When the Lululemon see-through yoga pants "scandal" broke, the general reaction was amusement. I sent the story to my trainer, who is a Lululemon loyalist, and even she joked that she's probably "displayed her behind" at the gym more often than she'd like to know. But in the midst of all the bare butt chatter, some other strange realities have been uncovered. Like how New York magazine's Charlotte Cowes noted, "There is the thong issue. … The problem with sheer yoga pants isn't so much that your butt cheeks are visible, but that your thong is." Uh, whaaa?!
Fretting that a thong is showing doesn't seem like the problem at all … Can we please talk about why on earth someone would think it was a wise idea to wear thong underwear to exercise in the first place?!
As Slate's Amanda Marcotte put it, "What kind of sexualized hell are these poor women living in that they can't even give up porn-compliant underwear in order to keep their bodies lean and toned for future thong-wearing situations?" Ha! For real! But no, come on, thong-wearing workout queens, WHAT are you thinking? Oh, yes, you're worried about pantylines, right? Agh.
Also, I know some people argue that thongs are actually extremely comfortable and even more comfortable than the alternatives (which all seem to fall under the category of "granny panties" to a thong lover). But I beg to differ. Having a sliver of material snuggled up between your butt cheeks at anytime is uncomfortable. Let alone whether you're trying to get your yoga, cardio, spin, or lifting, etc., on! Seriously! Call me a granny panty lover all you want, but I'd rather be focused on my reps and breathing versus when I'll get the chance to discreetly correct a wedgie.
There's a time and place for sexy undies (like no more than 5 to 10 minutes before having sex!), and workout time at the gym is neither of those. Then again, if it's really not a neurotic matter of "OMG! People are gonna see my pantylines while I'm on the elliptical!" and you're really the most comfortable sweating it out in a thong, more power to you. But the next time your thong lines show through your sheer yoga pants, don't say we didn't warn you!
Do you understand the impulse to wear a thong to work out at all?! What kind of underwear do you think is most comfortable to work out in?
Image via lululemonathletica/Flickr
