Second, sweat production is also determined by genetics, so if Grandpa Fred sweat like a farm animal, there’s a good chance you will, too. Third, let’s not forget about the weather factor.
And fourth, most women wear sports bras under their T-shirts, which creates a completely different perspiration pattern from men, making that whole triangle thingie a moot point. When we brought this up to Gilman, he replied, ‘Well, ah, I wouldn’t really know about that.’ Exactly. And checkmate, Mr. Gilman.
Still, if you’re the competitive type, you could have contests with your friends. And wearing it at the gym might make people stop giving you a wide berth when you walked around completely drenched. Not that I would know what that was like.
--Jeannine Stein