Replacing conventional activewear with lower-tox alternatives can get expensive quickly, so when one of the brands that made our list of the best low-tox activewear labels takes 25% off, it’s worth knowing about. LETE Active is currently offering 25% off, giving you a chance to save on its bamboo-based leggings, shorts, sports bras, tops and men’s activewear while upgrading some of the pieces you probably spend a lot of time sweating in. We previously included LETE in our guide to low-tox activewear, but there’s an important distinction to make before assuming that anything labelled “bamboo” belongs in the same category. Bamboo starts as a natural, renewable plant, but most bamboo fabric is a regenerated cellulose fibre, meaning the plant material has to be broken down and processed before it becomes the soft fabric you wear. Conventional bamboo viscose and rayon can involve chemically intensive manufacturing, so even “organic bamboo” tells you more about how the original plant was grown than how the finished fabric was produced. LETE uses Tanboocel®, a regenerated cellulose fibre made from organically grown bamboo pulp. According to the brand, its Tanboocel® is manufactured using controlled solvent-recovery systems that capture and reuse processing solvents, reducing the environmental impact compared with conventional viscose production. There are also several certifications behind the fabric that help distinguish it from generic bamboo activewear. The bamboo pulp is sourced through FSC®-certified forestry and carries Organic Content Standard certification, while LETE’s fabric mill is OEKO-TEX® Standard 100 certified, meaning the fibres and dyes are independently tested against limits for hundreds of potentially harmful substances. Production also follows ZDHC chemical-management guidelines designed to reduce the use and release of hazardous chemicals. That combination is a big part of why LETE made our low-tox activewear edit in the first place. It gives you more information about the fibre’s origins, processing and chemical standards than simply seeing “bamboo” printed on a garment label. It’s worth noting that LETE activewear isn’t entirely synthetic-free. Its performance pieces still require elastane to provide stretch, support and shape retention, with many styles predominantly made from Tanboocel® bamboo viscose and a smaller percentage of elastane. Some of the brand’s newer pieces use Creora® Bio-Based elastane, which replaces a portion of conventional petroleum-derived inputs with renewable plant-based material. The result is activewear that retains the sculpting, stretchy feel you actually need for training while substantially reducing the amount of petroleum-based synthetic fibre compared with the polyester and nylon-dominant fabrics commonly used in activewear. LETE’s bamboo-derived fabric is also designed to be soft, breathable and moisture-managing, making it suitable for everything from Pilates and yoga to walking, gym sessions and everyday wear. So while we wouldn’t suggest buying something simply because the label says “bamboo”, LETE is one of the brands where it’s worth looking at what sits behind that claim. You can currently save 25% on LETE Active with the code SAVE25.
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