Size guide for tights

A size guide for tights has to start somewhere other than the chart. The number on the label describes the measurements of the garment. It does not describe how the garment sits after an hour, after ten squats or after the fifth wash.

Two pairs of tights can carry the same size and still feel entirely different. The difference lies in the density of the knit, in how high the waist is cut and in where the seams are placed. Choosing a size is therefore as much a question of construction as of centimetres.

Measure first, compare after

Take two measurements. The waist where you are narrowest, the hip where you are widest. Hold the tape level against the body and do not pull it tight. Then compare with the size guide for the model you are looking at, not with the size you usually buy in other garments.

If waist and hip land in different sizes, the hip measurement weighs heaviest in tights. The lower body is loaded most over hip and thigh, and a garment that is too tight there travels downwards however well the waist sits. We have written more about it in why do my tights slide down during training.

Take a third measurement if you are short or long in the leg: the inside of the leg, from the crotch to the ankle bone. It decides whether a full-length model ends where it should or gathers in folds at the ankle. Folds at the ankle are usually a question of leg length, not of size, and a capri or a three-quarter length solves it better than a size down.

Measure yourself again once a year. The body changes slowly enough that you do not notice, and enough that a pair that fitted last year sits wrong this year.

How the right size feels

The right size shows itself by nothing getting in the way. The waistband stays still when you sit down. The fabric is dense enough to support without turning sheer when you bend your knees. The side seams run straight and do not twist around the thigh.

Give the garment a few minutes before you decide. Sit down, stand up, walk a few steps. Pull the waistband up properly once and then leave it. If you need to pull it up again within five minutes, the size or the model is wrong for you.

A concrete measure: you should get two fingers inside the waistband without the fabric pulling. If nothing goes in, the garment is pressing, and that pressure only becomes more noticeable through the day. If your whole hand goes in, the tights will slide. More signs to go by are in how should training tights fit.

When you fall between two sizes

Start from the use, not from the number.

If the tights are to carry heavy lifts, intervals or the treadmill, choose the smaller. There, hold matters more than margin. If they are to carry a travel day, a walk and an evening at home, choose the larger. There, comfort over the stomach in hour seven decides whether the garment gets worn again.

If you already have a pair that works, measure it. Lay the tights flat and measure the width of the waistband from seam to seam, and the width across the thigh a hand's width below the crotch. Those two numbers are more useful than your memory the next time you are facing a purchase.

The fabric changes how the size is experienced

A densely knitted performance fabric gives more support than a thinner fabric in the same size. Edge Stripe Leggings are sewn in 78 per cent recycled polyester of the ECO Circle type and 22 per cent elastane, with four-way stretch and moderate compression. The fabric works with the body and returns to its shape. A pair with a lower elastane content does not do the same, and there the choice of size becomes more sensitive.

Sculpting models are their own matter. The effect comes from the pattern construction: shaped panels, seams placed to lift, a waistband sewn in shape rather than straight. See sculpting training tights. The size is chosen as usual. Do not go up to compensate for the fabric feeling firmer in the hand, because then the construction loses its effect.

The height of the waist also affects the experience. A high waist spreads the pressure over a larger area and often feels softer than a lower waistband in the same size, even though it holds harder.

Size when the tights are part of a set

A set falls on the piece that sits differently from the rest. If the tights lie close to the body and the top loosely, the whole reads unevenly, even if each garment on its own is the right size.

Start from the lower body. It has the least margin and is the hardest to compensate for. Choose the size there first and let the top follow. The whole range is gathered under training tights for women, where you can compare the height of the waistband between models before you decide.

One last thing about size guides. They differ between brands, and sometimes between models from the same brand, because they start from different patterns. Always read the guide that belongs to the garment you are looking at. If you have ordered two sizes home, try them the same day and in the same order every time: the smaller first. The body adjusts quickly to pressure, and if you try the larger last it always feels the most comfortable without being right for that reason.

Common questions

Should I go up a size in tights?

Only if you fall between two sizes and the garment is to be worn for many hours at a stretch. For training most choose the smaller of the two. Tights that are a size too large slide, and that shows first when you are warm and in the middle of a session.

Do training tights shrink in the wash?

Performance fabric in polyester and elastane does not shrink in practice. What happens is that the elasticity is tired out by heat. Wash at no more than 40 degrees and hang to dry, and the garment keeps its measurements and its shape.

How do I know the tights are too small?

The fabric turns lighter where it is stretched most, usually over thigh and seat. The waistband rolls down. The side seams twist forwards. A single one of those signs is enough to go up a size.

Anything but ordinary.