Wednesday, April 19th, 2006

Leggings
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Leggings are any of several sorts of fitted clothing to cover the legs. Originally leggings were two separate garments, one for each leg.

In contemporary usage, leggings refers to tight, form-fitting trousers that extend from the waist to the ankles; in the United States, they are sometimes referred to as tights (although the word tights is often used to refer to opaque pantyhose). Modern leggings are typically made from a blend of lycra, and either nylon, cotton, or a cotton-polyester blend. However, leggings can also be made from wool, silk, and various synthetic fabrics as well.

Leggings made from a nylon-lycra blend (usually 90% nylon, 10% lycra) are traditionally worn for exercise, although beginning in the 1980s they have also been worn for fashion. Nylon lycra leggings are often referred to as bicycle or running tights, and are shinier in appearance than those made from cotton. Many have racing stripes or reflective patterns to further distinguish them as athletic wear and provide extra safety.

Leggings made from cotton-lycra, or a cotton-polyester-lycra combination, are more typically worn for fashion, but are also common as fitness apparel as well. Although cotton lycra leggings can come in many colors, black, navy, and various shades of gray remain the most commonly worn. Leggings may also come in a variety of colorful prints and designs. (more…)

Saturday, April 8th, 2006

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:A leotard is a skin-tight one-piece garment that covers the torso and body but leaves the legs free. It was made famous by the French acrobatic performer Jules Leotard (1839 - 1870), about whom the song “The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze” was written.

The first known use of the name leotard came only in 1886, many years after Leotard’s death. Leotard himself called the garment a maillot, which in French has now come to mean a swimsuit.

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Sunday, March 19th, 2006

Jules Léotard
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The French acrobatic performer Jules Léotard (1839? - 1870), was the man who inspired the 1867 song “The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze” (with lyrics by George Leybourne).

He was born in Toulouse (there is some question about the exact year of birth), the son of a gymnastics instructor. He joined the Cirque Napoleon, and on November 12, 1859 made his first public appearance as a trapeze artist, becoming the first to turn a somersault in mid-air and the first to jump from one trapeze to the next.

He invented and made famous a skin-tight one-piece garment with long sleeves, which he called a maillot, and wore it for his performances. It was designed to allow unrestricted movement, and to display his musculature. This garment made its way from the circus into the ballet studios of Paris. It is now known as a leotard: the first recorded use of this term in English was in 1886. (The French word maillot now means a swimsuit).

Jules Léotard died in Spain, at about age 30, of smallpox or cholera.

Tuesday, February 21st, 2006

Jack La Lanne Still Fit at 91
By Andrew J. Baroch
Voice of America

In 1951, The Jack La Lanne Show debuted on TV when a trim, muscular man, dressed in a form-fitting black short-sleeve shirt and leotards, looked into the camera, smiled and greeted vieweers. “Good morning and happy Monday morning to you. Thanks very, very much for letting me come into your home. You know, my name is Jack La Lanne.”

Genial Jack La Lanne — dark hair, square jaw, bright eyes, perfect posture — was invited into American homes with his daily exercise show for more than 30 years.

Two decades later, in his 90s, La Lanne’s in better shape than when he was as a boy.

“From the time I was born,” La Lanne says, “I was always a kind of a skinny, irritable kid. My mother used to appease me by giving me a piece of cloth with cornstarch, sugar and water. I’d suck on that thing. By the time I was four years old, my baby teeth had rotted out from all that sugar. I became a full blown ’sugar-holic,’ — sugar, sugar, sugar. By the time I was 15 years old, I had dropped out of school. I wanted to commit suicide. I couldn’t stand these headaches I had every day - kids making fun of me. During that time, I attended a health [food] lecture. (more…)