Kurio Performance Compression Tights review: lightweight leggings well worth the investment

Tailor made to highly accurate bespoke measurements, Kurio Performance Compression Tights are top-end high-performance leggings

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Kurio Performance Compression Tights
(Image: © Kurio)

Advnture Verdict

Overall, although they are undeniably on the pricey side, if you want the best – and especially if you have an asymmetrical body (for example if you have big calves or quads) – then these leggings are a good investment.

Pros

  • +

    Excellent (graduated) compression fit to reduce muscle soreness

  • +

    Silver treated to combat odor

  • +

    Suitable for asymmetrical body types

  • +

    Suitable for disabled athletes

  • +

    Lightweight

  • +

    Recycled nylon materials used

Cons

  • -

    Hard to get on

  • -

    Expensive

  • -

    Only come in black

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First impressions

Kurio go to extreme lengths to make sure their Kurio Performance Compression Tights are fit for purpose. Emphasis on fit. Immediately, from their bespoke 3D measuring service, it’s clear that you are getting the five-star treatment from British-based sports performance specialists Kurio. Handmade leggings are their USP, and their tailored individual fitting process is second to none.

Of course, this is reflected in the price (which can be reduced by 30 per cent by submitting your own measurements through their website). There are three categories of leggings to chose from: Performance, Recovery and Travel.

Specifications

• RRP: $330 (US) / £240 (UK)
• Weight: 148g / 5.2oz
• Colors: Black
• Compatibility: Trail running, road running, hiking, skiing, orienteering, cycling, rugby, field sports, gym

On the trails

The skintight fit makes getting these leggings on slightly tricky, although the Performance tights, which come marked with P stitched on the back, are slightly roomier than the other categories. Once on, they are comfortable and sufficiently warm to wear in most temperatures. The fabric offers UV protection and is coated on the outside with silver (an antibacterial agent), which protects against build up of odor.

Having tried and tested these in a variety of landscapes over a 12-month period, we can say that their recycled nylon fibers are surprisingly durable.

We have been wearing the leggings on long, muddy runs on Dartmoor as well as for interval runs, and as under leggings in Baltic-like freezing conditions. They are comfortable when used alone, and also unobtrusive when worn under trousers.

They do seem to make a difference in delayed onset muscle soreness after intense exercise, although the jury is still out on whether they can truly live up to the claim of actually improving performance.

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Ceri Rees

Founder of Wild Running and Wild Running Events, and a regular podium-placer at trail running events around the South West, Ceri has a background in journalism. He started and edited an outdoors supplement for a daily newspaper, has written for several national outdoors magazines and newspapers, and produces his own podcast. He can trace his interest in adventure back to when, as a slightly precocious six-year-old, he convinced his cousins and older sister to walk through the night into the centre of Newcastle in their pyjamas for a dare – an escapade that ended in a lift home in a police car. More recently, he became the de facto UK Snowshoe Running Champion when he was the first Brit to cross the finish line at the 2019 World Snowshoe Championships in Fondo, Trentino.