What’s the deal with “yoga clothes”?

yoga healthyoga fashionyoga industry
Written By Juliana at The Yoga Therapy Space

Images of yoga

We get bombarded with hundreds (maybe even thousands) of images of “yoga” and “yoga clothes” before we’ve even stepped on the mat. Usually, these are images of athletic bodies looking very sleek in colour coordinated, shapely twinsets photographed in fancy studios or beautiful “in nature” settings, looking very pleased with themselves.

These “yoga uniform” images are all over our shops, web and social. Even our supermarkets are getting in on the “yoga clothes” action. And as a teacher and wellness facilitator I am frequently approached on social with invitations to become a “brand ambassador” for a whole range of yoga and health stuff, but especially yoga leggings, clothes, props and accessories (bracelets and the like).

Perhaps a younger me might have found it flattering - possibly due to my lack of self-confidence and need for validation from the wellness bods when I first started teaching. But the me today is clear on where I am in that space and much more aware of the “yoga industry” as a whole. So here’s my position…

You don’t need to conform

Whether you’re a seasoned practitioner or stepping on to the mat for the first time… you do not need “yoga clothes” to practice yoga.

You don’t have to conform to the athletic images the wellness fashion industry promotes, what yoga studios sell, or what a teacher “ambassador” wears (because very often they get sent the stuff for free by the brand in the hope that you’ll see it, follow suit and buy it).

What you wear shouldn’t dictate whether you “fit in”, feel worthy, or look like you belong on the mat. The practice of yoga existed thousands of years before it was marketed and turned into an industry.

And that industry is now a massive machine! It has created a cult like following and needs us to buy into these images of wellness so that it can continue to grow.

And the numbers are staggering! According to Euromonitor International, the global market for health and wellness offerings reached $686 billion in 2016 and was expected to grow to $815 billion by 2021* (although I’m sure covid-19 dented those predicted numbers somewhat).

And in part, that’s fine. I love some of my leggings and sports bras. I also love that wellness is getting some spotlight as, obviously, it does have benefits beyond the greedy arms of “yoga fashion” (which, by the way, I’m well aware that I too was once sold very successfully).

So what do you wear?

Essentially, as long as what you’re wearing makes you feel comfortable and at ease, as long as you can breathe and move freely - these are the most important things when choosing what to wear to your yoga session.

Of course, there are a few safety considerations. A little common sense here is helpful. Wearing a really baggy t-shirt or hooded top in a forward fold or inversion such as Downward-facing dog can restrict your vision, effect your balance and breath so isn’t safe; a long trouser can easily become a trip hazard when you’re moving around your mat; or an embellished top can be painful or even an injury risk when you’re on your belly or back in poses such as Locust. You get the picture.

On the whole, just wearing something in which you can move and breathe comfortably in all the direction of movement - whether you’re reaching up or down, forward or back, twisting, jumping, standing, sitting or laying - is a good indicator of excellent yoga wear.

This comfort and freedom is what will actually support your wellbeing in your yoga practice, now and in the long term. This is true whether you’re practicing at home, in the studio or on a retreat. Wear what makes your body feel good.

The real cost of a yoga fashion

The rest is just an industry trying to sell you stuff you don’t really need and at a huge cost - not just to you financially and physically but also to the planet and other humans which doesn’t make it very yoga.

There is an argument that it’s super wasteful having a separate “yoga” wardrobe. There’s already so much fashion waste, pollution and hazard out there it’s mind-blowing. And considering one of the primary rules of yoga is “non-violence” - ahimsa - the yoga industry contribution to the fashion industry is important to consider:

  • In 2019 The Guardian reported that, globally, 87% of all disposed textiles is sent to landfill or incinerated. That’s a lot of waste*.

  • Fashion is also the main source of primary microplastics in the oceans*.

  • Actual seas, lakes and rivers are drying up because we use so much water in the fashion manufacturing process, with the famous case of the dried up Aral sea as a good example*.

  • According to a 2017 report issued by the Global Fashion Agenda, the fashion industry consumed nearly 79 billion cubic meters of water – the equivalent of 32 million Olympic-size swimming pools*.

  • EcoWatch reported that in China, the factory of the world, it is estimated that 70 percent of the rivers and lakes are contaminated by the 2.5 billion gallons of wastewater produced by the textile industry*.

