It Was Made for You Right Now — A Love Letter to Bigger Bodies Still Waiting for Major Outdoor Brands to Pay Attention
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There’s a very particular ache that settles in my chest every time someone says to me:
“Thank you for making hydration vests for bigger bodies…
…but I want to lose weight first.”
“…but I’m not active enough yet.”
“…but I’ll buy one after I get smaller.”
It’s a quiet heartbreak — not because of the sale, but because of the self-delay wrapped inside those words.
Every time I hear this, I think:
Baby… you’ve been waiting for the world to see you for so long that even when someone DOES… you still step aside.
And that’s what pierces me.
Because I didn’t design the VestaPak for a future version of you.
I didn’t build it for the smaller you, or the after-the-diet you, or the someday-you.
I designed it for the you who exists right now — the one major outdoor brands still pretend not to see.
You’ve Waited Long Enough for the Outdoor Industry to Notice You
For decades, bigger-bodied hikers, walkers, runners, backpackers, adventurers, wanderers — and people just trying to get their steps in without chafing — have been treated like an afterthought.
Or worse… an inconvenience.
Major brands have said it in a thousand unspoken ways:
“You don’t belong here until you change your body first.”
Do you know how many times I internalized that message?
How many times I punished myself before I ever stepped foot on a trail?
I was the one who crossed the finish line of my first 50-mile ultramarathon with raw, bloody rug burns because not a single hydration vest on the market was designed for my body.
And when I finally created one — the world’s first hydration vest intentionally designed for bigger, curvier, taller, more muscular bodies — people thanked me…
…and then told me they weren’t ready for it.
Not because the vest didn’t fit them.
Not because it didn’t solve their pain points.
But because they’ve been taught to believe they must earn the right to be supported.
That’s the wound I’m writing to today.
That’s the ache this love letter is trying to hold.
I Didn’t Make This for Who You Want to Become — I Made It for Who You Are Today
You deserve gear that supports your body exactly as it is:
Hydration without shame.
Movement without punishment.
Adventure without apology.
You deserve fabric that respects your curves.
Straps that honor your width.
Panels that meet your body where it is — not where the world demands it go to be acceptable.
The VestaPak is not an incentive for the “future you.”
It’s an affirmation for the present you.
The one who is worthy.
The one who is enough.
The one who belongs.
The Hard Part Isn’t Selling Gear — It’s Watching People Wait to Start Living
When someone tells me they need to lose weight before they’ll buy a vest that is literally made for bigger bodies, I don’t think:
“They’re not going to purchase.”
I think:
“They’ve been waiting so long to be seen that they can’t believe the moment has finally arrived.”
I see the conditioning.
The diet culture.
The years of side-eye in outdoor stores.
The shame of trying to squeeze into gear that cuts, rubs, digs, and tells you your body is the problem.
So of course the mind says, “Not yet. I’ll invest when I’m smaller.”
But hear me with your heart:
The vest is not the reward.
It’s the gateway.
It’s the starting point.
Hydration is not a luxury.
Comfort is not a luxury.
Movement is not reserved for certain bodies.
You deserve tools designed for YOU.
Not a you you have to earn.
Not a you you have to shrink into.
Not a you you have to justify.
If You’ve Ever Waited to Start Because of Your Body — This Is Your Permission Slip
You do not have to wait for the outdoor industry to wake up.
You do not have to wait for big brands to understand your body.
You do not have to wait for your body to become something different before you begin.
This was made for you right now.
Your body — your real, lived, beautiful, powerful, protective body — deserves hydration that feels good.
Deserves gear that fits.
Deserves to take up space outdoors.
Deserves to experience joy, movement, and adventure today.
Not after some milestone.
Not after some number.
Not after some transformation.
Today.
Closing Truth
Major outdoor brands may not have designed for you.
But I did.
And I always will.