How do I find leggings that won’t show off my underwear?

Question:

Do you have any advice for buying leggings that for sure won’t show my underwear during yoga? 

I have plenty of leggings, but half of them end up being see-through! Any suggestions on how to tell which will and won’t be before I buy? 

Sincerely,
Mooning my yoga-mates

Your leggings say…

Stop buying me!!! I’m built to go under skirts and dresses not for a workout!!

I’m showing your underwear in the hopes that eventually you’ll stop making me exercise. It’s exhausting. 

Pair me with your pretty skirts and dresses; I don’t want the pressure of being the only thing standing between your bottom half and the world. 

In need of a break,
Your leggings

Stylist’s tips to find leggings that won’t show off your underwear: 

Leggings are often either intentionally designed as for working out or not. Often (though not always) workout leggings will be able to stand up to the requirements of exercise, which puts an incredible amount of stress on clothes (because they’re designed for that sort of performance). Leggings not designed to workout in won’t hold up under the stress; they’ll wear through, get pulled out of shape, and in general look terrible after only a couple wears. 

Usually, you can tell which destiny a pair of leggings is designed for by the price. The cheap ones won’t hold up well. Let’s be honest, there’s no way that a pair of $6 leggings from Target isn’t going to show your underwear during yoga after a couple times of use.

The more expensive a pair of leggings (and the more active-wear focused the brand is) the more likely they will both last longer and keep everything covered. Unfortunately, there are some very expensive workout clothes aren’t high quality. So check the reviews, know the return/exchange policy before you buy, and when you find a brand that works for you it might be time to stock up.

Tips for elongating the life of your leggings so they won’t show off your underwear (regardless of if they’re the $6 Target ones, or the $100 workout ones): 

Cold wash and air dry! Heat speeds the breakdown of spandex and elastane/elastic, and spandex (or elastane/elastic) is what makes your leggings stretchy. When a pair of leggings has lost its shape, it’s usually because the spandex has broken down too far to be useful. (I included some more details about cold washing and air drying in response to the question How many times is too many times to wear much loved clothing before you have to get rid of it? here.)

Buy the right size! When you buy leggings that are a size too small, not only are they harder to put on, but they also have to stretch extra even when you aren’t moving, which puts more stress on the fabric, which wears it out faster. 

Don’t pull at the threads! Sometimes some of the stitches that are stitched on top of the fabric along the seams pop. When this happens, they start to unravel. Pulling at the threads makes them unravel faster, which makes the reinforcing stitches disappear faster, which puts more stress on the stitches that hold the pieces of fabric together, which makes it more likely that those stitches will break, which leads to a hole. 

Lots of love,