Karl Lagerfeld has it wrong. Sweatpants are no longer a sign of defeat.

Karl Lagerfeld once famously said, ‘Sweatpants are a sign of defeat. You’ve lost control of your life so you bought some sweatpants,’ and it seems that women are taking his style advice and shunning trackie daks in favour of more slim-fitting attire.

As in yoga pants.

(Sorry Karl, we’ve discovered the comfort of stretchy spandex and we’re not ever giving it up).

There’s no denying the huge elephant in the room here: yoga pants and/or leggings are a divisive garment.

Just as an FYI, you should know that this post is sponsored by Female For Life. But all opinions expressed by the author are 100% authentic and written in their own words.

You either sit firmly in the leggings are not pants camp or you’re in favour of any kind of style statement involving Lycra.

But what’s not to love? There are so many benefits to wearing your sports gear all day. For example, there’s no zips, buttons or buckles that dig into your skin, you don’t have to worry about anything riding up and say-for-instance you haven’t actually made it to the gym that day, no one will ever be the wiser.

For all they know you could’ve run a half marathon before breakfast, or you could be a personal trainer whose taken her clients through three boot camp sessions before you’ve had a chance to change.

Besides the proponents of exercise trickery, the fitness clothing industry is booming.

According to the Associated Press, “Spending on workout clothes jumped 7 per cent to $31.6 billion during the 12-month period that ended in August from the same period a year ago.”

The rise is due, in part, to our hectic lifestyles. The demand for practical, comfortable, versatile, stylish AND flattering clothing to take us between work and play, and back again is greater than ever.

Sportswear as a style statement is hardly a new concept, anyone who remembers shell suits in the late 80s and early 90s can attest to this. Without getting all Miranda Priestly on you and waxing lyrical about trends, every spring designer takes influence from sportswear, and this year is no exception.

Heavyweight designers such as Balenciaga, Stella McCartney and Marni pushed an athletic agenda and you only had to step outside the tents at fashion week to see that the ‘fitness chic’ trend already emerging. On the feet of fashions most influential, there weren’t towering designer stilettos of last year but New Balance and Nike Free Flyknit sneakers.

There has also been a shift in the way that sportswear companies perceive and position themselves, they don’t just consider themselves to be solely manufacturers of exercise gear anymore.  They’ve branched into extended forms of fitness clothes like loungewear, ensure ethical manufacturing and have a philosophy around making women feel better about themselves and their bodies, like the Aussie owned Female for Life, and make garments that are not only flattering and comfortable but just too good to waste on the gym.

What do you think? Lycra or no lycra?

See some of the Female for Life range here: