I brazenly asked male students of WSU the one million dollar question: What is your completely unadulterated, unedited opinion of girls in yoga pants?
Every time, this question was met with bashful blushing and giggles. However, once the boys were told their answers would be anonymous the truth came to the surface.
Opinions ranged from the aloof (they are nices and I like thems) to the enthusiastic.
“Yoga pants are the best invention of all mankind,” one male student partially joked with a look of sheer bliss on his face.
Some men, feeling timid due to my female presence, put their opinions into very polite words.
“They accentuate the women’s body very well,” one said.
However, some young upstanding gentleman were refreshingly blunt, saying things too graphic for print accompanied by hand gestures that would make your grandmother blush. The general view of the male persuasion is crystal clear.
Yoga pants seem to be the comfort staple of girls on campus, the designer brand Lululemon being the most popular. It would be silly to assume that every girl wearing yoga pants just got out of a meditative class at the rec, so why do they wear them? Is it the feel, the comfort?
Like last week, I perched in my quiet corner of the CUB, a silent observer counting the pairs of yoga pants that sauntered past. I counted 182 pairs of varying styles (cropped, long, legging etc). Because you are probably on a relaxing break from academia, I will do the math for you. That is one pair every twenty seconds for an hour.
Kenzie Carlson and Kayten Porter were wearing twin pairs in the Barnes and Noble Café.
“I wore them today because it’s raining. I didn’t want to put jeans on because they are too tight and I wanted to be comfy. In the summer, I don’t wear them, but in the winter, I probably wear them three to four times a week,” Carlson said.
Porter’s reasoning was similar.
“My classes were cancelled and I knew I was going to be in the CUB all day, so I wanted to be comfortable,”  she said.
Why do ladies pay so much for designer yoga pants (a basic pair of lulus cost about $100 with tax) when there are cheaper knock off alternatives? The girls weighed in on the allure of the designer brand.
“Lulus fit differently than other brands,” Porter said.
Anyone who has felt the sweet caress of these pants knows what she is talking about.
The girls also mentioned the cute colorful designs on the Lulu waste band, which make the pants versatile.
Four years ago, I thought that Lululemons were an overly expensive fad. How could anybody pay so much for work out clothes, I thought. However, out of curiosity, I tried on a pair.
I was hooked. Now, I own six pairs, each a different style ranging from the basic black Groove pant to cropped purple and black tribal print leggings. The savvy shopper in me saves my wallet from shelling out full price for them, but every now and then, I deviate from the sale section and splurge.
Buying pants to fit my mile long inseam seems to be a constant struggle. The draw for me was clear: they came in a long version. Fear not, little ones. Lululemon offers complimentary hemming for those of you who do not appreciate the extra inches like I do.
Comfort and fit aside, I would not consider yoga pants to be the comfort equivalent to the previously examined basketball short because of their underlying sexual connotations. You do not hear basketball shorts being praised for their sex appeal often.
While I do not believe that most girls wear them for the sheer purpose of male attention, the double take from that mystery man walking to class does give a confidence boost (don’t lie, ladies).
Subconsciously, I believe that yoga pants allow us to maintain some vestiges of our femininity when we don’t feel at our best.
Some days we do not feel up to wearing planned ensembles due to the sleep deprivation and illness that run rampant on campus. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that. After all, it is important to take a day or two to cleanse the fashion pallet and just be snug as bugs in a rug.