Athleisure – A trend which was with us and will stay

When we think of Fashion we think of something that is trendy but comfortable and Athleisure has become one such trend. Think of all the yoga pants, joggers, track pants, sports bras and even bike/cycling shorts that you bought in the hopes of working out or hitting the gym and that never happened. Well, it’s time to whip them out and put them to some good use sartorially because Athleisure is here to stay. Athleisure is a conjunction of Athletic and Leisure made popular by supermodels and street style regulars, which otherwise means fashionable and dressed up athletic wear that can be worn outside the gym in social or casual occasions. Athleisure, though currently popular, has been around for more than twenty years. However, the rise in this trend is reinforcing that casual wear is not just limited to the gym anymore.

Athleisure is expected to be the major trend of the year  2018 thanks to the collection like Yeezy season 6 and Adidas’s New York Fashion Week collection in collaboration with Amsterdam-based designer Daniëlle Cathari which is reconstructing the nineties tracksuit. Kanye West’s Yeezy collection features the relatively simple take on athleisure as compared to Adidas’s reconstruction of nineties silhouette. Kanye’s collection has easy athleisure pieces like crop tops, leggings and bombers in muted tones of greys and browns which are being popularized by influencers over social media, including his wife Kim Kardashian and socialite Paris Hilton.

Athleisure or sports leisure as it is often referred to as is not only limited to clothing but is taking accessories industry by storm. People are becoming more and more practical and are freeing themselves from feeling controlled by limited flexible options to wear. They want to be able to face all the adventures and opportunities that the day brings and not be restricted because of the clothes and this is what is majorly boosting the target market.  Bike shorts or cycle shorts were never considered to be a major trend until they appeared on the street style scene and made famous by Kylie Jenner and Bella Hadid.

This is also the perfect time to say adios to high heels and Hello to flat sole and block heel shoes. With an invasion of mules, sneakers and being reinvented and dad sneakers, spotted at Balenciaga, have become a street style staple now. Cuts and shapes have become more relaxed and fluid. Layering has jackets and parkas in different material like glass nylon and with fur trims, making them all cosy and comfortable. According to report posted by Forbes in February, the “sports leisure” style has become the largest category in the U.S. sneaker space, beating “performance” oriented footwear. The rise in athleisure wear prompted fashion and lifestyle industry to come up with innovative textile materials which would allow people to be more comfortable and offer versatile styling choice.

Sneaker trend is a micro-trend which was derived from the athleisure and so is the waist bag or mini bag trend. With relaxed silhouette came the need for easy accessories and fanny packs became popular which were later refined by the mini bags or waste bags. Waist bag is the sartorially updated sister of the mock-worthy fanny pack. Celebrities like Rosie Huntington Whitley and Selena Gomez have been spotted in this trend on the streets and at events making them only more popular.

The essence of athleisure is to be comfortable with yourself and in what you are sporting. You can style you relaxed pieces with structured statement pieces for a chic and edgy look or can dress it down with similar easy pieces for the comfy-chic vibe. To make it party-appropriate you can go for a blingy and shimmery option in track pants or the varsity silhouette or pair up your tracksuit with statement high heels and delicate jewellery. The idea is to keep experimenting and keeping it fun.

Athleisure is not only limited to female but in fact is a unisex trend followed and incorporated by both males and females alike. Since it is a universally acceptable trend, there is no right or wrong way to wear it. In fact, we all have been subconsciously wearing this trend since we could remember to be it at our home, or picnics, morning runs or even college. This is one trend that needs the least styling for maximum impact and can be done with minimum efforts. Since athleisure is here to stay, you should start thinking about using the tracksuit that you never liked wearing growing up and think of ways for styling it.