Faux Leather: Embrace Maternity Leggings

AFTER⁹'s maternity and nursing activewear garments stretch and adjust in the right places. This means you don’t have to buy a garment to fit a future size. You can fit yourself right now.  

NURSING BRAS | LEGGINGS | TOPS & HOODIES

MATERNITY LEGGINGS

All of our maternity leggings are a standard fit and a 7/8^th length. Focus on your waist, hip and inseam measurement to ensure a proper fit.

MATERNITY LEGGINGS FIT CHART (INCHES)

MATERNITY/NURSING TOPS

For a tighter fit, size down. For a relaxed fit, stick with your standard size.

MATERNITY/NURSING TOPS FIT CHART (INCHES)

NURSING SPORTS BRAS

NURSING SPORTS BRA FIT CHART (INCHES)

COMMON FAQs WE RECEIVE ABOUT SIZING

When do I need to buy maternity clothes?

When do I need to buy maternity clothes? It’s a question we get all the time. We also get the first-time mom (FTM), who says, “I’ve managed to go almost my whole pregnancy without maternity clothes, I’m at 30 weeks, why do I need them now?

Mama, in the span of 9 months, your body will change more than a man’s will ever in his lifetime. Is biology sexist or what?

Below are a list of our favourite maternity clothing shopping questions, which we hope will help make your journey easier.

I’m only in my first trimester, how will I know my leggings will fit later on in my pregnancy?

When you gain weight in pregnancy, two things will happen to your body: (1) you will gain weight in your waistline and (2) your hips will shift apart slightly. It is a common misconception to think when you put on 30-50 pounds of weight, that will be spread around your body.

What does this mean? If you are a size medium today in your clothes, you should be buying maternity leggings in that size, where they fit you perfectly in your legs and belly. If a maternity line has done their job right, you should only have one size of legging during pregnancy and after.

Typically, a maternity legging will accommodate a growing basketball by adding fabric in the waistband using a sewing technique called ruching, which gathers the fabric. This creates a type of hammock for a growing belly, which only spreads apart with more mass within it.

All maternity clothes are ugly. Can’t I just get away with sizing up in my Lululemon Aligns?

We get it. You don’t want a whole new wardrobe for such a short period of time. But we hate to break it to you: you aren’t just going to need maternity clothes for six months. It is actually a period of 18 months, as it takes the body time to come back to itself pre-baby.

Sizing up works for that period of six months, but even then, a pant probably won’t fit correctly. It will fit in the waist but look super baggy in the legs, since it’s not designed for what’s happening to your body. You’ve got legs that are one size and a growing basketball in your waistline. Regular pants can’t accommodate this because they don’t have the extra fabric in the waist to do so. This means sizing up will result in pants that slip and are uncomfortable.

Also, if you think you can wear your existing pants that are super stretchy. That won’t work either. You’ll end up stressing the fabric and worn enough times like this, it will just wear out and won’t fit postpartum.

Think of your maternity journey like running a marathon. You’d want a fresh pair of runners full of air for that and runners designed for that distance. Same with leggings. You want leggings that have a maternity functionality built in.

Do I need a waist trainer or belly bandit?

Many women find with the extra weight they are putting on in their bellies, they need additional support around their lower back and front area. Hence buying some sort of belly wrap. With the AFTER9 legging, you actually get that firm back support built-in. In addition, you have front support with the softer foldover panel in the front, so it enables a growing belly with a soft shell to help support it along the way.

Bras – my boobs are changing shape everyday. How can I buy a bra that will last my pregnancy and postpartum journey.

A solid bra built to last your maternity & nursing journey will have three main features: (1) Adjustable underbust (2) Nursing Clips and, (3) Adjustable straps.

A sports bra you can’t adjust in the underbust isn’t’ recommended since your torso will expand and contract, and you might find it very challenging to get in and out of it otherwise.

Your sports bra should have nursing clips full stop. You can use pull down cups, but this is an additional barrier to feeding since you have to stretch fabric over your boobs to access the nipple. A bra with nursing clips will get you to your boobs seconds faster, which helps with a screaming baby.

Adjustable straps. You want your straps to have adjustability in them to ensure they can accommodate boobs that are constantly filling and emptying with milk. For instance, in the morning, pre-first feed, you might be full of milk and want your straps shorter to give you added support and lift. After that feed, you may not require them to be so hoisted, and want the ability to loosen them.

If you want a bra that will last beyond maternity, look for a brand that offers a conversion kit or does the conversion for you, so you can always use that bra down the road.