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Over the past couple years, I have been slowly adjusting my clothes to fit the lifestyle I want to lead, which is lots of movement no matter what I am doing. This means whether I am working on my computer, working out, spending time with family, doing household chores; I need to be able to move well.

This is of the utmost importance to me as I came to realize it about two years ago. I was so used to coming home from school or work and immediately changing out of my uncomfortable clothes into something more tolerable. This is a completely needless process, I think we can all agree.

Do we really need overly tight and uncomfortable clothes for our jobs, only to come home and peel them off? I don’t think so. I think there’s a way to find more dynamic clothing that serves multiple purposes. 

I remember when I used to wear a suit that I would come home from work or an event with a tight lower back, almost every time. I knew exactly why too; I wasn’t able to bend my knees very much in the pants and I didn’t want my shirt to come untucked either so I didn’t bend my knees or back much. A severe lack of bending and movement spells tightness. 

My viewpoint is that my movement should not be limited by any of the clothes I wear. I should always be able to do a deep squat, raise my arms over my head, make a lunge, and do any other activities that I would normally do.

This was also an attempt to slim down my wardrobe as well because I got tired of having so many clothes with all of them only serving one purpose each: for work, exercising, yard work, etc. Here are some options and ideas for pants that allow you to move without sacrificing style:

What I’ve done to combat this is look at three areas. First, get a different fit of pants. Second, find the right type of pants. Lastly, and most obvious, seek out pants that stretch or flex a lot.

Fit

As for the fit of pants, it’s all too easy to be pushed into buying slim fit pants. Men and women alike have been going through this extensive trend for years now. Let’s be honest, it certainly isn’t for function. It’s for the look.

So now I will typically get pants that are “straight” fit or “athletic” fit. Both of these seem to leave a little extra room in the legs so I can bend my knees more and move more freely.

The biggest problem with slim fit is that as the waist size goes down, so does the space for the legs. So if you have a thin waist like me, you have to sacrifice space for your thighs if you want the waist to fit.

For many years, I have intentionally bought a waist size or two bigger than I should just so the legs will fit better and I tie off the waist with a tight belt. I’m getting tired of doing this though because I still feel like a little kid trying to fit into his hand-me-downs.

By seeking out fits that are looser by nature, I can go down in waist size so it fits better and fill out the space in the legs more while still remaining comfortable.

Type

This is probably the most important area to look into because it is not always clear which pants will allow for more movement.

For example, I expected that most work pants made by companies like Dickies or Wrangler would incorporate some stretch to their pants because they supply lots of mechanics, construction workers, and similar types of jobs. However, I’ve found their pants to be pretty stiff for the most part, which surprised me.

What I found instead is that if you want casual looking, but outdoor-ready pants, look for “hiking mountain” style pants for maximum functionality. They are typically easier to find with some stretch, quick-dry, and other functional features than “guide pro” or “trail” pants.

If you need your pants to look formal for work or special occasions, look for “travel pants” or “tech pants” as they maintain the look of some quality chinos while being much more flexible.

I have found that these are ideal if you’re into clothes that you can dress up and down. A nice shirt with buttons makes these look business casual, but a sweatshirt can make them look like relaxed khakis.

These pants are a minimalist’s best friend as they are so versatile and cover multiple kinds of occasions.

Stretch

In addition to this, I am only getting pants that have some stretch to them. A simple guideline to go by is when you check the tag on the inside of the pants that tell you the materials the pants are made of, look for 98% cotton, 2% elastane or spandex. This is a great baseline for better performing pants.

You’ll sometimes see more elastane or spandex, say like 15%, but manufacturers seem to start at around 2% because most people are happy enough with that.

Try some with 2-3% of a stretchy fabric first to see how they feel. Making the sudden jump to very stretchy pants can feel a little unnerving at work when you feel like you’re wearing sweatpants in a professional setting.

If you’re more serious, look for pants that are 100% polyester. Polyester is another excellent material, similar to elastane, that can help formal-looking pants be more flexible.

I just bought two pairs of pants that are slim fit but being made of all polyester, I can bend and move in them like sweatpants. 

Ultimately, these are just my recommendations. I was tired of settling on pants that didn’t fit correctly and didn’t allow me to move like I wanted to. I set out to solve this problem for myself and hopefully I’ve given you some better direction as well.