When I run, I like to wear compression shorts. I’ve worn them for the past decade, when I first heard that they were good for muscles. It took me six years before I figured out that I should be actually wearing real compression shorts instead of just spandex bicycle shorts. Live and learn. No harm, no foul.
Now that I’m wearing the proper shorts, I’ve come to respect the science. They feel like they keep my muscles from moving where they shouldn’t.
But I have had a few bad experiences with them.
The first pair I got seemed to really work. However, they may have been a bit too small for me. It’s hard to tell the sizing because they are supposed to fit tightly. Anyway, they ripped in the seams. (I wonder if a tailor could fix them?)
After a few other rips like that, I stopped buying the expensive ones, and got the mid-range models. These don’t feel as great; my muscles feel more mobile. However, I get in a rut easily, so I’ll keep at them.
What I am now noticing is not ripping in the seams, but holes appearing from wear.
It took me a couple of years to figure out, but pockets are very helpful when you are on an ultramarathon. A backpack stores a lot of stuff, but isn’t very accessible. A belt with pouches has clasps and zippers to keep them closed, which is defeating the purpose of easy accessibility. Everything is more difficult if you are already holding poles in your gloved hands. It’s nice to have a few small things, like food or a camera, that I can get to quickly and easily. So I took to wearing some shorts over my compression shorts. (It probably also made me look better; not quite as much on display.)
However, with these mid-range compression shorts, the fabric isn’t as wear-resistant. My thighs are huge. It looks like I’m wearing jodhpurs. So there is a lot of friction in the crotch. If I wear shorts, that friction will actually wear away at the compression shorts, causing holes. So, the shorts that are supposed to prevent everything from being on display, are actually causing everything to be on display.
I still need to carry things.
I’ve experimented with belts, but I find they bounce too much. And they also cause friction as the band rubs against the shorts. Is there a combination of belt and shorts?
So what I need is basically like shorts, except with no fabric in-between the legs. Then I can get deep pockets so that things don’t fall out. Best of both worlds.
…
I’ve just described a running skirt, haven’t I?

Do they come in men’s sizes? And can we call them kilts?