In my last post I briefly spoke to the erosion of modesty from our popular culture. While both genders could do better in their pursuit of modesty, I must say there is in women's fashion a glaring oversight with respect to modesty. In recent years, I've noticed more and more women mistake yoga pants for actual pants. Well in this week's public service announcement, the Chris Ewing Council On Common Sense (CECOCS) has ruled officially that yoga pants are in fact NOT pants.
I think this post's banner picture says it all by showing it all..literally. I often wonder, do some women realize how little wonder, how little mystery exists in a pair of yoga pants? And I ask myself, do some women wear yoga pants to impress men or intimidate other women? Perhaps both?
Like swimsuits for swimmers, I have this silly notion that yoga pants serve a functional purpose and that being the practice of yoga. Now perhaps some women attend upwards of 10 yoga sessions a day that requires them to stay in yoga pants all day or maybe all women have become certified yoga instructors and I've just missed it.
More likely, however, I would think there is a five minute window in their day where one change yoga pants for actual pants. And if not for the sake of modesty, then for creativity. Yoga pants seem to me like a version of the lazy man's sweatpants. What little I know about women's fashion it is that there are options, and to wear the same pair of black yoga pants everyday shows a lack of imagination.
Some will disregard me altogether saying, " there goes Chris on another one of his classic rants." But in all seriousness, I think about the struggle over body image for the teens I help mentor in my church's youth group. Especially for the young girls, the battle over body image is one they fight against daily at school, and the yoga pants fashion standard only makes their struggle harder. So for their sake, can we all settle on the fact that yoga pants are NOT pants?
This has been a public service message brought to you by the Chris Ewing Council On Common Sense.
CJE