Wearing sweatpants out in public

[tase]

I remember reading somewhere that you know you have reached rock-bottom once you wear sweatpants out in public.

I pretty much only wear sweatpants from Oct-Apr. I would never wear sweats to an appointment or out to dinner or anything of major importance, but if I'm just doing errands around town like grocery shopping and such, I say why not.

What do you guys think?

[Desmister]

I never actually wear sweatpants ever, but I don't see what's so wrong with people wearing them out in public. As long as you're comfortable then there's no problems. Just another case of people sticking their nose in business that it doesn't belong in <_<

[noparlpf]

I wear scrubs the majority of the time, and scrub pants are sort of like sweat pants.

Mostly I just don't look at what kind of pants people are wearing. I don't really care.

[aventura]

Whoever set those standards of success are probably the ones who set the standard that you need sex and a romantic partner and kids to be happy.

Obviously they're wrong.

Sweatpants ftw!

[Cimmerian]

No way! I love sweatpants. Of course, some are nicer than others but I have no problem wearing them out or to dinner (assuming we're talking about a casual place-- not somewhere high-end).

[boxed toast]

I see people wearing much worse things than sweatpants on a daily basis. Idk why sweatpants would be rock bottom, I like them.

[Vega91]

I mostly wear jeans (my "sin" is flannel shirts), but I don't see why there's anything wrong with sweatpants. They're comfortable, I guess the stereotype is that once you go out with sweatpants you've given up on all personal appearance and standards. Which is just a silly idea to have. Also that would mean that pretty much every college student ever is at rock bottom. :P

Especially if you have the kind of job where you don't need to look ridiculously well put-together all the time.

[tase]

Whoever set those standards of success are probably the ones who set the standard that you need sex and a romantic partner and kids to be happy.

Obviously they're wrong.

Sweatpants ftw!

I think you're onto something. :)

[tase]

I mostly wear jeans (my "sin" is flannel shirts), but I don't see why there's anything wrong with sweatpants. They're comfortable, I guess the stereotype is that once you go out with sweatpants you've given up on all personal appearance and standards. Which is just a silly idea to have. Also that would mean that pretty much every college student ever is at rock bottom. :P

Especially if you have the kind of job where you don't need to look ridiculously well put-together all the time.

I consider newish jeans as my "nice" pants. I don't even own any other "nicer" pants, but would buy some if occasion called for it.

I think you're right on with the personal appearance line of thought.

[praetorius]

you know you have reached rock-bottom once you wear sweatpants out in public.

So, all you have to do is wear sweatpants, and you can be certain that your life can only possible improve from that point on? Sounds like a great reason to start sweatpantsing all over the place right away!

[Desmister]

you know you have reached rock-bottom once you wear sweatpants out in public.

So, all you have to do is wear sweatpants, and you can be certain that your life can only possible improve from that point on? Sounds like a great reason to start sweatpantsing all over the place right away!

That's actually some really great logic right there. Makes me wanna start wearing sweatpants

[Scottthespy]

I have had people show up to my store at noon in their pjs and slippers, there to buy smokes. These people are just fine mentally and economically, they just didn't feel like getting dressed. There is nothing 'rock bottom' about that. That whole thing is an idea from some one who assumed they had to be camera ready at every moment of their lives in order to be 'socially acceptable'...some one who put more importance on looks that most else. People who are comfortable in their skins understand that it doesn't matter WHAT you wear out on everyday errands, as long as you like it.

[Blomdor]

Wait a minute. People look down upon this?

People look down upon the strangest of things.

I've been doing this since I was a little boy. Sweatpants are wonderfully practical articles of clothing. All through the year, sweats are a staple of my choices of garments. They are comfortable, soft, concealing, plain. What are we supposed to wear instead? Why are they made, if not to be worn? Man, I am confused. Clothes do not make the man. I've always hated that loathsome quote. Man came before clothes. We were doing without them before we ever bothered with them or their social implications. I will go out in a thong and a sombrero if I feel like it, and if you have a problem with it, buddy, you need your priorities straightened out.

