Rethinking Performance: Plastic-Free Innovations in Athletic Wear

Can active wear really be sustainable?

If you’re a player in the fashion industry or a conscious consumer aware of the industry’s gaps in sustainable production, this question has probably crossed your mind.

And that’s because athleisure is still notoriously “hard-to-get” when it comes to creating pieces that are 100% sustainable or organic.

This is a fact that big players, major influencers, and media outlets have been talking about for a while now. After all, the very question that sparked this blog post was the title of a Scandinavian Vogue article that dove deep into exactly this topic.

With synthetically-achieved elasticity, durability and breathability usually topping the criteria for good activewear, can this category truly succeed in the sustainability charts?

— Marianne Françoise Dick, Vogue Scandinavia

This is a conversation gaining real momentum in the fashion world—and for good reasons.

First, we’ve seen a steady rise in consumer demand for more eco-conscious, ethical products, along with growing government and policy-level pressure pushing brands to step up and show progress on their sustainability goals.

Secondly, demand for activewear has skyrocketed. We saw health and wellness trends take off during the pandemic and continue gaining ground in the years after.

And now, they're shaping what we’re calling the ‘Wellness Era’. Aesthetic trends like the 'Pink Pilates Princess' are just one example of how this movement is evolving and resonating culturally.

In fact, PR Newswire reports that the global sportswear market is set to hit $128.41 billion by 2031, largely fueled by this ongoing wellness wave.

As we know, the relationship between consumer demand and production in the fashion space is circular and mutually reinforcing. So, as interest in active-focused lifestyles grew, so did production—and vice versa.

This momentum has brought activewear into sharper focus across the fashion industry, prompting deeper questioning around its impact and its potential for more responsible innovation.

As Françoise Dick explains in her article, the majority of athletic designs rely on elastane, a synthetic fiber derived from petroleum.

It’s problematic for several reasons, from its chemical-heavy production process to its reliance on fossil fuels, which are neither biodegradable nor sustainable.

But why is elastane so crucial to athletic wear?

Think about the basics of an athletic outfit, rather it’s leggings, tops or fitted shirts. They all require the same performance that athletes do: stretch, flexibility, moisture-wicking, durability, and more.

Unfortunately, these features are most easily achieved using synthetic materials.

That’s why the athletic world is often seen as one of the hardest categories to pivot to conscious production.

However, things are starting to shift. There’s genuine—even if still niched—progress happening in this space.

Keep reading to explore the most recent innovations in this field and what they could mean for the future of sustainable fashion in athleisure.

How Innovation Is Reshaping Sustainable Activewear

Two recent articles, from Vogue Business and Circulaire Journal, dove deep into this exact topic, uncovering some of the most promising innovations currently shifting the ground beneath the athletic wear industry.

And they’re definitely worth paying attention to.

Let’s start with the Vogue Business piece, which explores how denim production, long known for being resource-heavy and rigid, is actually leading the way in solving one of sportswear’s biggest sustainability problems: synthetic stretch.

Sounds counterintuitive, right? But that’s where it gets interesting: brands like Triarchy are now working with Italian mill Candiani to use Coreva, a fully plant-based, biodegradable stretch alternative made from natural rubber, to make that possible.

That means jeans with stretch, without plastic. While it’s not quite ready for the thin, ultra-flexible fabrics activewear usually demands, this kind of material innovation is setting the foundation. And as Triarchy’s co-founder put it…

“Five years ago, plastic-free stretch denim sounded like science fiction, and now I’m wearing it.”

The article also highlights Yulex, a material science company that’s been working on Yulastic, a bio-based stretch fiber made from natural rubber (from the hevea brasiliensis tree).

It’s already being used in wetsuits by brands like Patagonia, and now, Yulex is developing finer versions for socks, intimates, and now leggings and other activewear.

With the potential to replace up to 300,000 tones of spandex per year, this could be a game-changer. But, like many of these innovations, scaling up still depends on brands being willing to invest early.

Another example?

Agolde, the premium denim label, has teamed up with Lycra to bring to market EcoMade, a bio-based version of spandex that uses industrial corn as its main ingredient.

It’s not 100% fossil-free yet, but it’s a serious step forward—and already being used in large-scale denim production with plans to expand.

Even Under Armour has started to experiment with Neolast, a recyclable alternative to traditional stretch, and is actively seeking a plant-based version that meets their performance standards.

Summing up, Vogue Business painted a clear picture: the technology is coming, the innovation is real, and the key players are waking up to the fact that plastic-free stretch in activewear isn’t a myth anymore.

But if the industry doesn’t invest, it won’t scale.

In parallel, recent innovation on sustainable athletic wear is already available on the market: the launch of PANGAIA’s 365 Seamless Activewear collection.

This is PANGAIA’s most advanced plant-based activewear line to date, and it’s a big achievement as it marks the first commercial use of regen™ BIO Max, a 98% renewable elastane alternative created by Hyosung.

It’s made primarily from industrial corn, and compared to traditional elastane, it has 27% lower carbon emissions and 82% less ozone depletion. And beyond checking the sustainability box, it doesn’t compromise on durability, recovery or performance.

The base fabric used in the collection is EVO® Nylon, which is derived from castor beans. It’s lightweight, breathable, thermoregulating, and non-toxic, making it ideal for close-to-skin wear.

The collection includes essential, tight-fitting pieces like leggings, shorts and tops, with seamless construction that moves with the body and brings function and form together.

PANGAIA isn’t just talking the talk, they’re putting fully bio-based activewear on shelves in nice-looking, wearable designs that don’t look like “eco-compromise” at all.

What these two articles make clear is this: the movement toward plastic-free activewear is happening, but it’s still in motion.

The materials are being developed. The collections are launching. The only question is whether the rest of the industry will pick up the pace.

