Are Yoga Pants Actually Pants?



Yoga pants — that’s to say, leggings however with a better waist and made out of thicker materials than precise leggings (typically, although not essentially, with a little bit of flare on the ankle) — are clothes that, particularly throughout pandemic lockdowns, grew to become one thing of a pleasure to put on.

Prioritizing each consolation and motion, they allowed us to have our cake and snack on it at dwelling, too. Little surprise that, given the concentrate on well being and wellness and our more and more dressed-down day, they’ve turn into a fundamental a part of many wardrobes.

However because the return to work has picked up a minimum of some steam, so has the controversy concerning the precise “pants-ness” of yoga pants. Do they or do they not qualify? That is partially why they’re typically referred to as “boot-cut leggings” or “flared leggings” as an alternative of “yoga pants.” By borrowing the language of pants, they edge nearer to that class.

However let’s be trustworthy: Yoga pants aren’t pants. Pants are there to reshape the physique indirectly. To tailor it into a distinct silhouette — straighter, longer, extra flowing — within the eyes of the watching world. To offer a modicum of safety or social camouflage. Yoga pants, however, are rather more about revealing the physique in a few of its glory. And revealing the physique within the office or on the road is a sophisticated determination.

Fortunately, the stylist Tina Chai stated, there’s a center floor. First, attempt to perceive what precisely it’s you want most about your yoga pants. Is it the aspect of stretch? The elastic waist? The truth that they sit near the legs however don’t constrain them? The way in which they announce your exercise routine to the world? Then determine which of these values is most vital. Probably, there’s a real-world substitute.

Certainly, an Italian model referred to as Excessive Sport has just about made its identify by providing very costly stretch pants with a little bit of a flare. (It calls them the Kick pants.) They’re made out of technical material and derived from just about the identical genetic materials as yoga pants.

To not be outdone, manufacturers like Alo Yoga have expanded their choices to incorporate pantlike types that however share many qualities with yoga pants (and are extra inexpensive than Excessive Sport variations).

Wherever you store, Ms. Chai suggested that you just search for “pull-on pants — no buttons or zippers.” Then, she stated, select a “knit that’s tightly woven and compact so it offers the pants construction, which makes them flattering, however with a little bit of stretch, which makes them snug.”

Lastly, for some styling oomph, she suggests pairing your yogalike pants with a high or jacket in the identical coloration for a monochromatic look. “It may well take you from the workplace to a celebration or the airplane, all with the change of a shoe,” she stated. And possibly a solar salutation or two.

Each week on Open Thread, Vanessa will reply a reader’s fashion-related query, which you’ll ship to her anytime by way of e mail or Twitter. Questions are edited and condensed.





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