What Happened When A Stylist Chose My Workout Clothes

Over the past year or so, I have noticed a lot of my friends have tried—and loved—Stitch Fix. Though I loved the idea of having someone do the shopping for me, as a fitness journalist who works from home, I can’t say I have much need for ‘regular’ everyday clothes. Enter SweatStyle.

This service hand picks active apparel based on your size and preferences, as well as type and frequency of activity. You then pay a $20 styling fee and receive a box of goodies to try on. Your $20 fee goes toward what you decide to keep and anything that doesn’t work for you gets sent back (shipping is free both ways). You choose to receive boxes every month, every other month or every three months based on your needs.

The Process

Once I set up my style profile, I received an e-mail from my stylist that they were getting things together for me and I would receive a tracking notification as soon as my box was shipped. I chose a mix of performance and lounge wear—to dress for that whole working from home thing—and said that when I am active, I mainly run, spin or lift weights. Other options included letting them know my preference on bright colors and prints, as well as how I prefer my tops and bottoms to hang on my frame.

There are also questions about how much price plays a role in what activewear you choose to buy, whether or not you prefer to shop for specific brand names and full details about the size of tops, bottoms and even sneakers you wear.

My Sweat Style Box

Once the box arrived, I was excited to open it up and try on the apparel. Sweat Style generally sticks to what the manufacturer retail price, but they say tops range from $35 to $125, bottoms from $55 to $140, sports bras from $35 to $100 and outerwear from $50 to $250.

Here’s a look at what I received:

Lukka Lux Forget Me Not Pullover, $98

Vie Active Riley Knee Crop, $98

Beyond Yoga Strappy V-Back Cami, $71

Alala Seamless Long Sleeve, $80

Brazil Wear Leila Legging – Opty Cat, $79

My absolute favorite piece is the Lukka Lux Forget Me Not Pullover—I wear it every chance I get (which isn’t enough here in Austin)—and I immediately e-mailed my stylist to tell her so! The Beyond Yoga Strappy V-Back Cami is seriously the softest tank top I have ever owned (though it is a bit pricey for a tank top) and the Brazil Wear Leila Legging was a great surprise as it is normally not a print I would buy for myself, but something I find myself wearing constantly. I enjoyed receiving a mix of cold and warm weather gear, as the weather in central Texas can change quite unexpectedly throughout the day.

The Verdict

So, you are probably looking at those prices and thinking, But I don’t have an extra $400 lying around for workout clothes! The good news, of course, is that you don’t have to receive a box every month. Additionally, you don’t have to keep everything. It’s kind of like grabbing everything you like at the store and trying it on in the dressing room, then narrowing it down to one or two things you love and choose to buy.

Though some of if does seem a bit on the pricier side—at least in the first box I received—it is on par with what you would spend at a high end shop like Lululemon.

If you aren’t looking to completely redo your fitness wardrobe or buy a number of high-end items, this can be a great way to get one or two really nice pieces that mix and match with more affordable, everyday gear. A good pair of pants can last for quite awhile, so spending more on tops and outerwear and sports bras—necessities—and opting to go a bit more affordable for your workout tanks and shirts is a great compromise and can be a way to save on your budget.

I would definitely try the box again—once you receive your first shipment you can go in and leave detailed comments for the stylists about what you did and didn’t like about an item of clothing—and would choose to receive the shipment every 3 months.

If you want to try out SweatStyle, they are offering Women’s Running readers 20% off of your first box with the code WRM20. Head to mysweatstyle.com to get started.