Challenges to Sustainable Performance Wear

We can’t talk about the future without naming the frictions in the present.

First off, performance stretch is still dominated by plastic. Elastane, spandex, nylon are still used because they work and results come easier. They’re stretchy, durable, breathable, and, most importantly, they are familiar to the industry.

But they’re also fossil-fuel based, chemically intensive, and almost impossible to biodegrade.

Like we saw, bio-based alternatives like regen™ BIO Max or Yulastic are showing us what’s possible, but for now, they remain in early adoption and come with:

• Higher production costs → Many of these next-gen materials are still produced at low volumes, often through more specialized or slower processes. Without economies of scale, the price per unit stays high, making it harder for brands to adopt without cutting into margins.

  
  

• Limited infrastructure → Existing supply chains are built around synthetics. Mills, machinery, and finishing processes aren’t always compatible with bio-based inputs. That means manufacturers need to retool, and most won’t do that unless demand is guaranteed.

  
  

• Scaling challenges → From raw material sourcing (like castor beans or natural rubber) to processing capacity, these materials often rely on more regenerative but less industrialized systems. It takes time, funding, and collaboration to grow supply that can meet global demand without losing integrity.

There are definitely challenges to overcome—but the good news is, some brands are already pushing through and proving what’s possible.

They’re not just leading the way, they’re creating space for others to get inspired, take the leap, and potentially innovate even further.

Therefore, if you’re looking for real-world examples of how to move the needle, Good On You’s curated list of 100 sustainable activewear brands is a powerful place to start.

→ See the list here

Go deep. Look into what those brands changed, where they sourced differently, how they used recycled inputs, adopted renewable textiles, slowed down production cycles, or partnered with mills early.

The common point between them? They didn’t wait for the system to be perfect, they moved pieces to reshape it. That’s the kind of energy this sector needs to scale real change.

Scaling Sustainable Activewear: A Unified Supply Chain Effort

While brands play a key role in leading the sustainability narrative, it’s also important to turn the spotlight toward suppliers and recognize their critical role in driving material innovation forward.

Most athletic performance textiles were originally built to optimize for speed, stretch, moisture control, and recovery. But they weren’t designed with biodegradability, recyclability, or renewable content in mind.

And that it’s a reflection of what the system was built to prioritize: volume, synthetic consistency, and manufacturing efficiency.

That’s why supplier innovation deserves more recognition and space to thrive. But to scale it, we need collaboration: these shifts demand time, funding, and co-investment from the brands that want better materials on their shelves.

Beyond innovation, the data and compliance side of sustainability is another layer that suppliers are being asked to manage—often with limited resources. As McKinsey puts it,

"In all cases, brands need to collaborate with suppliers to implement tech tools to effectively capture emissions data and smooth compliance, given that suppliers have limited available resources because of the persistent bullwhip effect."

Because the truth is: that kind of evolution doesn’t happen in isolation. It needs a whole system working together, and that means taking action across the full supply chain.

In an article about sustainable practices in the industry, Active Wear Production shares actionable tips for each section of the supply chain, making the challenge of creating sustainable activewear more approachable and collaborative.

Here, we’ll highlight just three key suggestions from each sector they address:

01 What Manufacturers Can Do

• Pursue innovation across the full supply chain — from raw materials to finishing.

• Educate buyers on the sustainable options available.

• Offer a wide range of recycled materials that can support entire collections, not just capsules.

02 What Designers Can Do

• Choose to collaborate with manufacturers who are actively investing in sustainability.

• Opt for recycled materials wherever possible.

• Consider alternatives like Lyocell, Lenzing Modal, or BCI cotton for tops and basics.

03 What We Can Do Together

• Plan production with low-waste efficiency in mind.

• Align on a sustainable price point that supports long-term practices.

• Offer transparency to the end consumer — from materials to impact.

How Digital Textile Sourcing Will Lead the Way

If the future of sustainable activewear depends on smarter supply chains, better materials, and deeper collaboration, then digital sourcing is one of the tools that can actually make that future possible.

And this is exactly what World Collective’s CEO, Jeanine Ballone pointed out:

By digitizing how materials are discovered, evaluated, and integrated into collections, brands and designers gain something the industry has historically lacked: transparency, speed, and visibility across the sourcing process.

Why is she right? Because with digital textile sourcing:

• It becomes easier to find low-impact, functional textiles without relying on trade shows or gate-kept mill relationships.

• It means testing and prototyping can happen faster, with clearer data on impact.

• It reduces the back-and-forth and opens space for real innovation to flow.

Especially in performance wear, where stretch, structure, and endurance are non-negotiable, having access to a wider library of regenerative, recycled, and next-gen materials in one place helps streamline decision-making and unlock more agile, future-ready collections.

And maybe most importantly, digital sourcing opens up space for suppliers to be seen, valued, and accessed. No longer left behind or boxed out by geography or exclusivity, they can showcase their innovations directly to the people who need them.

World Collective comes in to bridge all of these gaps, helping build the connective tissue that supports it.

✅ We’re always scouting new solutions: materials, technologies, systems that balance function and sustainability without forcing compromise.

✅ We act as a bridge between visionary brands and future-ready suppliers. It takes a whole chain, aligned around innovation and intention.

✅ And we’re honest about what’s missing. There’s still work to do. But we’re here to amplify what’s working, share what’s emerging, and support the shift toward systems that truly sustain.

Because the future of activewear won’t just be more comfortable. It’ll be more conscious and we’re here to help shape it.

Meet all the solutions we’re driving towards a more eco-conscious fashion supply chain by clicking here.

Written by Maria Eugênia Lima, Content & Marketing Intern at World Collective
Edited by Júlia Vilaça, Communications & Brand Manager at World Collective