Another weekend not on the road, another nagging project accomplished around the house. In the continuing effort to pare down the lulu collection to a manageable lot of pieces I consistently wear, Saturday was spent in my hack job of a photo ‘studio’ staging more photos of pieces I’m looking to sell. Four pieces have moved in the last 48 hours, so I guess it was time well spent.

On the CrossFit front, I can happily report that my fitness mojo is coming back! My numbers on the barbell are incredibly low right now, but at least I’ve got nowhere to go but up. At Open Gym on Sunday morning, something really cool happened.

One of our members is a firefighter, and decided last year on the anniversary of 9/11, he would do 343 burpees in honor of the 343 firefighters who lost their lives that day. He and another one of our guys suited up in full firefighter’s gear, and got to work. A bunch of us decided to take on the challenge with them.

It was one of those workouts where people outside of the CrossFit community roll their eyes at (“why would you do that, 20 burpees are plenty sufficient”), but those on the inside feel even better AFTER a tough WOD than before. Why? Because when it comes to a ‘hero’ WOD, it’s not about you.

On any given tough training day, we’ve all thought at one point “I’m gonna die”. WODs like this are a good reminder that NO, burpees are not going to kill you. A 45-minute workout is not going to kill you. (With the exception of those who may have serious medical issues, of course.) First responders? Their jobs may actually kill them, all while trying to selflessly help others out. When everyone else is running out, they’re running in.

I’m aware this is going off on a tangent when you’re here to read about stretchy pants, but it felt good to participate in something that not only gave me a workout, but gave me a nice healthy dose of perspective.

ANYHOW… with monochrome all the rage lately at lulu HQ, check out the full upload to see if any color has made a splash, and continue reading below for this week’s picks!

5 Faves & a Dud – 9/13/16 Upload

Favorite #1: Kitsilano Long Sleeve ($68) in black

2 words that every woman knows and loves to have in her wardrobe to fall back on: basic black. Wear it to work with all the fun patterned skinnies and skirts you can get your hands on.

Favorite #2: Free to Be Tranquil Bra ($52) in black

Hmm… the Trinity and Zen incarnations of the FTB have not been the most supportive (neither is the Wild, TBH). However, this one deserves a bit more attention. The fun strap detail of the Wild is there, but these straps look to be a bit more supportive, like the bra built into the Wild Tank. Still a thin band below, so tread with caution.

This weekend, I *almost* took a pair of scissors to my atomic red Wild Tank, to turn it into a bra. Almost. I might still do it. In the meantime, I’ll have to head on into a store and give it a try.

Favorite #3: Down For It Vest ($168) in white/silver

I fully admit to going monochromatic in the winter time. I have myself convinced that this would somehow brighten up my intentionally drab color scheme, instead of adding a pop of color. Vests, Y U SO EXPENSIVE? After waffling and missing out last year, I was going to allow myself a navy blue vest for this fall. Now, this cute little monkeywrench had to get uploaded.

My birthday is in a few weeks. Hmmmmm….

Favorite #4: Split Pullover ($118) in heathered speckled black/black

Heathered speckled black is just a fun kind of gray. I snagged the Scuba III in HSB last year, and I’m looking forward to cooler temps so I can pull it out again. Instead of stealing your significant other’s oversized, worn (and possibly stinky) hoodie, pony up some of the adult beverage fund for the month and grab yourself a slightly more flattering cut.

Favorite #5: Hotty Hot Skirt II ($58) in deep green

Never thought I’d put a Hotty Hot anything in a top 5, but I suppose crazier things have happened. This skirt would be 100% indecent on me, but the color is gorgeous. This is a prime example of effective modeling, because even though this would be a completely unreasonable purchase for my body type, here I am raving about how nice it looks.

The Dud: Soulful Pant ($98) in heathered arctic grey

Someone misread the calendar at HQ. It’s 2016, not 2006. Ah, gauchos. Once upon a time, I used to wear those things with hot pink kitten heels to the clubs in Madrid. [FUN FACT: that’s not a joke]