lululemon ~ Run: Shorty Short

Also known as: the BEST racing shorts on the planet.

I should start this review off by telling you one important thing about me – I am NOT a short short type of girl.  In my non-running wardrobe, short shorts simply don’t exist.  I prefer longer shorts or really actually long skirts and dresses.  I’ve pretty much always been that way.

When it comes to running, FUNCTION trumps fashion.  One of the (many) reasons why I LOVE lululemon is that I feel good in their clothes.  I feel strong.  I feel fast.  And what’s better is I don’t have to sacrifice my love for fashion when I’m sweating it out in their apparel and accessories.  I can still feel somewhat put together even if I smell stinky.

And this is extra good because most days I run early in the morning before the sun comes up and when I get home to my busy family I don’t have time to shower and change right away – this falls WAY down on my list of priorities.  I have to start making breakfast and getting everyone dressed and ready for the day ahead.  Usually I won’t find the time to shower and change until late in the afternoon during the baby’s nap, or maybe not even until the evening before I go to bed.  That is just the way it goes for a busy mom of three.

As an ambassador for lululemon, I like to try as much of the running apparel as I can, so that I’m able to give honest opinions and advice about the performance and use of what is available.  I will tell you there are things I wear for some kinds of runs, that I won’t wear for others.  There are some things that I wear all the time for nearly every run (the Cool Racerback tank – it’s perfect in the summer but also a great layering piece in the winter) and some I wear just every now and then when the weather calls for it (like the Run: In the Rain jacket — perfect for a cold soaking wet day).

I love my lululemon running skirts.  Before trying them last summer, I was NOT a skirt girl.  But I found that they were incredibly light and comfortable – absolutely perfect for all the extreme sweatiness and stinkiness that occurs during the sweltering hot humid DC summers.  One of my favorite things about the skirts is the short shorts built into them – they are light and comfortable and they have a strip of grippy silicone along the edge of the legs that keeps them from riding up and causing chafing.  I wore my skirts for every run last summer and always felt confident and strong in them.

loving the skirt

I’ll be honest, I tried the skirt at first because I had a hard time finding shorts (at lululemon or anywhere else!) that I felt good in and wanted to run long or race in.  I love the Speed Short and the Turbo Run Short, but prefer them for shorter runs and especially at the track or on the treadmill.  I have to feel good in order to perform at my best, and what I’m wearing  — matters.

For a long time I wished that lululemon would make a pair of shorts that I could wear and feel as good in as I do when I’m in their skirts.  I wanted them to make a pair of shorts just like the ones built into their skirts, only with a bit thicker fabric.  And then, this Spring, they granted that wish to me when they created the Run: Shorty Short.  This was the short of my dreams.  Just in time for my marathon.  I bought them right away and wore them to test them out – they were perfect.

I wore them for my marathon and I am SO glad that I did.  They are designed with the marathoning woman in mind – tons of pockets (seven!!) to store your gels and music and anything else you might need.  The silicone gripping keeps them in place — ZERO chafing even on a hot day.  No riding up.  At all.

There is even silicone along the pockets so that your top stays in place.  I love that.  Such a good idea.

I used to think that this type of short just wasn’t for me.  Only “fast” girls wore short shorts.  And I didn’t think of myself as fast.  In order to wear these shorts I had to believe in myself.  I had to BELIEVE I was fast.  Running and racing in these shorts is symbolic to me of the confidence and strength I’ve discovered in myself through my running.

Something about these shorts makes me feel fast.  And when you FEEL fast – you ARE fast.