How short should men’s running shorts actually be?

Have you found yourself holding up a pair of running shorts with an inseam shorter than your hand span and having a momentary crisis over what the group behind you at parkrun is going to see? This one is for you.

Standard running shorts length for men

There are three lengths that dominate: three inches, which is shorter than some of the underwear in your drawer; five inches, a completely reasonable number that still looks surprisingly short; and seven inches which is the overcorrection after five inches looked too short.

3” shorts: short distance and race

Barely-there and built for one job: letting your hip flex through a full stride with zero fabric getting in the way while just about keeping your balls inside your pants. This is what you see on start lines and track sessions, because it genuinely moves the least and is easily the most comfortable shorts for short distances where you don’t need to worry about chafing. 

You’ll be showing off all of your legs which may be a positive or a negative depending on your views on your own body. If it makes you feel self-conscious: simply run faster and you will whizz past people so quickly no one will be able to see what you’re wearing.

5” shorts: long distance and comfort

5” shorts have enough coverage that you won’t think about it within a few minutes of putting them on. There’s enough room through the hip that it doesn’t slow you down, and usually enough waistband real estate for a proper pocket. If someone forced you to own exactly one pair of running shorts for life, this is the safe answer.

7” shorts: the burqa of men’s running shorts

More thigh coverage, zero risk of your balls popping out to say hi. There’s nothing functionally wrong with longer shorts, but you’re not necessarily more protected from chafing by having more material and you’re less on-display.

Should men wear running tights?

If you suffer with chafing, tights might be your answer. A single layer of compression fabric between your thighs means skin rubs against smooth material instead of the opposite leg, and it works reliably for almost everyone who tries it. Runners who chafe badly in any length of shorts very often stop chafing completely when they switch to tights.

The trade-off: compression fabric is compressed, by design, which means whatever you’re working with is now rendered in full definition. Some men find this mortifying. A growing number have simply stopped caring, or started actively choosing tights for exactly this reason — fair play. The male form in head-to-toe Lycra is not a bad look, and pretending otherwise is modesty doing a lot of unpaid overtime. Wear the tights. 

2-in-1: shorts and tights combined

A 2-in-1 is exactly what it sounds like: a looser outer short with a built-in compression liner underneath, stitched together so you make one decision instead of two. The liner stops the friction just like a normal pair of full tights, while the outer layer gives you a normal shorts silhouette instead of displaying your manhood.

It’s the compromise pick for anyone who wants the chafing protection without fully committing to the display: all of the practical benefits while leaving something for the imagination. Whether that counts as a sensible middle ground or just not being ready yet is between you and the mirror.

What you’re carrying changes which length makes sense

Length isn’t purely a chafing-and-confidence decision: for longer runs you may find yourself needing to carry an array of food and hydration items which all need storing somewhere. Races are also becoming more green - at the Paris Half Marathon you had to bring your own vessel to refill at water stations, adding yet another item to store on your person while running.

If your fuelling plan involves carrying real food rather than one gel, three inches of fabric with nowhere to put anything stops being a viable option.

The verdict on short-shorts

Men’s running shorts should be short enough that you don’t feel them, and long enough that you don’t feel self-conscious. Running in 3” shorts is the comfiest thing you could possibly run in for short distances if you ask me, but the chafing can be brutal on long runs. 

The goal is to feel like Kipchoge and look like Captain America.