I’ve wanted a Girlfriend Collective workout set for quite some time. Over Black Friday weekend, I got a coupon offer for 25% off and I finally pulled the trigger. I’m normally ragtag AF when it comes to my workout wear. I’m typically wearing pants I find on the clearance rack at Old Navy with a tank top, but when I saw my first coordinated crop top workout set, I got all heart eyes emojis and wanted one for myself. I love Girlfriend Collective because they are size inclusive, not just in their products but also in their marketing. Plus, they use recycled plastic in their sets, which I appreciate, so I happily supported them and couldn’t wait to get my workout set.
It arrived in the mail, perfectly packaged in a fun branded cloth pouch. I ordered the Compressive High Rise Legging with the 28.5″ inseam and the Classic Length Paloma Bra in the plum colorway. I planned to rock the set and take photos in it to share with you all here, but I kept putting off the blog post for weeks.
That’s the weird thing about being body positive. As a body positive person, I love seeing women of any size wearing whatever they want to wear. As a body positive person, I think that wanting your body to fit an unrealistic ideal and depriving yourself of the chance to wear a two piece swimsuit or a crop top or anything you desire to wear is absurd. As a body positive person, I love and appreciate all bodies and hate that we have been conditioned to put so much of our self-worth into the way we look in relation to a made-up ideal.
I’m a body positive person, but I’m still undoing years and years of self-hatred and shame over the way my body looks and my perceived failure at my inability to conform my body to a smaller, more acceptable size. When the workout set arrived in the mail, the reality that I was going to parade my body out in public in a slightly oversized bra hit me like a ton of bricks. The expansive part of me wanted nothing more than to wear it while the smaller, scared, self-hating part of me wanted nothing to do with it. I fought this internal battle for weeks until the expansive part of me won and I found myself walking down Lakeshore Ave in Oakland with my tummy out.
Not only did I have to work up the nerve to wear the set in public, I also wanted to take photos of myself in the set to share them on the internet. Cue the nervous giggle I still feel as I write this post. I took about two hundred mirror selfies in the Hipline dressing room, contorting my body in as many angles as I could, but there I was. My body that was bigger than I wanted it to be, with my rounded tummy that no snatched angle is going to hide. In moments like those, I stop taking the photos and I speak to myself with as much kindness as I can muster. I also just stop my brain from continuing on the path of insecurity because if I don’t control myself I will berate myself so badly and before I know it I will find myself crying in my bed for days. I know now how to interrupt my thoughts and stop the negative self-talk.
So, I stopped the photos and I comforted myself a bit and put my jacket away and went to wait in line for the studio. Would you believe me when I say that I literally felt naked walking the ten steps across the studio in front of twenty women? I wanted to hide so badly, but I kept moving. I spoke kindness to myself in my head and I moved through the fear.
I’ve tried to tell you all how much Hipline means to me, but I really can’t find the words. It’s a supportive space for women to dance, to connect to themselves, to feel welcomed as they are. It’s one of the most beautiful things in my life and here’s why: when I joined the line of women waiting for the studio, I kid you not at least five women told me I looked amazing. They complimented my new set. When I told them I felt uncomfortable in the crop top, one of them told me that she knew exactly what I was going through, but that if I made it through one class in it, I’d never go back to any other style of workout wear. They offered me unconditional, body positive support and that meant the world to me. They literally lifted me up out of my own pain and I am so thankful.
I danced my heart out that day. After a few minutes, I forgot all about my tummy hanging out. When I caught myself in the mirror, I smiled not just because I looked fabulous, but because I knew that I had made another massive step out of my body hatred. It’s the silliest thing, really, but these are the moments that change everything.
Wow, this review got really deep. Long story short, I LOVE my Girlfriend Collective set and recommend it without hesitation. May we all feel empowered to walk around with our tummies out!
If you want to support Girlfriend Collective, please use my referral link to receive $10 off your purchase. If you use the link, I will get a free pair of leggings and you know I will rock the heck out them!
Would you like to share a similar story about body positivity? I love hearing about us women growing and coming into our own power!
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