Lululemon Training Sleeveless Top Review

by Steve · Published May 11, 2015 , 8:56 pm · Updated August 10, 2022 , 8:39 am

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As summer heat turns from wintertime daydream to dog day reality, it’s important to have training apparel that can stand up to the tall mercury. The Training Sleeveless top by Lululemon is designed specifically for that purpose.

I’ve used (and abused) the Training Sleeveless top for the past few weeks in workout sessions including trail runs, mountain biking and weightlifting. No amount of abuse I’ve thrown its way has upset the top’s cool comfort and understated good looks. It’s a great piece of base training apparel to have in the closet.

Lululemon Training Sleeveless Top Features

A handful of technical features set the top apart from torn up cotton tees often seen sopping up summertime sweat.

The Training Sleeveless top is integrated with X-STATIC Silverescent technology that uses silver to inhibit odor-generating bacteria. We all know that bacto-stank well. It lurks in trusty gym shirts and socks, and no amount of Tide can reverse the damage. For those among us with even a shard of dignity, the presence of permanent sweat stank is a death knell for garments. With X-STATIC’s silver bullet, it’s bacto-stank for whom the bell tolls.

Chafe-resistant stitching.

Flat seams and stitching on the Training Sleeveless top are beautifully done and eliminate any chance of chafing.

Decorative and chafe-resistant stitching.

I put the shoulder seams to the test during a leg workout that included front and back squats. It doesn’t take much for an Olympic bar to turn regular stitching into a skin excavation machine. With the Lululemon top, squat pain was limited to the legs, with no tearing on my traps.

Four-way stretch fabric.

Lycra is a component of the shirt’s “Intersec” fabric that boasts four-way stretching and sweat-wicking capabilities. The four-way stretching is a most welcome feature during biking and lifting. There’s no mid-movement grab that can happen with less advanced fabric.

Sweat wicking also is top-notch. I often train in cotton tees, and I am accustomed to the added weight of sweat as I near the end of a workout. Wearing the Training Sleeveless top, I didn’t have any of that sweat weight. The shirt remains lightweight and comfortable even when your limbs feel like lead.

A reflective strip is built into stitching across the back.

A clever reflective strip across the shirt’s back shoulders provides some added confidence in low-light training. The strip is integrated nicely and adds to the top’s aesthetics.

Lululemon Training Sleeveless Top Cut and Fit

The Training Sleeveless fits crisply at the chest and shoulders. There’s no additional fabric in the upper paneling to make the garment appear droopy. However, the fit is not too tight, either.

The fit is athletic – neither tight nor loose – and comfortable for all activities.

Across the abdomen, the cut is slightly more generous, which is not to say “loose.” Rather, the additional fabric makes the top’s appearance athletic: tighter at the top than the bottom; still fitted throughout, but not clingy. The garment’s abdominal fit is close-cropped enough to avoid dragging on the ground during pushups. While running, the material remains comfortably composed at the waist.

Pushups don’t have to mean you sweep the floor with your shirt.

The overall cut of the Training Sleeveless top holds a middle ground between muscle-grabbing tautness and conservative modesty. It’s a good choice for those with athletic builds who don’t want to look like they’re trying to look built. And it’s a good choice for those with near-athletic builds who want to bear arms and not draw attention to a little paunch.

Summertime affords us the right to bear arms.

Who The Lululemon Training Sleeveless Top Is For

The Lululemon Training Sleeveless shirt performs ably in hot weather, both indoors and out. The X-STATIC and four-way stretch fabric with perspiration-wicking technology provides protection against looking and smelling like you’re sweating your workout. The cut of the garment works well for a range of athletic and near-athletic body types.

The Lululemon Training Sleeveless works well for workouts and offers some nice styling.

For those interested in looking good while training (without looking like they’re worried about looking good), the top is a nice addition to the summertime workout wardrobe. For runners, bikers, weight trainers, cross-fitters and the like, the top is a very capable training companion.