I say we wear whatever the hell we want, whenever we feel like it. We're animals. The clothes have no say on this. They are just coverings.

[Royal Octopus]

It seems like the idea that "sweatpants = rock bottom" comes from the idea that the only thing that's really important is how we look, not how we think, what we do, or how we treat others.

If you go around insulting other people for how they look or dress, you should probably stop and ask yourself why it bothers you so much.

[Larkaloke]

I find it odd to place so much emphasis on what pants somebody wears. I myself always wear either jeans or cargo pants when I go out, because I want to have at least as many pockets as jeans provide and I don't really find sweatpants particularly comfortable, but who cares? Not me, that's for sure.

I did wear sweatpants pretty much everywhere when I was a kid and in my early teens, before I had to carry around a wallet and keys and whatnot with me. They've got some advantages. Most of the time I just think they're too warm and have insufficient pocket space.

[tase]

I find it odd to place so much emphasis on what pants somebody wears. I myself always wear either jeans or cargo pants when I go out, because I want to have at least as many pockets as jeans provide and I don't really find sweatpants particularly comfortable, but who cares? Not me, that's for sure.

I did wear sweatpants pretty much everywhere when I was a kid and in my early teens, before I had to carry around a wallet and keys and whatnot with me. They've got some advantages. Most of the time I just think they're too warm and have insufficient pocket space.

I definitely hear you on the pocket issue. I do wallet in one pocket and phone (smaller iPhone 5c with no cover) and keys in the other.

[Wendy Testaburger]

No way, my Roots sweatpants (I don't know if they have this brand outside Canada) are good quality and not ripped or anything, and I wear them out in public whenever. I actually think a lot of people look cute in sweatpants... I am hoping to add another pair of sweatpants to my wardrobe for this winter, ideally a more fashionable tapered pair that will be easy to tuck into boots.

[Skycaptain]

Where's the difference between sweatpants and the shell suits that were all the rage when I was younger apart from price and most importantly, brand name. Charge five times the price and put the logo of a big brand name and watch their image skyrocket

[Frac]

My gym rat friends get away with it all the time. Personally, I only wear them on weekends when not planning to meet with anyone. Can't be bothered to look presentable on those days.

[Glyn]

I've warn jog pants for years, but not just for comfort - there was more of a pratical reason behind it.

Since August 2010, I've had issues with ulcers on my legs.

Warning: Spoiler contains rather gross photos of my ulcers. The photos were taken while the dressings were being changed and were being taken to support my claim for Employment Support Allowance in Britian.

My right leg - the better leg

My left leg

These photos were taken around the time when the ulcers were at thier worst. When the photos were taken, the legs were having a good day - there was very little actual weeping (some days they wept so much, they leaked through the dressings and soaked my bedsheets. My bed sheets were like someone had thrown a bucket of water over them.

This has meant that I've had to wear pressure dressings almost perminantly for five years to help me heal. These dressings don't just have one layer - they can have three or four layers to them. It's not until you actually wear them that you realise how much they kind of pad out your leg - your leg in a way becomes bigger than before.

What this means is that if you wear jeans or work trousers, the dressings make the trousers/jeans a little tight around where you wear the dressings. This makes removing the trousers/jeans a lot harder as they tend to snag around your legs.

Jog pants are a lot more looser and are a lot more stretchy, which makes wearing them a lot more comfortable to wear, especially when you have pressure dressings on your legs.

[Grumpy Alien]

The only time I've worn sweatpants out of the house is like getting the mail or something or when I'm in the hospital.

