Teenage boys and joggers - Can they ever look ok?

[Hazelnutlatteplease]

DS has SN. He has absolutely no interest in shopping and clothes. He can't do buckles and regularly sits for prolonged periods in his wheelchair.

He loved lockdown year as he swapped his expensive uncomfortable school trousers for his £5 primark joggers for day to day wear. This has been a delight for him and I'm now not sure he will go back...

I'd like something a little smarter

I used to get soft denim jogger jeans but I haven't seen many about (mens s-m) and the only pair I did find are too big on the waist, too tight on the leg and marginally too short on the leg (he has grown into a beanpole).so....

Do joggers ever look ok/smartish? I have found a pair of slightly more fashioned shaped joggers I think maybe look better. I just wonder if I'm deluding myself!!

Can joggers every look a bit smarter on teenage boys?

Absolutely go for comfort.

Having said that, my ds is autistic and I have been giving him mainly joggers to wear for the last couple of years (sensory issues). Recently he asked me if he could have some jeans and he has really been enjoying wearing them!

Every single boy from the age of 10 wears joggers - it’s not like he’s going to look any different from any other boy if he wears joggers?

DS wears the Next mens slimfit joggers which look a lot better than his old Primark ones, and come in a long fit so they fit nicely rather than having a big gap at the ankle. With a shirt they would look perfectly presentable

My ds2 is 18 and I can't recall the last time he wore anything but joggers op, apart from his school uniform.

If he was being photographed or visiting relatives, I think he would look fine. He has a pair of Gymshark ones which are cotton not nylon and look a bit nicer, quite slim fitting.

If he were going to a wedding or a funeral he would wear school trousers (that's what he wore to the last funeral we went to) or now, his sixth form suit. Honestly he won't wear chinos or jeans but that is completely standard, looking at his friends. I decided a while ago not to try to fight this battle.

I have a sensory jogger addict. Next are good as they are nice and long but choice of slim /standard/plus. You get to a point with boys where they are between the kids and men's sizes, but XS men's is quite small.

If it was a smart occasion he has a couple of Adidas (brand of choice) "posh hoodies". But to be fair smart isn't really on our radar any more!

My DS14 lives in joggers and comfortable soft clothing when not in his school uniform. He has zero interest in clothes.

I buy him nice quality joggers, T-shirt's and tops from Abercrombie and sportswear brands. He looks fine and is comfortable and happy.

I'm not understanding the problem?

Mine will wear the canvas type fabric trousers that are gathered at the ankle so look a bit like joggers for dressier occasions. Not as uncomfortable as jeans and chinos, but look much much better than joggers. Like these www2.hm.com/en_au/productpage.0769007004.html
We are in Australia, but I assume your H&M would have something similar.

Primary do some trendier, slimmer fit joggers. Mine lives the £5 ones too, but like you, they've been relagated to dossing clothes (not helped because we haven't been able to top them up with new ones, which look smarter for a couple of washes at least!).

M&S have some nice joggers and are really good for beanpoles as some of them you can pick the leg length and waist separately like this pair of cotton joggers.

It's one of the few places I can get trousers that fit my DS1 that will actually fit him as he needs the smallest waist but the longest legs.

I don’t know why you’re having such a hard time. What’s wrong with wanting your children to look presentable? He will probably like it also.

I find with joggers it’s usually best to invest. Cheap joggers look just that; cheap.

Even buying some nice branded Nike/Adidas will look scores better. I would definitely recommend slim fit and if budget allows Tommy Hilfiger do some lovely joggers they’re the only ones my husband wears.

In terms of ‘real trousers’ I think it’s a lot easier than you think. Most fashion sites have some great joggers, what about some like these? www.boohoo.com/skinny-check-smart-cropped-jogger/MZZ05676.html

Try ASOS too they have loads of brands.

I'd go for a pair like North Face, Adidas or Nike etc, they are thicker and retain their shape better than Primark type ones.

We are loving the general move towards joggers and away from jeans, especially slim fit. Historically I'm not a fan of joggers beyond day to day casual but it was the slightly trendier cut primark joggers that got me thinking.

I'm not against spending a bit of money on a more expensive joggers if they last and are shaped a bit better. Especially if covid cases stay low and we can get to the outlet, I think they have all the brands mentioned there.

I have a couple of cargo type options similar to the ones above on order from H&M. I didnt see them last time I looked.

