Things I Can't Say

Tips and Tales from an Introverted Mom

In Defense of Yoga Pants

So, occasionally, I wear something other than yoga pants.

It’s true.

Sometimes, I actually put on a fancy dress and heels. Or maybe nice jeans, a pretty top, and my cowboy boots. Or maybe a sun dress and cute sandals.

I fix my hair and put on make-up.

It’s fun to get dressed up.

And it’s nice to feel like I do something more than run my boys to and from school and their activities and then come home to work on my laptop all day, with exciting things mixed in like laundry and dishes.

While those clothes don’t quite feel right for me for everyday wear, it does make me wonder if I should dress up at least a little more in my everyday life.

I tend to live in yoga pants and leggings. (I do actually do yoga in them, if that counts for anything)

Okay, maybe flying pigs are a little much, but a simple pair of black yoga pants or leggings? My go-to's

Okay, maybe flying pigs are a little much, but a simple pair of black yoga pants or leggings? My go-to’s

I see those those moms at school pick up who always look so put together.

Designer jeans and a trendy top and boots or a casual chic dress and heels: they never have a hair out of place and their make up is perfectly applied.

Should I dress like that?

But, I realized that isn’t me.

I am that mom who wears yoga pants almost every day.  My hair is most often tied up on top of my head. I definitely don’t look like I’m about to go take some enviable OOTD instagrams, like some of the moms that I pass in the crosswalk.

But, I’ve decided that I’m perfectly okay with that.

It’s okay for me to be the mom I am. And it’s okay for you to be the mom you are. 

Trying too hard to be like someone I’m not isn’t going to last long and isn’t going to make me feel better about myself.

If I want to make a change, it’s better to make changes that still feel like me. Instead of swapping out my yoga pants for those designer jeans, I can just go for a better-fitting pair of yoga pants.

I can keep my easy hair style, but maybe add an easy braid or twist that I’m constantly pinning on Pinterest. I do love braids.

Finding ways to make little changes, but still staying true to myself.

So, I’ll keep the yoga pants for my everyday look and simply smile at the designer moms I see every day.

Maybe, just maybe, some of them wish they could be so confident in yoga pants.

This post was originally published on December 10, 2012.

Comments

  1. Nothing wrong with yoga pants–I think they take far more confidence than a pair of jeans. I’d wear them everyday for the pure comfort factor if I could handle the thong that goes underneath (I have a visible panty line self-confidence issue). Plus, I’ll bet your hubby loves your choice of casual wear. Rock those yoga pants!

    • I found these super ugly panties from Jockey that don’t show under my yoga pants, so no thongs here. 

      Hubs thinks I look cute in my yoga pants. 🙂 

    • Thanks- it was fun to get dressed up. Though that was the first time in about a year that I wore heels! 

  4. Every now and then I will get dressed just for something specfic (Like picking up Li l Duck from school but I am NOT the mom in designer wear…I’m just not in pajamas) and as soon as we get home I’m pealing it off and back into my comfy clothes. AKA yoga pants and oversized tshirts. I’m sure it isn’t very alluring for Irishman but I hate being uncomfortable in my clothes and since I’ve been so crazy busy with moving and all that, I haven’t made time to work out. It shows. eeek!

  5. I guess i kind of fall in between.  I don’t really own yoga pants, or if I do, they are more like pj pants.  I’ll wear those in the house, but when going out, I always put on a pair of jeans or some other pants.  Otherwise, it doesn’t really feel like “me.”

    And of course, I work outside the home, so I’m usually somewhat dressed up (though I don’t wear skirts or dresses to work because I get too cold).

    • I think we all need to wear whatever we feel best in. Whether that’s yoga pants, jeans, or getting dressed up. And none of us should have to worry about how we’re different than the other moms- as long as we feel good about ourselves. 

      If I had to work outside the house- my wardrobe would have to be different. 

  6. Love! And I need a better selection of yoga pants because I am spending more and more time in them. I feel the same way. But, I used to dress up when I worked outside of the home. I try to freshen up after school drop off in the morning. Shower, change into a fresh t-shirt and a more formal pair of yoga pants. And comb my hair ;-).

    That’s good enough for now. 

  7. I too wear yoga pants almost everyday. They are so comfortable and fit me well. They don’t get all wonky fitting as jeans do during the day. Sometimes I’ll dress up in my jeans if the occasion calls for it – other times I’ll really dress up and wear a dress. But it is good to still look good in my yoga pants. That is possible. I think I rock my comfortable yoga pants look!

    • I’m not a fan of jeans. I just don’t feel comfortable in most of them. 

      I definitely think it’s possible to look good in yoga pants! 

