My (Friday) Favorites Workout Wear

Y’all know I’m an avid worker-outer aka exerciser. I started exercising when Katie was in infant. It started out with 20 minutes or so on a treadmill a few days a week, and progressed as time went by. I’ve done everything from treadmills, ellipticals, walking outside, the Firm exercise videos, other workout videos, light weights, Faster Way to Fat Loss workouts, and a brief stint of running. I now exercise a minimum of 5 days a week, but usually 7 days.

As my exercising routine has evolved, so has my love for workout wear. Let’s face it, feeling like you’re dressed for the activity is more motivating, and if you look forward to putting on the clothes, then maybe the workout won’t seem so bad.

From time to time I get questions about my choice of workout clothing. I have several brands that are my go-to’s, so that’s what todays post is focused on. The best affordable workout wear.

Let’s start with leggings. Up until a few years ago, I’d have never dreamt I’d fall in love with leggings the way I have. God bless the person who came up with tunics. They cover a multitude of sins. I have quite a few different brands of leggings, but until just recently Zella were by far my favorite. Zella is one of Nordstroms house brands, and are usually included in “the sale”. They are comfortable, with a nice high waist and wash well. Most of them have a pocket on the side of the thigh that will hold your cell phone and/or credit cards, and they come in various lengths. I have all three (cropped, 7/8, and long). The 7/8 style are my favorite. They are the perfect length for us girls that are on the shorter side.

Tip: I wash all my workout wear on gentle and hang to dry.

I’m now a big fan of Colorfulkoala leggings from Amazon too. They are supposedly the closest thing to LuLu Lemon leggings. I personally can’t justify the price of LuLu leggings, but Colorfulkoala, I can get behind these. I have one pair of the camo in the black/gray combo, but I’m planning to add the green version soon. These leggings are best described as velvety soft. They also have a nice high waist, and little pocket on the side of the thigh.

SHOP LEGGINGS

In the summer I trade in my leggings for shorts. Y’all know how I feel about shorts, but I am now trying to embrace my legs and their flaws and go with it. Crazy as this may sound, my legs are actually in the best shape they’ve ever been. #gasp My favorite shorts are Nike Tempo. They come in a huge array of colors, and are very easy to wear and comfortable. I think the thing I like best about them is the roomy leg opening. I don’t want a pair of shorts that are constricting on my thighs. If these are roomy on me, I’m betting they’d be roomy on you too.

SHOP SHORTS

My workout tops come from several retailers, but my favorites are Zella. The fabrics and styles are definitely the most comfortable, and usually the cutest. I have several from Old Navy too, and my newest addition is one of the cropped tanks (currently on sale) from Athleta. The fabric for this one is a stretchy knit, that will dry quickly when it gets wet. It looks really cute with a longline workout bra underneath.

SHOP ATHLETIC TOPS

A good workout bra is essential, especially if you are larger busted. The girls need support. For a very supportive workout bra I’d suggest Soma. They have some with underwire and adjustable straps. For those of us with smaller chests, there are a lot of options. Almost all of mine come from Target, and a few are from Old Navy, and the latest is from Amazon. I always size up to a medium in workout bras. They seem to run small in my opinion

SHOP WORKOUT BRAS

I can’t not mention my Apple watch. I’ve written an entire post about it here. I had a FitBit in the past, but it doesn’t hold a candle to my Apple watch. I absolutely love it. I was really worried it would be too big for my wrist, but I actually think these watches are cute, and the easily changeable bands are fun to play with.