Pulling leggings on after lotion sucked until I started using this surfer trick

The feeling of popping up on a surfboard just as a wave lifts its tail is my favorite type of exercise-induced endorphin high. It does, however, come with one major downside: wiggling into a wetsuit.

If you’ve never had the pleasure, it’s basically like trying to pull up your leggings after applying lotion. Think: Ross Geller vs. leather pants in season 5 episode 11 of Friends—AKA “The One with All the Resolutions.”

For the longest time, my morning routine involved a very sad no pants dance. Really, it was more hopping around aggressively on one leg before flopping on my bed in defeat to let myself air dry than anything you’d see in a cardio class. That was until I remembered this super-simple hack a surf instructor once showed me for putting on a wetsuit—sticking your foot in a plastic bag and using it to glide your leg through sans friction.

Turns out it works for skintight pants with tiny ankle holes (seriously, why so small?) worn on land, too. It’s been a lifesaver whenever my legs are too slick—be it straight out of the shower, after applying body oil or lotion, or because of humidity (i.e. all 99 days of summer)—to shimmy into Spandex, same goes for skinny jeans.

Plus, it’s way more practical than the alternative I’ve been entertaining during this heat wave: cutting all my leggings into bike shorts.

Now that you can actually get into your leggings, it’s time to work out. Here are 13 of the best online streaming platforms that cost less than a boutique fitness class.