I’ve seen cheap workout clothes in CVS before – but honest-to-goodness athleisure is a new one for me!
Prepared to be shocked, but I’m going to start out with this disclaimer: CVS is not sponsoring this post. The only (chafe-able) skin in this game is mine. That being said, I kinda love CVS? Like, okay, it’s a giant corporation and we’re in the mom-and-pop era, I grant you. Still, they’re constantly sending me discount codes and coupons and saving money lights up the pleasure center of my little monkey brain. I only buy cruelty-free makeup there, so that balances things out a little, right?
CVS HAS WORKOUT GEAR WITH POCKETS
One place I stand firm in my convictions is a need for pockets in all my workout gear. I shall not be moved! Which is why, when I saw athleisure shorts with side pockets on a display stand the other day, I was intrigued despite myself. CVS was offering a whole array of athleisure pieces from a brand called Dorado Resort Wear, including sports bras, tanks, regular bike shorts, and crossover waist shorts with pockets. SIDE POCKETS!!!
At $19.99, these drugstore pieces weren’t really any cheaper than a lot of more established clothing stores, which gave me pause. Still, the ribbed fabric felt surprisingly soft and robust in my hands, the inseam of the shorts seemed reasonable, and DID I MENTION THE SIDE POCKETS??? I hemmed and hawed and went back a couple times and debated color choices before finally caving and buying a shorts and crop tank set.
OH, YEAH, THIS IS ATHLEISURE
I tried on my new gear as soon as I was home and felt a burst of optimism: both the shorts and top fit very comfortably. The fabric felt good against my skin, with no pinching at the seams, even at the thigh (and I am a Person of Thighs). The inseam on the shorts isn’t labeled but I would estimate it sits around 6 inches.
I will say that the crop top is just that: a crop top, not a sports bra. Even I, a girl of average boob,* 100% need a sports bra underneath for anything but the lowest impact of workouts.
* I mean average in size. Like all boobs, they are otherwise spectacular.**
** Ask anyone who is into boobs: all boobs are spectacular!
Regardless, this set is COMFY. And I say that as someone who has experienced sensory issues with fabric and fit my entire life. If I were about to embark upon an overnight flight, I would throw this on with a sweatshirt on top and call it done. And feel cute the whole time! Very promising for Hot Girl Run-ing purposes…
One thing I can’t speak to yet is the longevity, but the clothes stood up to the washing machine with no difficulty (I didn’t try the dryer). You might want to cut the longggg tag off – this is CVS after all – but here’s the fabric makeup info.
The only thing that gave me pause about that is that comfy does not equal compressive; the fabric is definitely more on the accommodating side. That can often equal shifting and riding up. Nevertheless, I slapped on the set for a morning four miles. For science!
(Sorry about the janky mirror selfies; the bathroom was the only place I could get enough light. Probably should’ve cleaned said mirror first, but what are you gonna do. It was early, man!)
BUT HOW DOES IT RUN?
In a word: great! I know, I was surprised too. The shorts didn’t ride up at all, and the top stayed put too. Nor did I experience any chafing despite the PR humidity, although four miles don’t fully test the theory.
Speaking of PR humidity: here’s the one place where the fabric understandably but thoroughly fails. These clothes are NOT sweatproof. Now, it’s important to understand two things:
1. I am a sweaty human. I am not one of those dainty ladies who glitters; I sweat. Would that it weren’t so, but it is.
2. I live in Puerto Rico. It is to some degree hot and humid here year round. We’ve been having quite a bit of rain these past couple days too, which means of late the air itself often has a pervading feeling of Wet. This was never a fair fight.
All the same, if you’re someone who prefers to hide your sweat marks, this might not be the running gear for you. Especially if you’re worried about your race photos, like for runDisney purposes. From a purely functional perspective, however, both shorts and top perform beautifully.
SO SHOULD YOU GET YOUR WORKOUT GEAR FROM CVS?
As is so often the case, that depends. One thing to keep in mind is that I didn’t see any sizes beyond small, medium, and large, so this is hardly a size-inclusive collection. I can say that the material had a lot of stretch, so there’s probably a fair amount of wiggle room in the sizing.
The biggest note for me is of course the sweat-through thing: if you’re not one to sweat much or simply Do Not Care about sweat marks, then I wholeheartedly endorse the line! If not, then it’s probably not right for your workout needs. Lounging needs, sure; workout needs, no.
This also appears to be a Puerto Rico-based brand, so I wouldn’t be surprised if only Puerto Rico CVS stores are offering it. You can shop Dorado Resort Wear online, although I don’t see the exact pieces I purchased available currently. Maybe they’ll pop up?
In conclusion: I wouldn’t necessarily recommend you actively seek out CVS workout wear, but if you find yourself in a late-night, immediate-needs, low-options pinch, you could do much much worse. And if you have any number of those ubiquitous discount codes, so much the better!
Don’t forget, you can follow FRoA on Twitter @fairestrunofall and on Instagram @fairestrunofall. If you have any questions or thoughts, leave a comment or email fairestrunofall@gmail.com. See ya real soon!