Wardrobe Rebuild 004 | Postpartum athleisure

Treating myself, scratching an itch, retail therapy?

When I first started buying yoga pants in the early 2010s, “athleisure” wasn’t much of a thing yet. I might have heard of Lululemon at that point but I certainly couldn’t afford it as a college student/new grad. Instead, I just went to T.J. Maxx or Marshalls, found the section with the workout bottoms, and looked down to find the options with the shortest legs. Petite problems, petite hacks. I pretty much kept doing that, adding new pants once in a while as I started doing yoga more regularly (I still have those very first pants from 10 years ago — they’re still functional.) 

And then last month, I bought my first pair of Lulu leggings — specifically the Align 23”. The seed was planted when I was still pregnant in the spring and received strong recommendations for the high-waisted Aligns, which were said to be supremely comfy and can grow with the belly. But it didn’t feel that necessary at that time, since I preferred looser bottoms and the weather was also warming up.

Is this like mixing checks and stripes? :P

Once the baby was out, however, it only took a few weeks postpartum for me to feel the allure of athleisure, in part because of a yearning to start moving again but more so, I’d say, because of a desire to simply feel nimble again, with all my innards tucked in tight. So I thought back to the Aligns. And then I noticed they had a petite-friendly version with a 23” inseam. And the decision was made. I would get them. 

Because I was in a season of feeling like I should be kind to myself, I thought why not get a top too and make it an outfit. For the top, I turned to Alo, which I’ve been meaning to try for a while, at least partly because I’m a sucker for a nice sans serif logo. Anywho. I ended up picking up a relatively versatile long-sleeve top with a criss-cross detail in the front, which I’ve tended to like on a few other tops of mine.

I like both items (the Lulus are truly buttery soft) and will enjoy wearing them for exercise and beyond. But if I’m being honest, this was mostly a psychological treat. A little retail therapy for the fourth trimester? Fair enough, right?  

More next time,

— Jenny