And if this hydrocide isn’t enough to encourage us to shop smarter, then perhaps the human factor will.

Much of the industry is driven by high demand, high intensity, cheap clothing which equates to:

  • long hours - clothing workers are required to work between 60 and 140 hours per week (no, that’s not a typo and it equates to something like working for 20 hours a day 7 days a week!)*

  • cheap labour - rarely meeting living costs*

  • health implications - toxic fabric dyes and pollutants*

  • unsafe working conditions and sometimes even death*

Responsibility and power

Much of the world’s fashion is produced in developing countries but purchased by the developed world. Making it our issue, not just theirs. So we can stop pointing fingers away from ourselves in the hope it will magic away our guilt.

And something like 80% of those employed in the industry are women and girls, making this a feminist issue. Majority of the people that practice yoga in the UK are women so majority of the “yoga wear” purchasing power is with us.

This, of course, can have some positive impacts like contributing financially to local economies, supporting the independence of women among other aspects but we can’t use it as an excuse to support an unfair, unsafe industry so it’s a reminder to be mindful of what we buy and from whom.

And to bring it back to yoga. “Yoga wear” is still fashion even though we might like to think of wellness as goodness. Even big labels such as Lululemon who position themselves as “ethical” struggle to meet that claim. According to Good On You - a source for fashion brand ratings who have their own app to help you check the ethical rating of your favourite brands - Lululemon is rated as “not good enough” across many key categories including biggies such as environmental impact, labour conditions and animal welfare*. The Guardian recently reported that Lulu’s women workers in their Bangladesh factory say they suffer regular abuse*. And, of course, Lulu isn’t alone.

We get the picture. I won’t keep going on. If you do want to know more stats then check out the articles and resource links at the bottom of post - they make for a confronting read.

Ethical alternatives

So I don’t know about you, but I just don’t feel comfortable contributing further to any of that mess. Especially as there are some fab ethical and sustainable sportswear brands out there if we explore. Asquith and BAM are good examples, but there are plenty of others too if you fancy doing a little research.

To be clear, this doesn’t mean I’m chucking out my already acquired Lulus (as that would be wasteful) or never buying new clothes to practice yoga in (as I love my cozies!). I’m just reflecting on the fact that “yoga wear” is a fashion industry. And like any fashion industry it needs to sell us things as often as possible, as much as possible, at the highest possible price for the least possible cost. So our job is to be smart with our choices.

Good choices

Informed, smart decision making is what gives us power to support good choices rooted in non-harmful behaviour and extending that towards ourselves, others and the planet. Otherwise it’s just not yoga.

All of this has become increasingly more apparent since covid has forced me - like many of us - to have some distance from yoga studios and gyms as we practice yoga in the privacy of our own homes and online. And in that distance I don’t feel the inescapable, often silent, pressure to “fit in”. Sometimes I feel like sticking on my leggings and tank top, but, if I’m honest, most of the time I don’t. What I really love is a stretchy cropped trouser and a cotton long sleeved top, which I can then wear to the super market, cafe, pub (when those are open), to walk my dog, lounge on my sofa or sit at my desk and write (as I’m doing now). I realise that this integrated life/yoga clothes approach is more comfortable, more cost effective, space saving, more environmentally friendly, more ethical and, let’ be frank, just much more in the spirit and tradition yoga.

So the next time you’re getting ready for your yoga practice, use that time as an opportunity to have a moment with yourself, to notice what you feel like wearing, what you’d be really comfortable in, whether you can move and breathe freely in the outfit you’ve chosen, and then, in full knowledge that you’re wearing the thing that serves you and your body on that day, come step onto your mat so you can move and breathe and rest with ease.

In this way, your yoga practice started way before the class even begins.

Much love,

Juliana x

ps I’d love to hear from you. what is your experience of “yoga wear”? your thoughts on anything in this piece are welcome. feel free to share with a friend, email your thoughts to me or you can comment below.

*sources, scholarly evidence and articles

 
Juliana at The Yoga Therapy Space

Yoga teacher specialising in therapeutic and mindful applications of yoga offering tools from yoga and science for sustainable, resilient everyday living.

https://theyogatherapyspace.com/
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