Do the boohoo trousers look ok? The ones we tried from H&M a few months back looked decidedly odd. He cant do cropped either because he generally needs boots when he is walking and the cropped looks odd. They also give him cold legs when he sits down!

He likes hoodies and tshirts of his favourite characters, often in bright reds and blues but there's a fair amount of blacks. Soft top Jeans were easy because everything matched. Joggers I'm am finding harder to work out the matches. Do you just go for black? Or would you go for grey?

Its sounds stupid but I'm kinda envious of your kids who know what they want to wear. DS really doesn't notice much (mismatched pjs are indeed a favourite outfit of choice) which are fine for shielding days at home. But we are hoping to get out and about a little more now. He has grown and changed shape so dramatically over lockdown. Hes a proper teen now.

Not much fits the same way or at all. The wheelchair has a tendency to either age him and his clothes prematurely or baby him. Trying to get the clothes to reflect the age hes at (when you are a very untrendy mum) is hard.

OP how old is your ds? I ask because you talk about "working out the matches" - it is genuinely many years since I matched the clothes for any of my DC. Yes, my youngest is 18 now, but I am pretty sure that at 10 he was picking out what he wore (from clothes I bought him - but still his choice).

My DS1 pretty much has black and grey trousers - black for joggers, grey for the slim-fit stretch trousers. He grabs that, a t-shirt or polo, and an overshirt (usually a hoodie or a large comfy button up that he wears open) in whatever order. It's made things simple for him.

I have one who cares about fashion, the others couldn’t care less, just grab whatever’s on top, and frequently wear colours I wouldn’t put together. That beige/camel colour I linked is great in trousers because it pretty much looks good with any colour top.

Have mostly black, one or two dark grey and navy, they'll go with everything.

13. But hes not your average 13 year old😁 I have actually had to have the discussion recently that a shrunken Marvel PJ top and too short,mis matched PJ bottoms with dodgy elastic top, might not have been the best choice of outfit for a outing with the GPs. Nor does compromise mean being able to keep one half of the outfit if you change the other . It definitely helps if easily matching clothing is easily at hand!!!! He has absolutely loved lockdown, sliding him back into society may take a while

Thank you for the colour advice.

That's what I liked about those beige trousers. Although the colour might not survive too long! H&M had a grey I've ordered.

The khaki in those H&M trousers is also a great goes-with-everything neutral that might be a bit more practical?

Ah fair enough, agree about the pjs not being OK for going out!

We have got some nice things for DS2 in Costco actually, of all places - they have brands but they are cheaper if that makes sense. Picked up an Adidas zip-up training top for him today, looks really nice, £17. I do find the branded sportswear is actually more stylish and better quality than own brand stuff from supermarkets, much as it pains me to say it. I refuse to spend £50 on an Adidas top, but £17 is fine.

My DS loves to be comfy so wears joggers almost all the time, he usually wears non cuffed ones (as the cuffs irritate him) and I think they look smarter too.

Dark grey or black are best, even been out for dinner in them (before covid ) with a brushed cotton check shirt (also comfy), looked fine.

For more style I like ones with a stripe down the side but they are less 'smart'. H & M, Gap and Tesco (surprisingly) have been good.

Mine is also a beanpole

A character or band (if he's into music) t-shirt with an open check shirt over the top is a good look and quite comfy too.

I have not RTFT but my suggestion, and what my 17yo DS wears are the men's joggers from Boden. I always hunt for a discount code.

Prior to that he liked the under armour ones but the Boden mens are by far the smartest. And really long lasting.

I agree that Next joggers are a good fit for boys and look smarter than the baggy sort, my son has the spray on ones and they are nice. Primark also do slim/skinny fit, I find plain black look smartest too.

I noticed a student at work (secondary) wearing some Under Armour ones that were tighter from the knee down, they were very smart so I am going to see if I can find those.

Hi OP. My DS wears joggers and shorts a lot. He definitely favours the slim fit type now. He's had some from Rascal. He's also had a pair from Boohoo and pair of cargo type from there, which did have buckle things on them, but not actually functional. Now it's mostly Nike slim fit he prefers.

The "old", baggier style are now only wearable to bed and dossing about (despite being by far the most expensive pair of the lot!)

My DS who is ASD will only wear joggers - we found these from Hollister a bit smarter.

My son wears adidas joggers. The ones with the sports band at the top are comfy he feels.