Motivation to work out starts in your closet

Getting in shape starts in your closet.

After all, if you’re going to sweat, you might as well sweat in style.

With mirrors on every wall of the gym, it can be hard to hide behind your hoodie.

Having workout clothes you love helps you stay motivated and confident. Plus, it’s a good excuse to buy more clothes … which in turn leads to more trips to the gym. It’s one of those good vicious cycles.

Fitness fashions and fabrics vary by sport.

Sometimes the weight room looks more like the beach, with muscle shirts and skimpy garb to allow for sweating and, of course, showing off those biceps and abs.

Dressing for Zumba might seem more like dressing to be a circus clown stripper: Bright baggy cargo pants with booty tassels. Fringed racerback tops. Tight V-bras.

“It’s part of the fun and the Zumba party,” said Debbie Holm, who sells the trademark clothes at her Silver Lake shop, The Best You: Weight Loss Clinic and Zumba Wear.

“At first I was embarrassed going into a McDonald’s or a grocery store in my costume,” Holm said. “Then I thought, ‘You know, baseball players wear their uniforms. I’m a Zumba person.’ “

Those fanny tassels aren’t just for looks, she said. If they aren’t twirling, you’re not shaking it enough.

Kat Campos is a busy pre-med major at University of Washington. Between classes, she runs, plays basketball, lifts weights and teaches Zumba.

“I’m constantly in the gym,” Campos said.

A quick-change artist, she carries a mixed bag of leggings, sweats, sports bras, ribbed tanks and Zumba pants.

But even the hottest, coolest clothes aren’t enough to pull it off.

“The big difference is really the shoes,” Campos said. “You need good shoes.”