This New Active Collection Is For Way More Than Exercise

In spite of all the different ways our world has shifted, we're finding ourselves as busy as ever — which is why we need outfits designed for a full day in which we might go from the office (the breakfast table) to the gym (the rectangular space on your living room floor that's just barely big enough to do a burpee) to after-work activities (walking to pick up takeaway bibimbap from a semi-out-of-the-way spot so you can get more steps — and another true-crime podcast episode — in).

With the modern woman's go-go-go lifestyle in mind, Banana Republic Factory has launched its first-ever active collection, in which performance meets comfort and versatility. Because today, wellness doesn't just equal how long you can hold a plank or how many bicycle crunches you can do without collapsing — the past year has taught many of us that keeping mentally and emotionally strong is just as important as doing so physically.

Consisting of leggings, tees, tanks, and sweatshirts, the collection was created with a very "exactly how we want to dress now" ethos: simple, elevated-yet-effortless pieces cut from quick-drying, breathable fabrics with four-way stretch that moves with you. Take this sleek look, for example, which we'd WFH in, then wear to the grocery store to shop for ingredients to make a viral orecchiette recipe. Bonus: Pockets mean you can skip bringing a purse, while the material moves sweat away from your skin if you do break a sweat in the cheese aisle (because finding feta is in itself a competitive sport now, isn't it?).

For another highly adaptable 'fit idea, we'd put on this muscle-tank-and-leggings combo one day to stay breezy while doing a HIIT sequence, then another to sip vin chaud while joining a Zoom movie-trivia night. Note the pin-my-screen-worthy colors here, which continue throughout the range with shades from a soft lilac to a teal that'll have your fellow film buffs turning up their screen brightness.

Whatever definition of "wellness" suits you, these wear-anywhere pieces are here to support your goals, whether that's starting (and keeping) a meditation practice, or just pausing for a few shoulder rolls during the day to relieve nonstop-computer-usage-induced poor posture. Explore more of the collection here.