Designer Adam Selman might’ve become a household name after dressing Rihanna in that now iconic bedazzled naked dress for the 2014 CFDAs, but now he’s making buzz for just about the furthest thing from glittery red carpet wear. And that would be a pair of workout leggings. To be fair, though, they aren’t your basic black leggings. Rather, Selman’s come in cheeky patterns and cuts (some are bedazzled, too) and were inspired by stars like Jane Fonda and Paris Hilton. His newly launched sassy line of workout clothing named A.S.S. (like we said, sass) garnered thousands of likes and hundreds of comments when he dropped the first look for them on Instagram. People responded with fire emojis, excessive amounts of exclamation points, and capitalized screams—and almost as swiftly, styles began selling out.
But this legging craze shouldn’t come as a surprise. We’re literally living in a time where people are wearing bike shorts with blazers and it’s considered fashun. Evidently, you don’t even have to wear workout leggings to the gym. Brands like Outdoor Voices and Lululemon started the obsession by creating pairs that weren’t only meant for athletes, but for anyone who loves rolling up to brunch in comfortable spandex or just doing things.
Since the rise of Lulu and the insane popularity of OV, other leggings brands have popped up like Girlfriend collective, whose focus is on sustainability (each pair is made of 25 recycled water bottles), or Avocado (its patterned knits—and obviously the name—are total Insta-bait). High fashion has also taken note. There’s the aforementioned Adam Selman collection, Tory Burch launched Tory Sport in 2015, and Virgil Abloh famously sent Naomi Campbell down the runway in a pair of Off-White biker shorts last September.
With stylish cuts, colors, and inclusive sizing (Girlfriend Collective goes up to size XXXL and Adam Selman Sport ranges from XXS to XXL), there’s a pair of workout leggings for anyone and everyone. Shop 13 of our favorite pairs below.
