Hey babes, I’m so excited to be working with Athleta again to bring you this post all about their Run Free gear! This post is sponsored by Athleta. The views, ideas, and opinions expressed here are my own. Sponsored posts help fund the work I do here on Fittybritttty.com at no extra cost to you. Thank you for your constant love and support!

A few months ago, Athleta reached out for me to come to San Fransisco to model for their fall 2018 catalog! I was so honored and excited but little did I know I would end up being on the COVER of the catalog running in SHORTS! For those of you who have followed me for a long time you know my deal with shorts, I used to never wear them. Not only did I never wear them but I actually would never be caught dead running in them!

Times have definitely changed and now I’ve come to really love shorts and I actually have found a few pairs I truly love working out in but that doesn’t mean that I still don’t sometimes struggle with my little internal voice telling that my legs are “too big and too jiggly” to wear shorts and workout at the same time, which I know is crazy!

Anyways, when I showed up to the shoot they told me I would be running in shorts for some of the shots, I internally began panicking a little. I know what my legs look like while running in shorts and I kept thinking I wonder if they know how much cellulite and jiggle these legs possess. Then I was terrified that I wouldn’t fit into the size large shorts they pulled for me to wear. So while I’m having this internal panic attack, meanwhile acting calm, cool, and collected, like yes I totally will rock these shorts… I slide the shorts on and pray that they fit, not only do they fit me perfectly but as soon as I had them on I felt confident. I felt my worries melt away and knew that I was supposed to wear these shorts for all the other girls and women who are scared to run in shorts because of the way their legs jiggle and their cellulite might show while running. My mind instantly switched from fear, doubt, and self-hate, to confidence, pride, and the feeling of who cares what anyone else thinks, I FEEL amazing!

There were four other amazing women there on the shoot with me. We all loaded into giant vans all sporting the Athleta Run Free gear and made our way at sunset to one of, if not the most iconic spots in San Fransisco, the Golden Gate Bridge. I had never even been to San Fransisco before this shoot so getting to not only see the Golden Gate Bridge but to shoot with it behind us was one of the coolest experiences ever! It was super windy and really really cold (like 40 degrees and windy cold and I was in shorts and a tank top!) and we hiked our way down onto the path and set up for the cover shot. We had to stay very close, in formation, and we had about three strides to make it work! We did it about 20 or 30 times and then we wrapped!

Months later the cover came out and not only did I receive so many amazing messages but so did the team at Athleta. Messages from women who were so excited to see a body similar to theirs on a cover an athletic company catalog, from women who also felt unworthy of working out in shorts but saw me in them and thought if she can do it so can I, and women who had daughters who felt proud to show this cover off to them and have them flip through it so they could see that all bodies are worthy, strong, and beautiful. And now I get to work with Athleta again to show you just how amazing all of the Run Free pieces are! It’s really pretty freaking rad how things truly do come full circle!

I’ve tested and run in all of these pieces in this post and I couldn’t be happier with the fit of all the pieces and how well they feel on my body while I’m working out and running! Not only do they look cute but these clothes really help empower me to crush my runs!  I’m wearing the Run Free Bra, Run Free 7/8 Tights, Run Free Shorts 3.5, and the Caliber Tank. Nothing makes me happier than wearing clothes that feel amazing and that’s especially true when it comes to my workout clothes. I don’t want to have to think about my clothes when I’m working out. I want to grab for pieces that are high quality and fit me to a T and are going to support me in my workout. The Athleta Run Free gear checks all my boxes. The pants have amazing pockets and are high waisted and the shorts are light, airy, and don’t ride up mid-stride. The sports bra is perfect for high impact movements like running and keep the girls in place while having the cutest design. The tank dries quickly and has lots of breathable mesh that helps keep me cool on hot days!

For me finding a pair of shorts, as I mentioned earlier, to work out in is no easy feat. I’ve tried on tons and tons of shorts in hopes of finding just one perfect pair and I have to say that the Run Free Shorts from Athleta are my absolute favorite. I highly, highly suggest going to try them on and see how amazing they are for yourself!

This post was sponsored by Athleta. The views, ideas, and opinions expressed here are my own. Sponsored posts help fund the work I do here on Fittybritttty.com at no extra cost to you. Thank you for your constant love and support!