How to Wear a Windbreaker Without Looking Like You're Going to the Gym

I have never been an athletic girl. My sports career began and ended with middle- and high-school PE; these days, my relationship with sportswear is limited to workout sets and sneakers I wear to the gym or a fitness class. All to say: Until six months ago, the word “windbreaker” conjured visions of color-blocked retro nylon jackets that felt more suited to an ’80s gym teacher uniform than anything I’d willingly build an outfit around. But these past few seasons, fashion has given technical layers a serious makeover. On the Paris Fashion Week Fall 2026 runways alone, Miu Miu reimagined the classic windbreaker in cropped proportions, while Loewe leaned into sporty nylon shells with dramatically exaggerated silhouettes.

Somewhere between those runways and the street style photos that followed, I started reconsidering. Today’s updated versions come with funnel necks, fabrics that go beyond nylon (think: cotton poplin, silk, etc.), saturated colors, and sculptural silhouettes meant to pair with pencil skirts, satin shorts, or tailored trousers instead of matching track pants. Even the options currently on the market—from designer versions to ones from COS and Zara—feel decidedly fashion-first.

Sport Mode: Activated

The celebrity case for the windbreaker became particularly convincing at Saint Laurent’s Spring 2026 show, where Hailey Bieber, Zoë Kravitz, and Charli XCX all arrived in riffs on technical outerwear. Bieber wore a cinnamon-colored pullover with lace-trimmed satin shorts and heels; Charli threw a red-and-blue windbreaker over a peach, lingerie-like mini; while Kravitz opted for a high-neck camel blouson bunched over a yellow slip skirt.

Since then, the styling possibilities have only gotten broader. Zendaya went head-to-toe sporty in the navy-and-white oversized anorak the actor co-designed with Law Roach for On. Jordyn Woods turned up in an Old Navy full-zip windbreaker with matching parachute pants, proving the look doesn’t require a designer budget. Tyla went in the opposite direction, wearing an oversized New York Yankees windbreaker as a mini dress in Berlin. And Vittoria Ceretti paired a teal Saint Laurent nylon windbreaker with a khaki pencil skirt and heels during Paris Fashion Week. Inspired by these looks, I was ready to admit: Maybe there is an athletic jacket for me after all.

How I Style It

After falling in love with Leset’s Kyoto Carpenter Pants last month, I decided to test the windbreaker waters with the matching jacket. Because the style is made from 100 percent cotton rather than a technical fabric, it felt like an approachable entry point into the trend. I skipped the coordinating pants, however, and paired it with dark-wash jeans instead. Recently, Marie Claire’s editor-in-chief Nikki Ogunnaike wrote something that stuck with me: “[Color block is] an easy way to make a statement…you really don’t have to try that hard if you play with shapes and materials.”

With that in mind, I layered a contrasting tomato-red shirt underneath, allowing the cuffs and hemline to peek through. A leopard-print handbag added another dose of personality, while thong heels helped counterbalance the casualness of the denim-jacket duo. The fall chill hasn’t fully set in New York yet, but in another month, I’d swap the open-toe pair for a pointed-toe heeled bootie. (I would skip sneakers to avoid leaning too heavily into athleisure.)

While being influenced by stylish celebrity converts, I’ve been drawn to the contrast of an athletic-adjacent jacket with something overtly pretty, whether that’s lace-trimmed satin shorts or a statement skirt. For a going-out look, I took inspiration from Kravitz’s Saint Laurent ensemble and paired the windbreaker with one of my longtime favorite skirts from Copenhagen Fashion Week brand Munthe. Its bright yellow color and beaded floral adornments played against the jacket’s more utilitarian feel, while a purple pleated turtleneck let me push the color-blocking theory even further. High-vamp heels and a suede bag pulled the whole thing firmly into evening territory.

Paired with bold color, embellishment, or a great heel, fashion’s newest windbreakers feel less like a practical layer and more like an unexpected styling choice. I may never be an athlete, but when it comes to this outerwear trend, consider me officially in the game.