How Do I Carry a Gun in Leggings?

I hear this question a lot.  Mostly because leggings are AWESOME!!  We all have at least one pair that we just look for reasons to wear!  (Leggings are appropriate for a business lunch as long as they're a pinstripe pattern, right??? LOL!)  The downside to all that comfort comes from the lack of structure they provide.  When you're trying to comfortably carry a firearm, as counterintuitive as it sounds, structure is your friend. (Check out THIS blog post for more info on that.)

Here are the two questions you need to ask yourself

• Q1 -Does my holster attach securely to the waistband of my leggings so that I can draw without holding the holster in place?

• Q2 -Are my leggings sturdy enough to support the weight of my gun properly?

So this is kind of like one of those old "choose your own adventure" books.  Remember those?  If you answered YES to Question 1, feel free to follow on below to Question 2.  But if you answered NO, you need to turn to page 36 (just kidding!).  If you answered no, you simply need to find a holster solution that doesn't involve your waistband holster + leggings combo.  If your holster has a standard clip, a more solid waistband is needed.  You absolutely need to be able to draw quickly and efficiently without holding the holster in place.  Another possible solution to this is to modify your existing holster with an Ulticlip (or similar).  

If you answered YES, to Question 1, let's go on to Question 2 below!

The trick here is figuring out exactly how supportive your leggings are compared to the weight of your gun.

This is applicable no matter which holster you use -even if your leggings come with a holster built in.  Some leggings are simply more supportive than others, and that structure really matters here.  If you have a lightweight gun (like a polymer pocket-sized gun), you can get away with a lot more, but if you carry anything larger than your hand, or if it's a heavier caliber (larger than .380), you're going to need to do some serious soul searching about whether or not it's worth the struggle to carry ON your leggings.

When the balance is right, your gun will be held securely against your body and there will be no "droop" at your waistline.  This is important because it impacts comfort AND concealability!  If your gun is too heavy for your waistband, you end up with a gun that wants to move around a lot or even flip out of your pants.  It's especially noticeable when you sit down or move quickly.   

See what I'm talking about???  This holster is a solid YES on Question 1.  See the Ulticlip?  It locks onto the waistband of my leggings beautifully, but the gun is so heavy that it pulls these leggings into the Dreaded Droop.  Bummer!

Here's how it looks with my shirt pulled down over it.  What you can't see in this pic is how much the grip of the gun tips outward when I sit down.  It was a quick standup away from dangling outside of my trousers!

But Wait!  There's good news!

When you have the right balance of support with your leggings compared to the weight of your gun, you end up with a great concealed carry method!  Check this out ->

Exact same leggings, exact same type of holster, but wearing a smaller gun!  See how the gun is held securely against my body?  See how there's no droop to my waistband?  THIS is exactly what we're going for!  VICTORY!!

The difference is night and day, y'all.  

This stuff doesn't just apply to leggings either!  It can be life changing to realize that it's not actually your holster that's the problem.  There are a billion different kinds of stretchy pants out there.  Even jeans that are too big can create the same kind of problem.  Losing some weight??  HELLO!  Now your gun wants to move around and won't conceal properly.  A solid foundation is the first step to comfortable, functional, safe, EASY concealed carry.

I hope you learned a little something today that will help you on your journey.  Carrying a firearm has been part of my life for nearly 15 years now, and knowing that the challenges I went through can be helpful others makes them seem worthwhile!  We talk about how to overcome the challenges of being a woman and trying to carry a firearm a lot here on our blog.  If you'd like to receive the latest posts straight to your inbox, be sure to SUBSCRIBE now!