Can you wear sweatpants every day?
Yes, you can wear them every day if you want to! There's no law saying you can't wear sweatpants daily if you prefer. While you might want to avoid wearing them in professional settings or at formal events, they're entirely appropriate at school (unless your school requires a uniform), running errands, hanging out with friends, or just chilling at home. Meet the wikiHow Experts Kalee Hewlett is an Image Consultant with almost two decades of experience in fashion. She helps her clients dress for success and transform their sense of self "from the inside out" using her expertise in Neuro-Linguistic Programming. Susan Kim is a Professional Stylist and the owner of a personal styling company in Seattle called Sum+Style Co. She has over 5 years of experience in the fashion industry. Kate Breen is a Personal Stylist with 20 years of experience in styling and fashion. Her mission is to help people use clothing and style as tools to thrive personally and professionally.
What Wearing Sweatpants Says About You
You have a laid-back personality. When you choose to wear sweatpants over tailored trousers or skirts, you're probably not someone who likes to put on airs. You're also not a stickler for conventional fashion rules. You want to feel comfortable and relaxed, no matter where you are or what you're doing. This speaks to a casual, laid-back personality, one that doesn't care what other people think. As such, you'll probably find that people in general feel comfortable around you. Some people think that wearing sweatpants means you're lazy. Even the late fashion magnate Karl Lagerfeld held this opinion, having famously said, "Sweatpants are a sign of defeat. You lost control of your life, so you bought some sweatpants." But this is an outdated stereotype and doesn't account for how Western society's definition of "fashion" has evolved, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic.
You lead a busy lifestyle. You might prefer wearing sweatpants because you simply don't have time to put on anything else. Who has time for ironing dress pants or steaming an A-line skirt? Not you! You're too busy hustling at work, going from class to class, or keeping up with your kids' after-school activities. Sweatpants are quick and easy to style and don't require a lot of upkeep, and that fits your current lifestyle to a "T"!
Your fashion sense is cool and effortless. You always look cool without even trying because you understand that an outfit doesn't need formal clothes or head-to-toe tailoring to look stylish. All you need is the right fit, materials, and accessories, and boom: your sweatpants-based outfit becomes iconic instead of ironic.
Benefits of Wearing Sweatpants
Comfort Sweatpants are typically made of cotton, polyester, a cotton-polyester blend, spandex, or fleece. These are all extremely comfortable and flexible materials that feel great on your skin and move easily with your body, regardless of your proportions (provided they're good quality).
Versatility Sweatpants are versatile in that they can be dressed up or down in a diverse range of styles. For example, says professional stylist Susan Kim, you can easily achieve an edgy, streetwear look on the weekends by pairing your sweatpants with a cropped hoodie. You can also elevate (literally) your sweatpants into something more feminine and chic with a pair of high heels. Don't forget that you can also wear sweatpants while working out!
Affordability You can spend a lot of money on sweatpants if you choose (especially if you want the softest, highest-quality material). But you can also get away with only spending $10-$20 per pair, maybe even less! The wide price range makes sweatpants a great fashion choice for everyone, even if you're shopping on a strict budget.
Low maintenance Have you ever heard of anyone ironing their sweatpants? We'd be surprised if you had! Sweats are meant to be thrown in the wash, tossed in the dryer, then stuffed in your dresser drawer and left there until they're needed. Depending on what material they're made from, they may not even wrinkle all that much. But if they do, so what? You can simply make the rumpled look part of your casual aesthetic.
Weather adaptability Come rain or shine, heat or cold, sweatpants are there for you no matter the weather. The exception might be if it's summer. But even then, if your sweatpants are a looser fit and made of natural fibers like cotton or linen, personal stylist Kate Breen says those styles are very breathable in hot, dry weather.
When Not to Wear Sweatpants
If you work in a highly professional field. You probably wouldn't want to walk into a law office and see the person you're entrusting with important legal work wearing sweats. The same goes for people working in other highly professional fields such as finance, law enforcement, and the government. You also shouldn't wear sweatpants if your workplace has a strict dress code against them. If you're unsure if sweatpants are appropriate for your job (and if none of your colleagues are wearing them), then they're probably not!
If you're attending a formal event. Sweatpants are perfectly fine to wear at informal gatherings such as coffee dates, basketball pick-up games, or hangouts with friends. But they're much less welcome at events where a lack of formal or business casual dress is considered disrespectful. That includes weddings, funerals, and meetings with professionals or other respected individuals (like your pastor or the dean of your college). Some brides and grooms will specify the style of clothes they prefer their wedding guests to wear on the invitation. If it's not clear, ask! When in doubt, though, always skip the sweats for formal events and choose cocktail or business casual options, like slacks, a suit, or a knee-length skirt.
How to Style Sweatpants
Rock casual biker core with tapered sweats, boots, and a distressed tee. If your sweatpants are narrower around the ankle, similar to joggers, then image consultant Kalee Hewlett suggests tucking them into biker boots. These are thick, leather boots that come up to your mid-calf and have a chunky heel and at least 1-2 buckles. Hewlett adds that they can look pretty cool with a distressed T-shirt (which you can find at a secondhand clothing store or buy pre-distressed from a department store). Don't have biker boots? Hewlett also recommends wearing the same look with "trendy trainers" or classic Converse to "[give your outfit] kind of an edge."
Elevate elastic sweatpants with a strappy sandal or block heel. If your sweatpants are baggy with an elastane waistband, Hewlett says you can elevate that easily with a strappy sandal or a shoe with a block heel. The strappy sandal, she points out, is a great summer option.
Dress up your sweatpants with a chambray button-down shirt. Chambray shirts are traditionally made of cotton and are light blue in color. They're associated with a casual, yet upscale sense of style. According to Hewlett, this kind of top is just the thing to "dress [your sweatpants] up a little bit" and make your outfit appear more high-end.
Embrace streetwear with hoodies. Kim suggests two different ways to style sweatpants as weekend-friendly streetwear. The first is by wearing a cropped hoodie, which exposes your midriff and gives your outfit an extra edge. The second is more suited to people who want to look cool without flashing a lot of skin. Instead of a cropped top, Kim says, "throw on a zip-up hoodie and layer it with t-shirts or a crew neck hoodie."
How many times can you wear sweatpants before washing?
Wash your sweats every 1-2 weeks if you're only wearing them at home. If you're only wearing your sweatpants at home and aren't exercising in them, don't worry about washing them more than once every 1-2 weeks. If you wear them outside your home, sweat in them, or they start to smell bad, wash them sooner.
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