  9. As I sit here in my yoga pants, I am reading this. I am about to head out to do some shopping and I love to shop in comfort and I really don’t care what anybody thinks about the way I dress. So thank you for making me feel like I can be myself and not having to keep up with everybody else. I dress up when its appropriate but I don’t think it matters what I wear while shopping.

    • I agree! And I am confused about where the idea came from that yoga pants are sloppy anyway- I have some cute pairs! 🙂 

  10. I’m a jeans girl for the most part, although I am smiling as I sit here in sort of fleecy yoga kind of pants today as I do the laundry. I rarely dress up anymore, although it is fun to get glitzed up occasionally. 

  12. Thank you!  I loved the line, “And it’s okay for you to be the mom you are.”  That’s exactly what I needed to hear today.  As I was dropping my oldest off at kindergarten this morning, I was comparing myself to all the moms who seem to have it altogether, wondering what was wrong with me that I rarely look like that.  Reading this post reminded me that my kids don’t care so much about how I look, but how I’m being with them.  Doing my hair and make-up perfectly and dressing up doesn’t make me a better mom, just as easy hair, light make-up and comfy clothes doesn’t make me less of a good mom.  I usually put on jeans whenever I go out, but yoga pants are so much more comfortable, perhaps I’ll work on building my confidence to wear what I want to wear each day, not worrying about what others will think.  Thank you for the inspiration and for boosting my mood today!

    • Thanks, Becky! I started to take this post in a very long “be the mom you are” direction- not just clothes but everything else… because we’re all different, we’re all just doing the best we can and none of us needs to try to be like other moms- we just have to keep focused on doing what feels right for us, for our families. But I was getting really long and rambly, so I went back to just yoga pants. 🙂 

  13. As you know I do get dressed-up almost everyday even when I’ve no place to go..because I’m mainly weird…but today – oh today with 14″ of snow on the ground..I’m in my yoga pants and so very very very happy. xoxo

  14. I’ve always wished I could pull of the yoga pants thing. I just can’t do it. I love my jeans and T-shirt uniform and my pony tail is just necessary. On Sunday, when I get dressed for church and actually put on nice clothes and curl my hair, my husband always comments on how nice I look. I just smile and tell him he should be happy that I look that good once a week! You go rock those yoga pants!!

    • Jeans have never really been comfortable for me. 

      Hubs will be sure to comment when I do get dressed up, but also tells me how cute I look in my every day gear. That’s good enough for me! 

  16. I actually don’t find yoga pants to be all that comfy. I’m super short and every pair I find is too long and I’m always cold I’m them. I’m much more of a jeans and t shirt gal. But to each there own it’s all about being happy and comfortable.

    • And I’m not comfy in jeans.

      But that’s my point- that every mom should find what works for her and go with that- not try to do something else just because other moms are. 

  17. I’l always be “put together mom in heels and jeans” but that’s me.  We can still be friends.  No judgement from this mama!

    • Thanks. 😉 I think all of us just need to be comfortable with whatever we decide works for us and not think we need to change because of what others around us do- whether it’s with our clothing choices or elsewhere. 

  18. Sometimes I make myself put on “real” clothes and do my makeup.  I almost always straighten my hair because that makes me feel so much more put together (my hair is craaaaaazy).

    But mostly…I wear yoga pants or sweats.  Like right now, actually.  

    Maybe when the kids are older I’ll feel more inspired (have more time) to put more effort into myself, but for now…I dig the yoga pants and hoodie look.

    • My hair is scary without a flat iron. Or being pulled up somehow. I like to try different updo’s from pinterest. 

  19. I would be naked without yoga pants. I just bought myself a new pair (Old Navy) so that I can wear them and look “fancy”. I needed to read this today. I need to remember that all I can be is me and that is good enough (most days). Great post and I saw that picture of you on FB and you are one hot tamale and can rock a cute dress as well as yoga pants! 🙂

    • It really is good enough- yoga pants do not mean we’re slobs! Yoga pants can be cute! 🙂 

      And thank you- it was fun to get dressed up. For the night anyway.

    • Thank you. 🙂 

      and I think it has a lot to do with confidence. As long as whatever we wear, we do it with confidence, almost anything can make us look fabulous. I say almost anything b/c there are those moms in their shabby bathrobes and I don’t really think that is fabulous. LOL

  22. Yes to dressing like the mom/person you are versus anyone else.  I am a yoga pants girl myself and most other outfits feel contrived. 

    • And I think it goes both ways, too- those moms who love to dress up would feel weird in yoga pants. It’s all about dressing in whatever makes you comfortable and feeling good about yourself! 

