Beyond Yoga has carved a specific niche in the premium activewear market: exceptionally soft fabric, inclusive sizing, and a brand identity built around body positivity and feel-good movement. The brand was acquired by Levi Strauss in 2021 and has continued to grow its presence in the premium studio and lifestyle segment.
The softness Beyond Yoga is known for is a genuine product attribute. The question worth asking is what produces that softness, what chemical profile it carries, and what independent verification exists that the finished garment is safe to wear against skin during exercise.
What Beyond Yoga is made of
Beyond Yoga's signature fabric is a proprietary nylon and elastane blend, typically described as buttery soft due to its texture against skin. Nylon is a synthetic polymer derived from petroleum. The softness of high-quality nylon activewear comes from fine-denier fiber construction and, in many cases, from softening agents applied during finishing.
Nylon sheds synthetic microplastic fibers during washing. Research by Napper and Thompson published in Marine Pollution Bulletin (2016) found that a single synthetic garment can shed more than 1,900 microplastic fibers per wash cycle. A 2022 study by Leslie et al. in Environment International detected microplastic particles in human blood. A 2024 study by Marfella et al. in the New England Journal of Medicine found microplastic and nanoplastic particles in cardiovascular tissue samples, representing an escalating body of peer-reviewed research on systemic microplastic accumulation.
These findings reflect the material properties of synthetic fabric broadly. They are not specific to Beyond Yoga. Every brand building on nylon and elastane carries the same microplastic shedding baseline.
The softening question
Beyond Yoga's softness is a defining product characteristic. Achieving exceptional softness in synthetic activewear typically involves a combination of fine-denier fiber construction and chemical finishing agents applied after knitting. Softening agents used in textile manufacturing include silicone-based compounds and various chemical treatments that are applied to the fabric surface.
These finishes are not disclosed on fiber content labels. A label listing nylon and elastane describes the base fibers. It does not describe what was applied to those fibers during finishing to achieve the final hand feel. Independent finished-garment testing is the only route to verified information about what the finished textile contains beyond its base fiber composition.
What Beyond Yoga discloses
Beyond Yoga's publicly available product and sustainability information focuses on its fabric proprietary technology and inclusive sizing range. The brand does not publish a comprehensive chemical finishing policy or PFAS-specific commitment with independently verified finished-garment documentation as of this writing.
Following the April 2026 Texas Attorney General investigation into Lululemon, which confirmed through Lululemon's own response that PFAS were present in DWR treatments through early 2024, the question of PFAS in premium activewear has become a formal regulatory matter rather than a consumer education concern. Brands that position in the premium wellness-adjacent space but have not independently verified finished-garment chemical safety occupy an increasingly scrutinized position.
The absence of published independent certification for Beyond Yoga's finished garments does not confirm the presence of harmful substances. It reflects the absence of documented verification that would allow a confident confirmed-absent claim from publicly available information.
Softness without synthetic finishing
The non-toxic softness question has a direct answer in fabric selection. TENCEL Lyocell is naturally smooth due to its fiber structure. Its surface smoothness comes from the fiber itself, not from applied softening agents. A 2014 study in Fibers and Polymers by Kaplan et al. confirmed TENCEL Lyocell's moisture management and comfort properties under active wear conditions. The fiber is hygroscopic rather than hydrophobic, moving moisture through the fiber structure and maintaining a drier skin surface without requiring chemical treatment to do so.
For buyers who value fabric softness against skin and are also concerned about the chemical profile of what achieves that softness, TENCEL Lyocell offers a different answer than softening agents applied to synthetic fiber. Bellissima's Sempre Leggings use 92% TENCEL Lyocell and carry OEKO-TEX Standard 100 certification on the finished textile, independently verifying the absence of regulated harmful substances in the garment.
A fair assessment of Beyond Yoga
Beyond Yoga makes genuinely soft, well-constructed activewear with strong size inclusivity. The brand has built real loyalty among buyers who prioritize feel and fit. Its acquisition by Levi Strauss has expanded its distribution without fundamentally changing its product identity.
On the specific question of independently verified chemical safety in the finished garment, Beyond Yoga has not published documentation that would allow a buyer to confirm absence of PFAS or other synthetic chemical finishes from publicly available information. For buyers whose primary concern is feel and fit, Beyond Yoga delivers. For buyers whose primary concern is verified non-toxic composition in the fabric against their skin during exercise, that confirmation is not currently available in the public record.
Sources
Texas Attorney General. (2026, April 13). Attorney General Ken Paxton Launches Investigation into Lululemon Over Potential Presence of Toxic "Forever Chemicals" in Activewear. texasattorneygeneral.gov.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (2024). Our Current Understanding of the Human Health and Environmental Risks of PFAS. EPA.gov.
Napper, I.E., and Thompson, R.C. (2016). Release of synthetic microplastic plastic fibres from domestic washing machines. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 112(1-2).
Leslie, H.A., et al. (2022). Discovery and quantification of plastic particle pollution in human blood. Environment International, 163.
Marfella, R., et al. (2024). Microplastics and nanoplastics in atheromas and cardiovascular events. New England Journal of Medicine, 390(10).
Kaplan, S., et al. (2014). Thermal comfort of lyocell and other fibers in active wear. Fibers and Polymers, 15(6).
OEKO-TEX Association. (2024). OEKO-TEX Standard 100 Testing Criteria. oeko-tex.com.
