You pull them on before the sun is properly up, tug the waistband once, and then forget about it for an hour

The first thing you notice is what is missing. There is no side seam down the leg, because the body is knitted in one piece on a circular machine, so nothing runs along the outside of the thigh to rub. The waistband is wide and sits high above the navel, flat rather than rolled, and it folds back on itself when you pull it. From there the knit narrows through the hip and stops at mid thigh.

Look at the back and you can read the construction. A rounded centre panel is outlined by a curved seam, and around it the maker has knitted panels in a denser stitch, worked in a deeper shade of the same yarn. Those panels sit at the hip, across the seat and along the hem band. They look open at a glance and they are not: on every colourway the texture follows the tone of the fabric, which is how you know it is a jacquard stitch and not a perforation. Polyester fibre throughout, with a great deal of stretch.

Key Benefits

• No side seam The leg is knitted in the round, so there is no outside seam to sit under a waistband, a leotard or a pair of leggings worn over the top.
• Wide high waistband The band is deep enough to sit above the navel and smooths the midsection, staying flat when you fold forward rather than rolling into a cord.
• Jacquard texture panels A denser stitch in a deeper tone of the same yarn marks the hip, the seat and the hem. It is knitted texture, not holes, so nothing shows through.
• Contoured back A rounded centre panel with a curved seam around it, which is what gives the back of these shorts their shape on the hanger as well as on the body.
• Five colours, five sizes Black, khaki, grey, blue and red, in S through XXL. One pair per order.

Best for: Anyone who already trains in short leg bottoms and wants a seam free pair for mat work, cycling on a stationary bike, or wearing under a longer top on a hot day.

Why It Works

Cut and sew shorts are assembled from flat panels, and every join between those panels is a seam that can rub. A circular knit short skips that step: the body comes off the machine as a tube and the only seams left are the crotch gusset and the back curve. That is the whole idea here, and everything else follows from it. The waistband can be wide because it is knitted rather than elasticated. The texture at the hip can be a change of stitch rather than a separate piece of fabric. The trade is that the shape is fixed by the knit, so the sizing matters more than it would on a drawstring pair.

Quick Product Facts: Seamless circular knit shorts; polyester fibre per the maker; wide high rise waistband sitting above the navel; rounded centre back panel with a curved seam; jacquard texture panels at hip, seat and hem in a deeper tone of the same yarn; mid thigh hem; no pocket and no drawstring; colours black, khaki, grey, blue and red; sizes S, M, L, XL and XXL; packing list reads yoga shorts times one.

How It Fits Your Routine

First wear is the test of the waistband. Put them on, fold forward, sit down cross legged, and see whether the band stays where you left it. A seamless knit relaxes over the first few wears and then settles, so if the pair feels firm on day one that is normal rather than a size down.

They wash like any knit and dislike heat more than they dislike water. Cold machine wash on a gentle cycle, no fabric softener, and let them dry flat or on a rail rather than in a tumble dryer. Heat is what kills the elastane in a stretch knit and there is no repairing that afterwards.

Over a season the pair that gets worn most is usually the darkest one, because a marl knit shows sweat less on black and grey than on the paler shades. If you already know you train hard, order the black and keep the colour for the mat.

FAQ

Is this a five pack? No. The maker graphic carries a five pieces badge and it refers to the five colours on offer. The packing list reads yoga shorts times one, and the options make you pick a single colour and a single size, so one pair arrives.

Are the textured panels mesh? No. They are a jacquard stitch in a denser knit, worked in a deeper shade of the same yarn. Compare the colourways and you will see the texture change tone with the fabric, which an open weave would not do. There are no holes.

Do these smooth and shape? Yes. The dense seamless knit and the wide, high waistband sit close and smooth over the midsection, and the contoured back panel follows your shape for a sculpted, held in feel through a workout.

Do they dry quickly? Yes. The maker builds them in a moisture wicking, fast drying polyester, so the knit pulls sweat off the skin and dries quickly between sessions.