[Desmister]

Y'know, all this talk about sweatpants is kinda making me wanna get a pair now. I think I just might do that

[KuraiTsuki]

I used to wear jeans all the time, but then I got a couple pairs of sweatpants and now I rarely wear jeans at all. Sweatpants are just so much more comfortable! I don't really care what people think of me wearing them, since it's not like I'm trying to attract anyone. Why wear tight pants when you can wear comfy sweatpants?

[SweetieBot]

I personally wouldn't, but I don't much like pants to begin with. I also don't actually own any sweatpants, but when I did I only wore them as pyjamas. I don't really care about others doing so though.

[VindicatorPhoenix]

I really shouldn't be wearing sweatpants, they transmit flesh-eating nanobots to everyone within a 30-meter radius. Wait a second, that's not true! I'm just making up an irrational reason to stigmatize nonconformity. In essence, I think that too many people blindly accept and enforce social norms. As far as I know, sweatpants don't hurt anybody and I don't see any issue with wearing them. Also, they're quite comfy! :)

[Guest]

I don't know about sweatpants per se, but I will go nearly anywhere in pajama pants.

[drjohnhwatson]

I think it's because of the whole casual/formal thing. I know people bitch about me wearing T-shirts all the time, but I don't feel the need to wear dress shirts to the restaurant to work when I know I'm gonna get bleach on them and ruin them; most of my T-shirts have been coated in bleach these past seven years.

I kind of raise an eyebrow at people who are out in sweatpants or in pyjamas because that's just the way I've been raised. My mom chides me for putting on pyjamas and flinging my bra off into the void whenever I get home, even.

I always felt self-conscious when I had this fitness walking class in college (mandatory fitness classes? In college? Great) because I had a class DIRECTLY after so I didn't have time to change from my sweatpants. I always felt like everyone's eyes were on me until I switched into "normal" clothes after the second class.

It sucks. I wish we could just wear clothing without judging people or having people judge us. Life would be a hell of a lot easier.

[Glyn]

I think it's because of the whole casual/formal thing. I know people bitch about me wearing T-shirts all the time, but I don't feel the need to wear dress shirts to the restaurant to work when I know I'm gonna get bleach on them and ruin them; most of my T-shirts have been coated in bleach these past seven years.

I kind of raise an eyebrow at people who are out in sweatpants or in pyjamas because that's just the way I've been raised. My mom chides me for putting on pyjamas and flinging my bra off into the void whenever I get home, even.

I always felt self-conscious when I had this fitness walking class in college (mandatory fitness classes? In college? Great) because I had a class DIRECTLY after so I didn't have time to change from my sweatpants. I always felt like everyone's eyes were on me until I switched into "normal" clothes after the second class.

It sucks. I wish we could just wear clothing without judging people or having people judge us. Life would be a hell of a lot easier.

I think I've become more immune to when people stare at me. I'm a very big guy (27 stone/384 ibs/174.2kg), and people stare at me because of it a lot, especially children. If people stare at me too long, I just politely say "Hi!" People either realise I've noticed they're staring and stop, or will say "Hi!" back (it's better than saying "Oi! Stop staring!"

I have become less concious of people staring from the days when I would go to conventions as Worf the Klingon or in a Star Trek uniform on more than a few occasions! When you're on the bus wearing that kind of thing, people stare at you a LOT, and you become kind of immune to it after a while.

And with regards to people staring at me because of my size, I have to remind myself that (as much as I hate to admit it) I would probably be staring if I saw someone my size walking down the street. It's not the kind of thing I'm pleased about with regards to myself, but at least I am trying to be realistic with myself. So I can't exactly judge others or get annoyed with others if I know I would do the exact same thing as they would if our roles were reversed.

[R3i]

ive seen people wearing pjs in public, as long as they arnt exposing themselfs & the clothes arnt inapropriate, no big d

[Amorphous]

I've been considering myself part of a fashion trend for the past 9 years or so in which grossly oversized t-shirts, sweaters and sweatpants are the only allowed clothing. I think the way the clothes fall naturally like drapes looks very pretty. I've even worn it to a wedding!