  24. I think it is so funny that jeans used to be the ‘working man’s’ uniform and if you were seen in public in them it was a scandal! You *had* to be in ‘proper’ clothes. And now you can wear jeans practically everywhere. And yet we all think of yoga pants as ‘sloppy’? They are closer to dress pants than jeans are! Dark brown and black and fitted to the knee? Just change the material and they are business dress pants! LOL same fit and everything! 😉 I wear yoga pants all. the. time. because I can’t stand how jeans fit and hubs thinks my butt looks cute in the yoga pants haha!

  26. Love your blog – I’m new here… {so HELLO all!}   😉
    I’m right there with ya. I work from home. Pretty much 24/7 I wear yoga pants and a hoodie (winter) or yoga pants and a tee {warm weather.} Unless I’m leaving the house for a meeting, dinner with husband, etc. (Chauffering kids doesn’t count as “going out”, unless it involves actually going inside their school.) Because I am also a newly wed, I have tried wearing the pretty night gowns,from our honeymoon, to bed… but since I usually work late on my blogs,  and the husband works 12-hour shifts – sometimes overnight – it just isn’t as comfy as my yoga pants. Thanks for reminding me… yoga pants DO rock!
    P.S. My hair is usually up in a scrunchie, too.

    • Welcome, Lisa! 🙂 

      I work from home too so it just seems silly to me to get dressed up when I’m just sitting at my desk for most of the day. I like to be comfortable. And there really ARE cute yoga pants out there. 

      I’m learning to try cute new updos from Pinterest for my hair- there are a bunch that don’t take long and look cute. 

  27. I am not a yoga pant mom, as I would sleep in jeans if my husband wouldn’t think I was insane. I bought a new pair last week at Kohls-Vera Wnag- that are so soft and stretchy that they feel like sweat pants. I am in love, I’m going back soon for another pair. Oh and I’m the mom in jeans and a hoodie with flip flops at school pick up since I can’t be bothered to put on real shoes.

  28. I bet they look at you and wish that they were wearing yoga pants! They’re a lot more comfortable than jeans that’s for sure!

  29. I love this. I often feel the need to put on something other than yoga pants but truly there is nothing wrong with it. And yes, I do bet that the designer moms wished they looked as good and as confident as you in yoga pants. 

  30. I have to “dress” for work every day. But for the winter I have found my work alternative is leggings, boots, and dresses. Sometimes I consider myself lazy, but mostly I consider myself smart and comfortable!

    What I do find funny is that my mom would never ever be seen in public in yoga pants. She loves her jeans for casual wear and totally doesn’t get the whole yoga thing!

  31. If I could get away with wearing yoga pants to work, it would be the only thing I wore. I wear them all weekend long and as often as I can when I get home. You can totally look cute in yoga pants, which, for the record I’ve never seen in you, but can safely say that if you had been wearing them you would have looked better than more than half the population of the TWC Pavillion!

  32. Too few people appreciate comfort.

    Shell, you’ve always struck me as a confident, engaging beautiful woman – I’m beyond certain that “getting all dolled up” is fun – but I’m happy knowing that you’re happy living life, be it dressed in a way that would put supermodels to shame or dressed however makes things easiest on you.

  35. Here’s to rockin your yoga pants and being true to yourself! I’m a yoga pant lover and just bought a new, better pair to update my look! 😉 While I sometimes compare my fashion sense to the other moms at my daughters’ school, on a daily basis, I’m pretty darn happy in my comfy duds! Great post!

  36. Love this post.  Even when I’m in work clothes I don’t resemble a designer mom.  Something about pregnancy turned on an absolute need to be comfortable all the time!

  37. Thank you for this post. Although I don’t wear Yoga pants every day, I’m only one small step up — I wear cheap jeans from Old Navy every day and a comfy sweater or casual shirt — hair almost always pulled back in a clip. It’s comfy and I don’t need to dress up just to run the kids back and forth from school and work all day on my laptop. I too decided I have to be the mom that is me. Although it’s fun to dress up sometimes, how you dress doesn’t equal what kind of mom you are.

  38. I usually try to put on something other than sweats/yoga pants. It may only be jeans and a sweater, but it makes me feel like I am being me not just mom. It’s a mental thing for me.

  39. I’m impressed with your love of yoga pants. I am far to self-conscious to wear them at all, nevermind in public. Just this fall I have slowly moved to the world of leggings (actually heavy ‘jeggings’ 😉 with a really big shirt and big boots. Add a great purse and snazzy scarf and – voilla! Folks will be so distracted by my accessories they will never notice my actual wardrobe.

  40. I admit it, I’m a yoga pant mom, too. I do occasionally wear a skirt (I like the ones that are full and to the floor), but Yoga pants are my day-to-day dress code. I’m just not comfortable with myself in shorter skirts or jeans.

    So, rock those yoga pants, Mama! Dare to be you!

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